The Jay T. Snider Collection of Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin Autograph letter signed ("BFranklin") to Dr. Edward Bancroft ("Dear Sir"), 2 pages (238 x 188 mm) on a single leaf of laid paper (unwatermarked), Philadelphia, 25 November 1786, discussing his plans for an autobiography and the future of the nascent United States; trace of album mount at left edge. Half green morocco folding-case, red morocco labels. An exceptional letter to Edward Bancroft—friend, physician, secretary to the American legation in Paris (and double-agent for England)—revealing the genesis of “the most widely read of all American autobiographies” (Grolier/American 21). Benjamin Franklin's autobiography has been said to “hold the essence of the American way of life,” and it was a text that Franklin long labored over. He completed the manuscript for the early years of his life (though 1731, when he was twenty-five) in 1771, but his many other interests and the American Revolution conspired to prevent him from taking the story further. A request from publisher Charles Dilly for a new uniform edition of Franklin's works, however, caused the polymath to consider again taking up his autobiography. Edward Bancroft had written to Franklin on 5 September 1786, reporting that Franklin’s “Philosophical Works are out of Print in this Country, and so is the Political Volume Published by Mr. B. Vaughan.” In light of this, Bancroft continued, “Mr. Dilly and one or two other Eminent Booksellers have therefore determined on Printing a new Elegant Edition of every thing of yours both Philosophical and Political which has yet appear’d or which can be procured in time; the Work being already in part sent to the Press. … To this Edition it is intended to fix an Account of the Author written by one of the Writers of the Biographia Brittanica, who I am told will accord with the Wishes of your Friends at least so far as the Writers Knowledge of Facts may enable him to be accurate and do you justice. … Having some reason to believe that among the Papers which you had left in America during the late War, as well as among those which you carried from Europe, there might be some that you would willingly see added to the intended Edition of your Works, I determined to give you this account of what was in Agitation and advised the Editors (particularly Mr. Dilly) to keep the impression unfinished until I could hear from you respecting it, which they have promised to do. If therefore you should have any thing to add to the materials before mentioned, I could wish that you or your Grandson, would take the trouble [of] sending it to me here, and if he should know and think proper to add any facts that might enable me to Correct or improve the Proposed Biographical part, I shall receive them with thanks and endeavour to make a becoming use of them.” Franklin quickly responded in the present letter, and while clearly flattered by the prospect of a new collected edition of his writings, he also expresses the desire that his earlier publishers be treated fairly. He further makes clear that the intended biographical notice of himself will almost certainly be unsatisfactory, but that he has been convinced by friends to write the story of his own life: “I received your kind Letter of Sept. 5. informing me of the Intention Mr. Dilly has of printing a new Edition of my Writings, and of his Desire that I would furnish him with such Additions as I may think proper. At present all my Papers and Manuscripts are so mixt with other things by the Confusions occasioned in sudden and various Removals during the late Troubles, that I can hardly find any thing. But having nearly finished an Addition to my House, which will afford me Room to put all in Order, I hope soon to be able to comply with such a Request; But I hope Mr. Dilly will have a good Understanding in the Affair, with Henry and Johnson, who having risqu’d the former Impressions may suppose they thereby acquir’d some Right in the Copy. As to the Life propos’d to be written, if it be by the same hand who furnish’d a Sketch to Dr. Lettsom, which he sent me, I am afraid it will be found too full of Errors for either you or me to correct: And having been persuaded by my Friends Messrs Benja Vaughan, M. Le Veillard, Mr. James of this Place, and some others, that such a Life written by my self may be useful to the rising Generation, I have made some Progress in it, and hope to finish it this Winter. So I cannot but wish that Project of Mr Dilly’s Biographer may be laid aside. I am nevertheless thankful to you for your Friendly Offer to correcting it.” Unfortunately, Franklin's projection of a completion date for his memoir was far too optimistic. His 1771 manuscript first appeared in Paris in 1791 in an unauthorized French translation that was wedded to a translation of Wilmer's Memoirs of Franklin for the period after 1731 (see lot 145). The English text first appeared in 1793, and although its author never formally completed it, Franklin's Autobiography has indeed been very useful to later generations. Franklin was very familiar with all of the publishers that he mentions here. David Henry and Joseph Johnson had both previously published volumes by Franklin (see lots 59, 120), and in 1787, Dilly did issue the new edition of Franklin's Philosophical and Miscellaneous Papers, which Franklin alludes to in this letter (see lot 137). (Dilly was later to publish the first edition of James Boswell's Life of Johnson.) After informing Franklin of “what was in Agitation” regarding the pending new edition of his works, Bancroft admitted “I have very little to say to you in the way of News.” Still, he alludes to the Eden Treaty, an anticipated commercial agreement between Britain and France, and observes that “There does not appear the smallest probability of any Commercial Treaty between this Country and the United States.” Franklin picks up this theme in the closing paragraph of his response, predicting a bright future for the youthful United States, despite some festering factionalist disputes, including the recently quelled Shay's Rebellion in Massachusetts, and hinting at a coming federal constitution: “As to Public Affairs, it is long since I gave over all Expentations of a Commercial Treaty between us and Britain; and I think we can do as well or better without one than she can. Our Harvests are plenty, our Produce fetches a high Price in hard Money and there is in every Part of our Country incontestible Marks of public Felicity. We discover indeed some Errors in our general and particular Constitutions; which is no wonder they should have, the time in which they were formed being considered. But those we shall mend. The little Disorders you have heard of in some of the States, rais’d by a few wrong Heads are subsiding, and will probably soon be extinguis’d. My best Wishes and those of my Family attend you. We shall be happy to see you here when it suits you to visit us: being with sincere and great Esteem my dear Friend, Yours most affectionately. …” REFERENCES Franklin’s letter to Bancroft, as well as the Bancroft letter to which it is an answer, both remain unpublished, but they will be included in a forthcoming volume of The Papers of Benjamin Franklin; in the meantime, the texts, without editorial apparatus, are available at franklinpapers.org. PROVENANCE Christie’s New York, 28 November 1983, lot 311 (undesignated consignor) — James S. Copley (Sotheby’s New York, 13 December 2011, lot 259)

View 1 of Lot 136: Benjamin Franklin | “a Life written by my self may be useful to the rising Generation”

benjamin franklin | “a life written by my self may be useful to the rising generation”

Benjamin Franklin Letterpress broadside document signed (“BFranklin”) as Postmaster General of British America, printed on a half-sheet of laid paper (227 x 370 mm; watermarked posthorn | D & C Blauw), [Philadelphia,] 10 January 1764, accomplished in a clerical hand, also signed by the joint Postmaster General (“John Foxcroft”), heraldic red wax seal of the Post Office; browned, rebacked with paper, closing some fold separations and a couple of small holes, with one letter and portions of two others supplied in ink facsimile. Headed “Benjamin Franklin, and John Foxcroft, Esquires, Post-Masters-General of all His Majesty’s Provinces and Dominions on the Continent of North-America,” this appointment reads, “To All to whom these Presents shall come, Greeting, Know ye, That We the said Benjamin Franklin and John Foxcroft, having received good Testimony of the Fidelity, and Loyalty to His Majesty, of Abraham Hunt, of Trenton, in New-Jersey, Gent. and reposing great Trust and Confidence in the Knowledge, Care, and Ability of the said Abraham Hunt, to execute the Office and Duties required of a Deputy Post-Master, have Deputed, Constituted, Authorized, and Appointed, and by these Presents do Depute, Constitute, Authorize, and Appoint the said Abraham Hunt, to be our lawful and sufficient Deputy, to Execute the Office of Deputy Post-Master at Trenton in New-Jersey, aforesaid, to have, hold, use, exercise and enjoy the said Office, with all and every the Rights, Privileges, Benefits and Advantages, to the same belonging, from the Day of the Date hereof for the Term of three Years, unless sooner removed by us, under such Conditions, Covenants, Provisoes, Payments, Orders and Instructions, to be faithfully observed, performed, and done, by the said Deputy, and Servants, as he or they shall, from Time to Time, receive from Us, or by our Order. In Witness whereof, We the said Benjamin Franklin, and John Foxcroft, have hereunto set our Hands, and caused the Seal of our Office to be affixed: Dated the Tenth Day of January, 1764, in the Fourth Year of His Majesty’s Reign.” Of all of his civil posts, Benjamin Franklin was a postmaster for the longest period: he became the postmaster of Philadelphia in 1737 under the British Parliamentary postal system; in 1753 he was appointed one of two Postmasters-General for the North American colonies (first with William Hunter and, after Hunter’s death, with John Foxcroft) and held this post until January 1774, when his growing sympathy for American independence led to his dismissal; and, finally, during a brief sojourn in Philadelphia between long stays in London and Paris, he served as the first Postmaster General of the Unted States from July 1775 to November 1776. Despite his lengthy tenure, postal service appointments signed by Franklin are of the greatest rarity. The Papers of Benjamin Franklin located five colonial post-office commissions signed by Franklin—all in institutional collections—in addition to the present: Thomas Vernon, Newport, Rhode Island, 24 December 1754 (New York Public Library); Woodward Abraham, Marblehead, Massachusetts, 10 April 1758 (American Philosophical Society); Thomas MacKreth, Charles Town, South Carolina, 11 July 1760 (New York Public Library); William Ellery, Hartford, Connecticut, 22 October 1767 (Beinecke Library, Yale); and Philip Skene, Skenesborough, New York, 5 June 1771 (Fort Ticonderoga Museum). Only one example appears in the auction records: Woodward Abraham’s appointment was sold at Charles Hamilton Galleries, 25 March 1971, lot 154. In addition, we have identified two United States post-office commissions signed by Franklin that extended the service of recipients of his colonial appointments: Abraham Hunt, 13 October 1775, is described in the Papers, 11:3–6 (then the property of Theodore Sheldon, Chicago; current location unknown); and William Ellery, 25 September 1775 (sold, Heritage Auctions, 8 August 2025, lot 47072). “Franklin had been appointed joint deputy postmaster general of North America in 1753 and had journeyed as far as New Hampshire and Williamsburg, Virginia, to plot the best postal routes and set up new post offices. Over the next few years he enlarged the reach of the post office north, south, and west, and made mail delivery along the major routes quicker and more frequent. He designed forms for postmasters, instituted home delivery of letters in the cities, advertised uncollected mail, created a dead-letter office, and began delivering newspapers and magazines (and charging for doing so). He was the most entrepreneurial, efficient postmaster America ever had—and the only one under whom the post office ever made a profit” (Lemay). Abraham Hunt was the principal merchant of Trenton and an ardent supporter of the American cause. He was a member of the New Jersey Committee of Correspondence and a lieutenant colonel in the Hunterdon County militia. On Christmas evening, 1776, Hunt entertained at his home, among other guests, Hessian Colonel Johann Rall, who became so engrossed in card playing and general revelry that he paid no attention to a Loyalist informant who tried to warn him of Washington’s planned crossing of the Delaware River. Hunt’s sociability threw him under patriot suspicion, from which he was exonerated, and the Papers note that “Rall enjoyed, somewhat to excess, his Christmas revels the night before Washington’s surprise attack in 1776, and Hunt’s ‘hospitality’ doubtless contributed to the success of the Americans.” Rall was killed during the Battle of Trenton. REFERENCES Papers of Benjamin Franklin, ed. Labaree, 11:3–6; J. A. Leo Lemay, in Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World, pp. 34–36 PROVENANCE Theodore Sheldon, Chicago (credited in Papers)

View 1 of Lot 91: Benjamin Franklin | An appointment for a Deputy Postmaster 

benjamin franklin | an appointment for a deputy postmaster

Benjamin Franklin Remarques Sur la Navigation de Terre-Neuve à New-York afin d’éviter les Courrants et les bas-fonds au Sud de Nantuckett et du Banc de George. Paris: Le Rouge, circa 1782 Engraved map (sheet: 470 x 623 mm; platemark: 335 x 380 mm). Separately issued, large-paper copy, with full margins and deckle edges, a manuscript note on the verso: "Presented to the Congl. Library,/by Dr. Thos. Hewson Bache, Philadelphia"; minor dust-soiling, a miniscule ink stain, and few short tears along the edges, far from the printed surface, small pencil notation in lower right, a near pristine copy. Matted. A fine copy of Franklin's second chart of the Gulf Stream, printed in Paris by George-Louis Le Rouge, offered here with full margins and an inscription on the verso from Dr. Thomas Hewson Bache, Franklin's great-great grandson. The chart is both a scientific achievement and a diplomatic statement, asserting America's dominance over the Atlantic while suggesting a special relationship between the United States and her closest ally, France. Benjamin Franklin's chart of the Gulf Stream was first printed in 1768 by Mount and Page in London while Franklin was serving as Deputy Postmaster General. It is the first map to depict the Gulf Stream's flow. Franklin observed the Stream as early as 1726 while travelling to England, though he did not understand what he had seen. Later, he also noted that a sea voyage from London to Boston was quicker than one from Falmouth to New York, and a trip from America to England was shorter than either of these. In a letter to Anthony Todd dated 29 October 1769, he first claimed that this phenomenon was due to the "Gulph Stream" (Papers of Benjamin Franklin, 15:246–247). Franklin knew that a clearer understanding of the Stream would be a useful tool, especially for his postal system. In order to prove his hypothesis Franklin turned to his cousin Captain Timothy Folger, a mariner from Nantucket who was in London at the time. Folger claimed that Nantucket whalers had long followed and avoided the current, and that they would cruise along the Stream's edges while searching for whales. Folger provided Franklin with a chart of the Stream marked in red, as well as written instructions for navigating both in and around it, and for avoiding the dangerous shoals along its path. He also notes the speed of the Stream, and how it diminishes as the current flows away from America and widens. The map names both Franklin and Folger as its authors, a nearly unprecedented acknowledgement of a scientist and a mariner's close collaboration. The chart of the stream and Folger's navigational directions were engraved onto an existing plate—a four-sheet map of the Atlantic, now obsolete, that had originally appeared in the Atlas Maritimus Novus of 1702. Though copies of that map were distributed to mail-packet ship captains, there was little demand for them, and only three copies are now known to exist, all in institutions (Bibliothèque Nationale de France: 2 Copies; Library of Congress). Franklin's second chart, published around 1782, is an original engraving, unlike the previous example that recycled an old copperplate. It is smaller than the Mount and Page version, focusing only on the North American coastline rather than the whole of the Atlantic. It reprints Folger's instructions, but translated clumsily into French. It does not mention Captain Folger by name. Franklin had disowned his cousin long before — the captain was an English loyalist, like many Nantucketers, and he had illicitly traded with the British while under Franklin's protection. Franklin's hope for the Le Rouge map of the Gulf Stream was to increase and improve trade between France and the United States. As such, these maps were printed in limited numbers, intended for distribution among French ship captains. In 1783, Franklin gave a copy of Le Rouge's map to Michel Guillaume de Crèvecoeur, the director of U.S. affairs in the French Ministry of the Marine. Crèvecoeur had been charged with the creation of a packet-boat service between France and America. On that presentation copy, Franklin crossed out the poorly translated directions, rewrote them in the original English, and made a note about the water's temperature—a sign that Franklin had, in fact, conducted some of his own scientific research on the Gulf Stream. The temperature of the Gulf Stream's waters would be further studied by his grand-nephew, Jonathan Williams. Williams's book, Thermometrical Navigation (1793), would prove that mariners could measure the ocean's temperature to locate the Gulf Stream (see lot 150). Franklin would also produce a third edition of this map in 1786, published in an article in the Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (see lot 137 for a related, 1787 example). Dr. Thomas Hewson Bache (1826–1912), was a prominent Philadelphia physician, a Civil War surgeon, the son of Dr. Franklin Bache, and the great-great grandson of Benjamin Franklin. Dr. Bache inscribed this copy to the Library of Congress. The provenance suggests that this is likely one of the copies that Franklin had kept for himself. This is only the second copy of this map offered at auction in the last ten years, according to Rare Book Hub. REFERENCES Pritchard & Taliaferro, Degrees of Latitude, 62; Joyce E. Chaplin. The First Scientific American: Benjamin Franklin and the Pursuit of Genius, (2006) pp. 196–200, 289–292 PROVENANCE Dr. Thomas Hewson Bache (presumably by descent from Benjamin Franklin) — The Library of Congress (presentation inscription; later deaccessioned)

View 1 of Lot 124: Benjamin Franklin | A separately issued, large paper copy of the Le Rouge edition of Franklin's map of the Gulf Stream

benjamin franklin | a separately issued, large paper copy of the le rouge edition of franklin's map of the gulf stream

[John Wallis] Untitled map of the United States, one of the earliest cartographical depictions of the new nation created by the Treaty of Paris. The large surrounding cartouche with figures of Benjamin Franklin and George Washington. [London: John Wallis, March 1783] Engraved map (sheet: 217 x 290 mm; platemark: 178 x 208 mm). Unrecorded proof state, hand-colored; minor soiling and staining, a few very short edge tears; two corners creased. An unrecorded proof state of this highly decorative map published at the end of the Revolutionary War, commemorating the Treaty of Paris, and celebrating the newly formed United States of America. After the preliminary treaty of Paris was signed on 20 January, 1783, most mapmakers, like Carrington Bowles, Jean Lattré, and Sayer and Bennett, reworked old copperplates and re-engraved "The United States" into their cartouches. This map, on the other hand, is an entirely original engraving, officially published on 18 March 1783. The unusual composition gives far more space to the allegorical border than it does to the rather simple, oval map. That said, the map does delineate the basic borders of each state and gives city and place names. It also includes various other details like the location of French Louisiana, the Spanish Floridas, some major rivers and lakes, as well as a note locating the "Country of Mines" in present-day Missouri. The inset map is flanked by two of America's most important founding fathers—General George Washington, who fought and defeated the British, and diplomat Benjamin Franklin, who negotiated the Treaty of Paris and officially ended the Revolutionary War. Both are accompanied by allegorical figures. Washington is shown being led by Liberty, and Franklin is seen being advised by Wisdom and Justice. Above Washington, winged Fame, with a wreath of laurels in one hand, blows her trumpet to announce the new nation. The background near Franklin includes a pine tree and a pineapple, symbols of American resilience, wealth, and promise. While the publication of a map celebrating American independence in 1783 London may seem surprising, there had for decades been a significant group of Whigs among the British governing classes and their pundits who believed in liberalism and constitutionality. As such, Wallis could have expected this map to be commercially viable. There is a second state of the map dated 18 March 1783, and with the imprint of Wallis and the engravers Thomas Jones Woodman and Henry Mutlow. That state of the map is known in a single copy held at the British Museum (number 1865,0610.1143). Another variant of the map is sometimes found on patriotic transferware jugs (including one offered here at Sotheby's, "Fine Books and Manuscripts," 16 July 2021, lot 50). Wallis produced a second commemorative map of the United States, dated 3 April 1783, titled "The United States of America laid down from the best authorities, agreeable to the Peace of 1783" (Library of Congress, call number G3700 1783 .W3). The second revision's large size, greater detail, and wider availability, may help explain the rarity of the present map. Interestingly, the decorative cartouche on the April map matches the untitled map offered here almost identically, but the oval inset contains the map's title and is surmounted by a flag, the Stars and Stripes. This led British Museum catalogers to posit that the map offered here may have been cut from that larger plate. However, given the dates that Wallis engraved on his maps, as well as certain small inconsistencies in the engraved longitude lines and at the lower border, it is far more likely that Wallis inserted this smaller copperplate into the larger one and reworked it. REFERENCES Unrecorded, but other states and variants can be found in: Ashley Baynton-Williams, "Maps of the United States (1778–1800)," Mapforum.com, no. 1, maps 22 and 23; (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1865-0610-1143); (https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2021/fine-books-and-manuscripts-2/american-revolution-a-rare-transferware-jug; https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3700.ct000080/?r=0.504,0.608,0.254,0.152,0)

View 1 of Lot 125: John Wallis | A map celebrating America's independence featuring Washington and Franklin, an unrecorded proof state

john wallis | a map celebrating america's independence featuring washington and franklin, an unrecorded proof state

Fine Books and Manuscripts, Including Americana. Part 2

Kendall, George Wilkins, and Carl Nebel The War between the United States and Mexico illustrated, embracing pictorial drawings of all the principal conflicts, by Carl Nebel… with a description of each battle by... Kendall. New York & Philadelphia: [Plon Brothers of Paris] for D. Appleton & Co. and George S. Appleton, 1851 Folio (585 x 439 mm). Plates: 12 hand-colored lithographic plates, heightened with gum arabic, by Bayot or Bayot & Bichebois (plate 10) after Nebel and printed by Lemercier in Paris; scattered foxing and staining generally not affecting the images with the exception of plate 9, remnants of adhesive on the verso of plate 4 presumably where mounted, faint discoloration to the margin of plate 10. Plates laid into portfolio, three quarter red morocco and red cloth portfolio, upper cover gilt-lettered with gilt ornamental design, cloth ties; rebacked to style, skillful restoration, some instances of wear, staining, and scuffing, one cloth tie detached. Text: Printed in two columns; leaf 39,40 misbound before leaf 37,38 but all pages present, some scattered and primarily marginal foxing, a few primarily marginal tears neatly repaired, instances of dampstaining. Original printed wrappers, red cloth backstrip; a few chips, old folds, small areas of restoration, lower cover toned, some minor scratches and dampstaining. All housed in a red morocco folding case; book plate apparently removed from inside cover. First and only edition of this firsthand report and depiction of the Mexican-American War, comprising “the very best American battle scenes in existence” (Bennett). Kendall was an early war correspondent, serving as a prominent journalist and co-founder of the New Orleans Picayune before the present undertaking. Kendall joined Generals Winfield Scott and Zachary Taylor when violence broke out between the United States and Mexico. During his reporting, Kendall regularly sent field reports back to the Picayune, giving first hand accounts of the battles. In addition to Kendall’s detailed reporting, the hand-painted lithographed plates are based on sketches by Carl Nebel, completed at the scene. To further the integrity of their shared work, Kendall further narrates the twelve plates in the accompanying text volume, making it clear that “the greatest care has been taken [by Nebel and himself] to avoid inaccuracies.” After on-site reporting and drawings were completed, the two outsourced the final stages of the project to the renowned lithographer Adolphe Jean-Baptiste Bayout and the printer Joseph rose Lemercier, believing their contributions would yield the highest quality result. The New Orleans Picayune praised the work's “artistic skill, perfection of design, marvellous beauty of execution, delicacy of truth of coloring, and lifelike animation of figures…” Today, it is still regarded as “the climax of the confluence of journalism and lithography” (Sandweiss). REFERENCES Bennett, American 19th Century Colour Plate Books, p. 65; Howes K-76; Sandweiss et al., Eyewitness to War: Prints and Daguerreotypes of the Mexican War, 1846-1848,” pp. 36-37; Sabin 37362; Picayune, 15 July 1850

View 1 of Lot 367: Kendall, George Wilkins, and Carl Nebel | First and only edition of this report and illustrations of the Mexican-American War 

kendall, george wilkins, and carl nebel | first and only edition of this report and illustrations of the mexican-american war

Benjamin Franklin Autograph document signed (“Errors excepted per BFranklin,” with large paraph) as colonial agent for Georgia, signed a second time (“BFranklin”) in text, one page on a quarter sheet of paper (165 x 295 mm), Philadelphia, 7 October 1776, being an invoice to the Province of Georgia for “three Years Service as their Agent in England”; browned, laid down on heavier stock, closing some tiny losses and fold separations, with some abrasion and loss of surface paper but costing only a single letter of text and a few very short sections of rules. Half green morocco folding-case gilt, chemise. Franklin’s long tenure as Colonial Agent in England for Pennsylvania (1757–1775) is well known and studied, and, because of his entanglement with the Hutchinson letters, so is his service in the same role for Massachusetts (1771–1775). But Franklin also represented the affairs of two other North American colonies in Parliament: New Jersey (1769–1775 [concurrent with his son William’s term as royal governor of that province]) and Georgia (1768–1774). “The Doctor was appointed Georgia agent in the spring of 1768 as a compromise selection, in the hope that his appointment would end a two-year feud between the two houses of the Georgia legislature. For two years the lower house had attempted to appoint Charles Garth, who was already serving as South Carolina's agent. The upper house consistently refused to concur in the appointment of Garth, and Governor James Wright had backed the upper house by persuading officials in London not to receive Garth as Georgia's agent. Hoping to end the political stalemate, Wright responded positively in the early months of 1768 when the lower house proposed Franklin for the agency. Although the upper house exhibited little enthusiasm for the Doctor, its members went along. … The effective date of Franklin's appointment was 1 June 1768, and the ordinance by which it was made, called upon the new agent to ‘follow and pursue all such instructions, as he shall from time to time receive from the General Assembly’ or from the Assembly's Committee of Correspondence, which was to consist of nine men from the lower house and five from the upper house. Seven members of the committee constituted a quorum and could send instructions, as long as at least two members from the upper house were present when the committee met. The new agent's salary was to be £100 per year over and above expenses” (Morgan, pp. 136–37). Franklin’s formal appointment as Agent for Georgia lapsed on 1 June 1771 and was never renewed, although he continued to represent the colony’s interests. In March 1774, Grey Elliott, a Georgia planter resident in London, was appointed as alternate Colonial Agent for Georgia, with power to act in Franklin’s absence. At the time Franklin sent this invoice, he had been back in America for more than a year and was shortly to sail the Atlantic again for Paris. He had evidently received no monies from Georgia for almost six years. Franklin’s neat statement of accounts is headed “Province of Georgia to BFranklin.” The left column lists his fees and expenses, which total £439.5.11: “To three Years Service as their Agent in England at 100£ Sterling per Ann.} £300.0.0 “To Cash paid for a Mace, Gowns, &c.——107.12.9 “To Do. paid Thos. Life Esqr. Sollicetor 16.1.2 “To Coach & Chair hire, Fees at Offices, and other small Expenses————} 15.12.0” In the right column, Franklin details his compensation received, which leaves him a “Balance” due of £219.5.11: “1770 June 20. By a Bill of Exchange———£100.0.0 “Dec. 11. By Ditto2 Bills————£120.0.0” Franklin’s claim for his agreed to annual salary is unremarkable, as are the charges for various “small Expenses” and for the lawyer Thomas Life, who was appointed to serve with Richard Jackson as London agent for Connecticut in 1760, but who frequently acted as Franklin’s lawyer, including during the Hutchinson letters affair. Less justifiable, perhaps, was the more than £107 charged for the ceremonial regalia required for his attendance at Parliament, which must assuredly already been part of his wardrobe. The Franklin Papers record the final settlement for Franklin’s Massachusetts agency, £1,851 allocated by the colony’s House of Representatives on 23 October 1775 (Papers 22:243–244). Massachusetts had a particular motivation to stay in Franklin’s good graces, as he had been appointed, 30 September 1775, together with Benjamin Harrison of Virginia and Thomas Lynch of South Carolina, to a committee of the Continental Congress to meet at Cambridge with George Washington, recently appointed commander in chief of the newly formed Continental Army, and representatives of the New England colonies to address the commander’s concerns and determine “the most effectual method of continuing, supporting, and regulating a continental army.” Indeed, the very day the committee was appointed, Massachusetts congressional delegate John Adams wrote to James Warren, speaker of the Massachusetts House, asking, “Will it not be excellent Politicks to make Dr Franklin welcome by making him a grant of what is due to him from the Province? if you grant it in your provisional Paper, I suppose you can change it for him into continental” (cf. Papers of John Adams 3:173 and Letters of Delegates to Congress 2:80–81 note). Interestingly, Adams’s letter was carried to Warren by Franklin. Georgia may not have felt the same incentive to settle her debt to Franklin; at the least, there is no record in the Papers of Benjamin Franklin that she did so. On 25 October 1776, Franklin sent a copy of his invoice—almost certainly the present document—to Savannah doctor and statesman Noble Wimberly Jones, explaining, “Being just about to embark for Europe, I take the Liberty of troubling you with my Acct. and requesting you would be so good as to procure an Adjustment of it from your Government, and remit the Sum you receive to my Son-in-law Richard Bache, Secretary of the General Post Office Residing in this Place, whose Rect. shall be a Discharge” (Papers 22:670–671). Franklin’s letter to Jones is now held by the Massachusetts Historical Society, but the enclosed accounting is no longer with it. In a note, the Papers point out that a transcription of the invoice “dated Philadelphia, Oct. 7, 1776, which may have been what he enclosed,” was published in The Historical Magazine and Notes and Queries Concerning the Antiquities, History, and Biography of America, vol. 1 (1857), p. 311, “and has since disappeared.” The note describing Franklin’s account with Georgia is signed “W. S. P.,” and the author stated that the document was in his possession. This may well have been William Stevens Perry (1832–1898), an Episcopal bishop and educator; see William Cushing, Initials and Pseudonyms: A Dictionary of Literary Disguises (New York, 1886). REFERENCES David T. Morgan, The Devious Dr. Franklin, Colonial Agent: Benjamin Franklin’s Years in London (Mercer University Press, 1996), passim PROVENANCE Probably William Stevens Perry (see above) — Christie’s New York, 18 June 2020, lot 92 (undesignated consignor)

View 1 of Lot 113: Benjamin Franklin | "three Years Service as [Georgia's] Agent in England at 100£ Sterling per Ann.".

benjamin franklin | "three years service as [georgia's] agent in england at 100£ sterling per ann.".

Jean Lattré Carte des Etats-Unis de L’Amerique Suivant le Traité de Paix de 1783. Dédiée et Présentée A.S. Excellence Mr. Benjamin Franklin Ministre Plénipotentarie des Etats-Unis de l’Amérique pres la Cour de France, ancien Président de la Pensilvanie et de la Societé Philosophique de Philadelphie, &c, &c. Paris: Delamarche, 1784 Engraved map on a full sheet, hand-colored, flanked on both sides by panels of engraved text (sheets in total: 580 x 1070 mm; neatline: 545 x 765 mm); old folds, a few minor marginal chips, splits, and tears, mostly closed, professionally backed with Japanese tissue. The first French map of the United States, and the first map of the newly formed nation to be published after the ratification of the Treaty of Paris, celebrating the Franco-American alliance, and dedicated to Benjamin Franklin. The first issue, first state, of the map, exceedingly rare with the flanking text panels. Jean Lattré's map of the United States covers the area from Canada to Florida, and from the East Coast to the Mississippi River. The geography draws heavily on earlier maps of North America, primarily John Mitchell's landmark 1755 A Map of the British and French Dominions in North America, a suitable source given that map's role in the boundary negotiations during the Treaty of Paris. It is notable that the United States' borders on Lattré's map do not exactly follow the boundaries that were agreed upon in the treaty, despite being printed a month after the treaty's ratification in May 1784. Instead, the map's primary purpose was journalistic, being an account of the chronology and geography of recent events in the Revolutionary War, rather than a detailed representation of the United State's new post-treaty borders. Lattré was likely influenced by his contemporaries in London, mapmakers like Jeffreys, Faden, and Sayer and Bennett, who often included text in their maps that summarized recent events, or provided other types of information. . The engraved text on the side panels, titled the "Principaux Evenemens Militaires entre les Americains et les Anglois," is organized both chronologically and by state, beginning in April 1775 with Massachusetts and the Battles of Lexington and Concord, and ending in October 1781 in Virginia with The Battle of York. Nearly all of the place names mentioned in the text, even small battles such as Lynch's Creek in South Carolina, are marked on the map. Particular attention is paid to the French forces that took part in the War, highlighting the close alliance between the two nations. Lafayette is mentioned specifically four times, including an amusing anecdote about General Howe promising the ladies of Philadelphia that he would capture the young French officer and bring him to them for dinner. Lattré dedicated his map to Benjamin Franklin, the minister plenipotentiary for the United States, who had been in France since 1776 encouraging French participation in the War. Franklin was incredibly popular in Paris, welcomed everywhere from salon society to the the Académie des Sciences. The map's cartouche, depicting a ship's stern, includes Franklin's own self-conceived, pseudo-aristocratic seal, shown being hung by a sailor on the yardarm. Franklin's seal is accompanied by two others—the recently designed Federal Seal of the United States, and the seal of the Society of the Cincinnati. This is the earliest known depiction of the Society's seal in print. This map is the first issue, first state, with Lattré's imprint, before the addition of the table listing the thirteen states, and before the addition of Washington, D.C., in the map and Vermont in the table. This separately published map is exceptionally rare when found with the flanking text panels. Only four complete copies have been identified: at the Library of Congress, the Library of the Society of the Cincinnati, an example of the second state that appeared recently in the trade, and the present example. Additionally, an example that was owned by a New York dealer appeared on the market in the 1980s with only one panel, while an example at Colonial Williamsburg has incomplete text. REFERENCES Pritchard and Taliaferro, Degrees of Latitude 70; Mary Sponberg Pedley, "A Map for Benjamin Franklin" (Ann Arbor: 2010); https://www.americanrevolutioninstitute.org/masterpieces-in-detail/first-french-map-of-the-united-states/

View 1 of Lot 128: Jean Lattré | The first French map of the newly formed United States of America, dedicated to Benjamin Franklin

jean lattré | the first french map of the newly formed united states of america, dedicated to benjamin franklin

Benjamin Franklin Engraved broadside document signed (“BFranklin,” with paraph) as President of the American Philosophical Society, on laid paper (236 x 357 mm), Philadelphia, 20 January 1786, being Charles C.-J. Le Roux’s certificate of membership in the American Philosophical Society, accomplished in a clerical hand, countersigned by Society Vice Presidents John Ewing, William White, and Samuel Vaughan and by Society Secretaries James Hutchinson, John Foulke, Robert Patterson, and Samuel Magaw, embossed paper seal of the Society suspended from the certificate by original blue silk ribbon; some separations and repair at folds and left platemark. Some light marginal stains. Tipped to a mat board. The membership certificate for Charles C.-J. Le Roux, an educator, inventor, and physicist—and a relatively early French member of the American Philosophical Society: “To all Persons to whom these Presents shall come, Greeting. The American Philosophical Society held at Philadelphia for promoting useful Knowledge, desirous of advancing the Interest of the Society by associating to themselves Men of distinguished Eminence, and of conferring Marks of their Esteem upon Persons of literary Merit have Elected Monsieur Le Roux a Member of the said Philosophical Society, hereby granting unto him all the Rights of Fellowship, with all the Liberties and Privileges thereunto belonging.” The American Philosophical Society was founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1743, but the scholarly society soon lapsed into drowsy inactivity. It was revived in 1767 and two years later merged with the American Society for Promoting Useful Knowledge. Le Roux met Franklin during the latter’s ambassadorship to Paris, and while both were inventors, probably their strongest shared bond was education reform. Le Roux was the founding editor of Journal d’éducation, which he published from 1768 to 1769, reviving the title from 1776 to 1778. He advocated for a pragmatic pedagogy that deemphasized the study of classical languages; this point of view aligned almost exactly with the curriculum Franklin outlined in his Idea of the English School (see lot 55). Le Roux was elected to membership in the APS in 1775; however, the Society did not adopt a membership certificate until 1786, when all living members were entitled to receive one. The present certificate, therefore, is part of the very first issuance. Le Roux spent his entire career in education, rising from a schoolteacher in Amiens to Physicien en l’Université de Paris. He evidently observed M. Le Coeur’s private boarding school in Passy when Franklin’s grandson Benjamin Franklin Bache was a student there. Franklin was invited by the Société Royale de Médecine to observe a demonstration of various swimming experiments and apparatus, including early version of a wetsuit, by Le Roux held at the Bains Chinois on Île Saint-Louis in the Seine on 10 March 1783. Although Franklin was a major advocate of the benefits of swimming, it is not known if Franklin attended Le Roux’s presentation. Franklin’s very first invention, at age 11, was a pair of swimfins for the hands, and he included among the “Letters and Papers on Philosophical Subjects” appended to the 1769 edition of Experiments and Observations on Electricity (see lot 105) a letter to Oliver Neave, encouraging him to learn how to swim and extolling the “enjoyment in so delightful and wholesome an exercise.”

View 1 of Lot 135: Benjamin Franklin | American Philosophical Society membership certificate for a French colleague of Franklin

benjamin franklin | american philosophical society membership certificate for a french colleague of franklin

John Dickinson Lettres d'un fermier de Pensylvanie, aux habitans de l'Amérique Septentrionale. Traduites de 'l Anglois [by Jacques Barbeu-Dubourg]. Amsterdam [but Paris], Aux Dépens de la Compagnie, 1769 8vo (166 x 103 mm). Woodcut headpiece, numerous woodcut tailpieces, with terminal blank R2; occasional very light browning. Contemporary French mottled calf, smooth spine gilt in compartments with green morocco title label, endpapers and edges marbled en suite; extremities a bit worn. Half red morocco slipcase, chemise. First edition in French of John Dickinson’s seminal work, with distinguished provenance. Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania to the Inhabitants of the British Colonies was the first serious study of the legal rights of the British colonists in America. Dickinson’s letters first appeared in twelve successive issues of William Goddard’s Pennsylvania Chronicle, and Universal Advertiser, Nos. 46–57, 2 December 1767–15 February 1768. Goddard evidently recognized the immediate significance of Dickinson's letter-essays: eight of the dozen letters are printed on front pages. Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania were collected and reprinted as a pamphlet by Hall and Sellers in Philadelphia in 1768, and by the next year, at least eight editions—including the present—had been issued in the colonies and abroad. Dickinson was one of the leading colonial statesmen to advocate a peaceful reconciliation with—or separation from—Great Britain, but in this series of essays he first admitted that force of arms in the quest for liberty might be both necessary and justified. His evolving position on the relationship between the mother country and her North American colonies closely paralleled Benjamin Franklin’s own considerations on the matter, although Franklin became a much more radical voice. Benjamin Franklin was instrumental in having Dickinson’s work published in London and, in French translation, in Paris. He wrote the preface to Almon’s London edition, which is translated in the present: “When I consider our Fellow Subjects in America as rational Creatures, I cannot but wonder that during the present wide Difference of Sentiments in the two Countries concerning the Power of Parliament in laying Taxes and Duties on America, no Application has been made to their Understandings, no able learned Pen among us has been employed in convincing them that they are in the wrong, proving clearly that by the establish’d Law of Nations, or by the Terms of their original Constitution, they are taxable by our Parliament tho’ they have no Representative in it. … It is to that End I have handed the following Letters (lately published in America) to the Press here. They were occasioned by the act made (since the repeal of the Stamp-act) for raising a revenue in America by duties on glass, paper, &c. The Author is a Gentleman of Repute in that Country for his Knowledge of its Affairs, and it is said speaks the general Sentiments of the Inhabitants. How far these Sentiments are right or wrong I do not pretend at present to judge. I wish to see first what can be said on the other Side of this Question. I hope this Publication will produce a full Answer if we can make one. If it does, this Publication will have had its Use. No Offence to Government is intended by it, and it is hoped none will be taken” (Papers, ed. Willcox, 15: 110–112). Franklin had a copy of the English edition sent to his friend Jacques Barbeu-Dubourg, who had often translated Franklin’s own writings into French. Barbeu-Dubourg made the present translation and had it printed with a false Amsterdam imprint. The Snider copy belonged to Franklin—almost certainly the gift of the translator and perhaps specially bound by him—and his shelfmark (C69 N23) appears on the front free endpaper, probably added by his grandson Benjamin Franklin Bache. Edwin Wolf 2d and Kevin J. Hayes include Lettres d'un fermier de Pensylvanie in their catalogue, The Library of Benjamin Franklin (no. 860), noting that this copy was “acquired by William Reese for his private collection, 2001.” After Franklin’s death in 1790, most of his books were sold to Nicholas Dufief, a Philadelphia bookseller. In about 1802, Dufief, perhaps unable to sell a French-language work in Philadelphia, gave the book to John Dickinson, acknowledging his authorship in an inscription on a front blank leaf: “This French translation of an original work of General Dickinson is respectfully presented to him by his most abdt. sevt. N. G. Dufief.” This volume links two of the most crucial Founders and demonstrates their mutual respect despite frequent disagreements on the best methods of reconciling the colonist’s grievances with Great Britain. Indeed, Frankin arranged for Dickinson’s Letters to be reprinted even though he did not fully agree with their position. At the time, as noted by William Willcox in the Papers of Benjamin Franklin, “Dickinson accepted Parliament’s power to regulate commerce by duties; he distinguished it from the power to raise imperial revenue, which he denied that Parliament had. [Franklin] was moving hesitantly toward a realization that these two aspects of power were inseparable, and hence toward a denial of parliamentary jurisdiction in toto.” PROVENANCE Benjamin Franklin (shelfmark C69 N23 on front free endpaper; likely the gift of the translator); sold by his estate to — Nicholas G. Dufief, Philadelphia bookseller, who gave the volume to — John Dickinson (shelfmark J Q A L on front free endpaper) — William S. Reese (booklabel; Christie’s New York, 25 May 2022, lot 42)

View 1 of Lot 104: John Dickinson | Benjamin Franklin's copy 

john dickinson | benjamin franklin's copy

Rafinesque, C. S. Number 1. Spring 1836. The American Nations; or, Outlines of A Natural History; of the Ancient and Modern Nations of North and South America. … First Number, or Volume: Generalities and Annals. Philadelphia: Published by C. S. Rafinesque, No. 110 North Tenth Street, Sold by the Principal Booksellers, and in London by O. Rich, in Paris by Meilhac & Baillere, 1836 8vo (203 x 123 mm). Uncut and largely unopened. Browned and foxed. Publisher's green printed wrappers; spine and extremities chipped. The first part of Rafinesque's self-published account of American history that contains his account of Haitian history and the Haitian language, as well as of the Delaware people. The wrappers indicate that the work will run to six numbers, available for five dollars, and that the individual issues are sold for a dollar, although six copies can be purchased for five dollars. Only the first two parts were published. French-born, Rafinesque lived most of his life in the United States. A brilliant polymath, he was never accepted by the scientific establishment of the day and was duped by Audubon into publishing descriptions of a number of fictitious species after accidently breaking a violin belonging to the ornithologist. Field expresses a common frustration with Rafinesque in his entry for the present work in Indian Bibliography: "This extraordinary mass of learning, hypothesis, and wretched moonings, is not without its large share of utility, if one had the patience to separate the veritable philological gold from the dross of conjecture. There seems to be in some minds every quality for obtaining vast stores of learning, patient investigation, rare scholarship, and admirable skill in research; but so little susceptible to the rigid control of logical selection, that their attainments and discoveries are almost useless. These volumes are largely made up of comparative vocabularies of Indian languages." Still, Field elsewhere recognized that Rafinesque was "a was man of much learning, insatiable real in pursuit of knowledge, and tireless industry, but he lived at period when ethnology had not crystallized into a science, and his reports of his own investigations have the appearance of crudeness and hypothesis. To class him with the mere speculator upon science and history, would be an act of injustice, as he was undoubtedly an original investigator." A typically rare—and idiosyncratic—work by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque. The last copy of this first part cited in Rare Book Hub was in 1958 at Swann, while the second number is not recorded since a 1942 Parke-Bernet sale. REFERENCES Field 1256; Fitzpatrick 858; Pilling 3165; Sabin 67441

View 1 of Lot 385: Rafinesque, C. S. | A rare and idiosyncratic self-published work

rafinesque, c. s. | a rare and idiosyncratic self-published work

(Benjamin Franklin) Adventures of Franklin, illustrated school exercise worksheet. London: Publish'd by W. & T. Darton, April 5, 1808 Engraved writing blank (478 x 384 mm). Ten engraved vignettes, inscribed by a student; edges toned and chipped with a few short closed tears, two repaired at verso, short puncture within ink line under the "ov" of "Improvement," a few stray spots and stains, blue ink spots to verso. Glazed and framed (525 x 430 mm). A charming glimpse into Franklin's legacy among students abroad. The present exercise worksheet features ten vignettes of various scenes from Franklin's life, with a central blank for a student's penmanship practice. Among the scenes are young Franklin with his father, apprenticing at his brother's printing-house, distributing newspapers, leaving Boston, arriving in Philadelphia for the first time, serving as an ambassador in Paris, becoming President of Pennsylvania, conducting his kite experiment, opening his printing shop, and attending a Quaker Meeting. The worksheet was printed in London and presumably completed by a young English schoolchild, demonstrating Franklin's international reach. The student has written in an elegant hand a maxim not from Father Abraham, but from Proverbs: "Improvement. Train up a Child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it." Similar examples are held at the Bodleian Library and American Philosophical Society. REFERENCES Cf. American Philosophical Society, Mss.973.C683; University of Oxford, Bodleian Library educational folder 5 (21a)

View 1 of Lot 152: (Benjamin Franklin) | Adventures of Franklin, illustrated school worksheet

(benjamin franklin) | adventures of franklin, illustrated school worksheet

(Benjamin Franklin, and others) A group of three texts relating to Franklin's report on Franz Anton Mesmer's animal magnetism: Report of Dr. Benjamin Franklin and other Commissioners, Charged by the King of France, with the Examination of the Animal Magnetism. … Translated from the French. London: Printed for J. Johnson, 1785 [With:] Rapport des Commissaires chargés par le Roi, de l'Examen du Magnétisme Animal. Imprimé par ordre du Roi. Paris: Imprimerie Royale, 1784 {And with:] Jean-Baptiste Bonnefoy. Analyse raisonnée des Rapports des Commissaires chargés par le Roi de l’examen du Magnétisme animal. Lyon, et se trouve à Paris, chez Prault, 1784 8vo (227 x 140, uncut). Report: title-page dust-soiled, with small paper repairs at margin, and an illegible early ownership signature, a few small spots and very short marginal tears in the text. Contemporary gray paper wrappers; rebacked, soiled and worn, with paper repairs along the wrapper's edges, with an early manicule and inscription to the front cover, "Dr. Franklin's and other com.t in France report on animal magnetism [manicule] reported hurtful as merely an excitement of the irregularities." Rapport: 4to (243 x 191 mm). Title-page vignette, typographic ornaments; very minor and infrequent pale spots. Contemporary quarter mottled calf, paste-paper boards, gilt-decorated spine "a la grotesque," red morroco spine label, all edges stained red, with a green silk ribbon; joints lightly worn, rubbing and wear to boards, with some losses to the paste-paper's surface, a single wormhole, the lower corners lightly bumped. Bonnefoy: 8vo (190 x 121 mm). Some faint toning in the margins, and occasional spots. Modern gray paper wrappers, all edges stained red; short tear in the wrapper at the foot of the front joint, creasing to rear wrapper. The first English edition of Franklin's report discrediting Franz Anton Mesmer's "animal magnetism," and attributing its effects to the imagination. This is accompanied by a copy of the true first edition of the report from the library of Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier who, along with Franklin, was a member of the investigating committee. Lastly, there is a work by Jean-Baptiste Bonnefoy, a "reasoned analysis," defending Mesmer. Franz Anton Mesmer was German healer who, in 1774, originated the idea of "animal magnetism." He believed that all animals were filled with invisible magnetic fluids, and that blockages of these fluids created a number of ailments. His therapy, mesmerism, where he would delicately touch a patient with iron rods or his hands while soothing music played, would unblock these fluids. During his treatments, people would fall into deep sleep-like states, similar to hypnosis, or would have dramatic convulsions. Mesmer arrived in Paris in 1778 and, though he failed to impress the medical community, he soon gained a cult following. By 1784, King Louis XVI decided to launch an official enquiry . The King appointed a committee to investigate whether Mesmer's treatments worked and publish their findings. The committee included four medical doctors from the faculté de médecine, and four scientists from the Académie Des Sciences, including Lavoisier and Franklin. Rather than focusing on the occult nature of mesmerism, they performed a series of experiments where they compared the results of mesmerism on separate groups of patients. During the experiments, Franklin, his son, and possibly John Paul Jones, were all mesmerized. "The results indicated that people who thought they were being magnetized, whether they were or not, had the strongest therapeutic responses … what is known today as the placebo effect" (Chaplin). REFECENCES Joyce E. Chaplin, The First Scientific American: Benjamin Franklin and The Pursuit of Genius (2006), pp. 297–299 PROVENANCE Report: illegible early ownership signature on title; Rapport: Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier (bookplate) — Docteur Poirier (Pierre Bergé & Associés, 6 November 2020, lot 104); Bonnefoy: Docteur Poirier (Pierre Bergé & Associés, 6 November 2020, lot 143)

View 1 of Lot 129: Benjamin Franklin | Franklin refutes Franz Anton Mesmer's Animal Magnetism

benjamin franklin | franklin refutes franz anton mesmer's animal magnetism

Jefferson, Thomas Autograph letter signed (“Th: Jefferson”) as Minister Plenipotentiary to France to Borgnis Desbordes, Frères (“Gentlemen”), one page (245 x 196 mm) on a leaf of laid paper (watermarked posthorn | D & D Blauw), Paris, 17 June 1786, docketed at head by recipient; a couple of faint fox spots, marginal stain from an old paperclip. Blue morocco folding-case gilt. This letter marks the culmination of long negotiation to free from prison in Saint-Pol-de-Léon, Brittany, members of the crew of an American vessel, the William & Catherine, that was accused of smuggling tobacco into France. However, Jefferson believed, as he stated in his first letter on this matter to Borgnis Desbordes, Frères, 12 October 1785, that the men were innocent, being “forced into that port by stress of weather.” Jefferson informed Borgnis Desbordes that he had told Lister Asquith, the captain of the impounded vessel, that he could “draw bills on me from time to time for a livre a day for every person of them, and for what may be necessary to engage a lawyer for him. I will pray the favor of you to furnish him money for his bills drawn on me for these purposes which I will pay on sight. You will judge if he should go beyond this allowance and be so good as to reject the surplus. I must desire his lawyer in the first moment to send me a state of their case, in what court their process is, and when it is likely to be decided" (Papers 8:627–628). With that letter, Jefferson enclosed his letter of the same date to Captain Asquith, who had written to Jefferson explaining the situation and seeking his assistance. In the reply to Asquith, Jefferson told him, “I have received your letters of Sep. 28. and Octob. 3. but no information is yet received from your lawyer, so that I am utterly uninformed of the nature of the process instituted against you, and the court in which it is depending. Till I receive this I am unable to obtain advice how to interfere for your relief. That you may not suffer for want of money, I will advance for you what may be necessary to engage a lawyer, and a livre a day a head for the support of yourself and those with you, for which I shall expect yourself and your captain to make yourselves accountable. Draw bills on me for these purposes from time to time and Messrs. Desbordes, merchants at Brest, will give you money for them. I have written to these gentlemen to pray them to advise you what to do for your defence, to engage a good lawyer for you, and to desire him immediately to send me such information as may enable me to judge whether I can do any thing for your relief” (Papers 8:627). For almost a year, Jefferson carried on parallel correspondences with the imprisoned Captain Asquith and the banking house Borgnis Desbordes, Frères, trying to ensure that the American prisoners were being supplied with monies for their subsistance and comfort and well as to allow them to engage a lawyer. (Asquith and Borgnis Desbordes were also in direct contact.) Despite all of the letters being sent, the situation languished, and it was not until 12 June 1786 that Borgnis Desbordes, Frères provided Jefferson with an affidavit, 3 June 1786, for the release of Lister Asquith and his crew from prison, as well as their invoice for livres 2,620.2 livres. The present letter is the last, save one, by Jefferson regarding this unfortunate episode: “I received your favor of the 12th. instant, the last night, and immediately wrote to inform Mr. Grand that a bill for 2620#2 in which you were interested, would be presented and desired him to pay it; which you may rest assured will be done. I am now to return you thanks for your attentions to these unfortunate men. I did not suspect they would have been necessary so long, when I took the liberty first of asking your care of them. Their destiny has been hard as the case has happened; but would have been infinitely worse but for your aid. I beg leave to assure you of my strong sense of your favours in this instance and of the sentiments of esteem and respect with which I have the honour to be Gentlemen your most obedient & most humble servt. …” Jefferson’s letter to Grand, a Paris banker, ordering payment to Borgnis Desbordes for the expenses of Lister Asquith and his crew, has not been found. REFERENCES Papers of Thomas Jefferson, ed. Boyd, 9:656 and passim for much related correspondence among the involved parties

View 1 of Lot 365: Jefferson, Thomas | The Lister Asquith maritime affair

jefferson, thomas | the lister asquith maritime affair

Shelf Life: Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper from the Library of Stanley J. Seeger and Christopher Cone

Anthony Powell "Travels with my aunt" 490 x 380 mm (framed 710 x 585 mm), ink and blackwash, titled to upper left, signed in pencil with dedication to lower right ("For Stanley [Seeger] with | much love. Anthony | 1980."), mounted, framed and glazed The original costume design by Anthony Powell for the 1972 American comedy film Travels with My Aunt, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design. Based on Graham Greene's 1969 novel of the same name, and starring Maggie Smith as Augusta Bertram, Travels with My Aunt follows Augusta's attempt to smuggle money across Europe in order to pay the $100,000 ransom of her true love. She invites her "nephew", Henry Pulling, to accompany her on her travels, starting in Paris. Before departing from the Gare de Lyon on the Orient Express, Augusta dines with Henry at the Train Bleu, dressed in one of Powell's designs featured here: an over-the-top black fur-lined cloak, and a wide-brimmed black hat. PROVENANCE: Gifted by the artist to Stanley Seeger in 1980: inscription to lower right; additionally inscribed on back of frame ("This was for the sequence | in the "Train Bleu" restaurant | at the Gare de Lyon, so | I thought it might be kind of | appropriate! | Much love | A.")

View 1 of Lot 115: Anthony Powell | Travels with my aunt, ink and blackwash, 1980

anthony powell | travels with my aunt, ink and blackwash, 1980

Benjamin Franklin Letterpress broadside document signed (“BFranklin, Presdt.”) as President of the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention, printed on a half-sheet of laid paper (203 x 325 mm; watermarked wreaths within circle), [Philadelphia,] 7 September 1776, accomplished in a clerical hand, with metalcut seal of the Pennsylvania Council of Safety (a bundle of lictor’s rods set diagonally and surmounted by the word “Seal,” encircled by the motto “Liberty Safety & Peace”); fold separations and chips, some repaired, costing bits of a few letters. "[F]or the Defence and establishing of American Liberty." Headed “In Convention for the state of Pennsylvania,” the present document reads, “To James Young Gentleman, We reposing especial Trust and Confidence in your Patriotism, Valour, Conduct and Fidelity, Do, by these Presents, constitute and appoint you to be first Lieutenant of a company of Foot from Cumberland County in the Flying Camp for the Middle States of America, for the Protection of the said States against all hostile Enterprizes, and for the Defence and establishing of American Liberty. You are therefore carefully and diligently to discharge the Duty of first Lieutenant as aforesaid by doing and performing all Manner of Things thereunto belonging. And we do strictly charge and require all Officers and Soldiers under your Command, to be obedient to your Orders as first Lieutenant. And you are to observe and follow such Orders and Directions, as you shall receive from the Convention during their Sessions, from the Government now establishing, or from the Council of Safety for this State, or any other your superior Officers, according to the Rules and Discipline of War, in Pursuance of the Trust reposed in you. This Commission to continue in Force until revoked by the Government now establishing for this State, the Council of Safety, or by this or any succeeding Convention. By order of the convention.” Even for Benjamin Franklin, the eighteen months from May 1775 (when he returned to Philadelphia after a decade in London as colonial agent for Pennsylvania, Georgia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts) and October 1776 (when he departed for Paris as an American commissioner seeking support from, and alliance with, France) were exceptionally busy. In addition to serving as President of the Pennsylvania Committee of Safety, a delegate to the Continental Congress, and the nation’s first Postmaster General, Franklin was also elected President of the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention. The Convention met from 15 July through 28 September 1776, and while the delegates—including, in addition to Franklin, Robert Whitehill, Timothy Matlack, Dr. Thomas Young, George Bryan, and James Cannon—were drafting the first independent state constitution issued after the Declaration of Independence, the Convention itself assumed responsibility for the day-to-day governance of the commonwealth through the Council of Safety. The Council succeeded the Committee of Safety, expanding its charge to exercise full executive power after the fall of the Penns’ proprietary government. The Council shortly ceded that power to the government established by the new state constitution: a unicameral legislature, with members elected to one-year terms; a thirteen-member Supreme Executive Council to administer the government; and a judiciary appointed by the legislature for seven-year terms, and removable at any time. (Like the Declaration, the Pennsylvania constitution began with a preamble that inveighed against George III and his unlawful war against the Colonies.) So, the Convention and Council of Safety had a period of just over eight weeks when military commissions could be issued by their authority, which accounts for their great rarity. Rare Book Hub records only one other such appointment in addition to the present, Gabriel Blakeney’s appointment as a Second Lieutenant in a battalion of Cumberland County in the Flying Camp, 11 September 1776, part of the celebrated James S. Copley Library, sold in our rooms, 14 April 2010, lot 54. The “Flying Camp” was a mobile reserve militia corps authorized by Congress after the British evacuated Boston. Active from July through November 1776 and drawn largely from Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland, units of the Flying Camp served principally in New York and New Jersey. The James Young who received this appointment is presumably the same James Young who was commissioned a first lieutenant in the 7th Pennsylvania Regiment of the Continental Army in March 1777. The 7th Pennsylvania was largely recruited from Cumberland and York counties. PROVENANCE Christie’s New York, 27 January 2023, lot 148 (undesignated consignor)

View 1 of Lot 112: Benjamin Franklin | The rarest form of American Revolutionary military commission

benjamin franklin | the rarest form of american revolutionary military commission

Eliot, Jean-Baptiste Carte Generale Des Etats Unis De l'Amerique Septentrionale Avec les Limites de Chacun des dits Etats Convenus par le traite provisionel Dui Mois de Novembre 1782... Paris: chez Mondhare, 1783 Engraved map on a full sheet (sheet: 550 x 753 mm). Hand-colored, early annotation in French on verso regarding the English colony in "Nouvelle Ecosse," or Nova Scotia; old central fold, trimmed close or just within the platemark on three sides, a few small spots, two closed tears, one on the right edge, the other at the head of the fold, the verso with light staining, some pencil annotations, the remnants of a stub along the fold and of tabs from framing to the verso. A major map in the history of the United States of America—among the earliest maps to name the newly formed nation, and one of the first and only maps to show the boundaries set forth by the Provisional Treaty of 1782. The Provisional Treaty, or the Preliminary Articles of Peace, between Great Britain and the United States of America was negotiated in Paris by John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, and Henry Laurens. Signed on 30 November 1782, it was the foundational agreement that ended the war between Britain and its former colonies. In the treaty, Article II established the borders of the newly formed United States. The agreement was provisional because France, excluded from the discussions between the Britain and its former colony, needed to conduct its own separate peace talks. Once those negotiations concluded, the terms of the treaty were finalized and signed into law at the Treaty of Paris on 3 September 1783. Jean-Baptiste Eliot's biography is a bit murky—he describes himself as a French military engineer and an Aide-de-Camp for General George Washington, but there is no evidence of him having served in the Continental Armies. Ristow suggests that he may have served as a liaison between the French army and Washington. What is clear, however, is that he had an interest in the war, and that he had access to privileged information, like an early account of the terms of the Provisional Treaty. In 1778, soon after the French entered the War, Eliot produced his best known work, the Carte Generale des Etats Unis de l'Amerique, which is regarded as the earliest map to name the United States. The present map was printed five years later at another critical moment during the course of the Revolutionary War. In order to get the map out quickly, he based its geography largely on J. Leopold Imbert's Carte des possessions angloises dans l'Amerique Septentrionale... (Paris: Mondhare, 1777), but made some small yet important changes. Eliot's 1783 map shows North America from Florida to Canada, from the East Coast to the just west of the Mississippi. Central to the map's purpose are the dotted lines representing the borders of the newly-formed United States of America. There are also lines of small "+" marks delineating the provisional boundary between the United States and the British colonies in Canada. The "+" line also follows the course of the Mississippi South before turning East to arrive at the Atlantic just above St. Augustine, Florida—the borders of the Spanish dominions. At the bottom right of the map is a large inset showing the Florida Keys, Cuba, Santa Domingo, and Jamaica, all of which remained European colonies. As such, Eliot's map includes nearly all of the territorial claims in North America, showing what exactly belongs to whom. Printed in Paris entirely in French, the map is also emblematic of the French public's vested interest in the outcome of the Revolutionary War, and in the future of the United States. It supports American expansion up to the Mississippi, but not beyond it—this would have appealed to the French, who had territorial ambitions in that part of America. We are able to identify just six maps, including this one, published in 1783 showing the borders set by the provisional treaty. The five other maps are: Carrington Bowles. New Pocket Map of the United States.... (rework of previous copperplate)Sayer and Bennett. The United States of America with the British Possessions (rework of previous copperplate)John Wallis. [Untitled proof map of the United States] (only one copy known, see Sotheby's, The Jay T. Snider Collection of Benjamin Franklin, lot 125)John Wallis, engraved by Thomas Jones Woodman, Henry Mutlow. [Second state of the previous map] (one copy known at the British Museum)John Wallis. The United States of America laid down... (newly engraved, but incorporating the previous Wallis plate into the decorative cartouche) Exceedingly rare—there are no past auction records for this map (Rare Book Hub), and WorldCat lists just 3 copies in institutions (Brown, Library of Congress, University of Bern). REFERENCES McCorkle, New England in Early Printed Maps, 783.7; Ristow, American Maps and Mapmakers, p. 63

View 1 of Lot 359: Eliot, Jean-Baptiste | A rare map of the 1782 provisional treaty, among the first maps to name the United States

eliot, jean-baptiste | a rare map of the 1782 provisional treaty, among the first maps to name the united states

Benjamin Franklin Autograph letter signed (“BFranklin”) to Henry Home, Lord Kames (“Lord Kaims,” at foot of page), one page (228 x 183 mm) on a disjunct bifolium of laid paper (watermarked JWhatman&Co), London, 14 March 1775, bidding goodbye to Lord Kames and introducing Benjamin Duffield, with a four-line autograph postscript written longitudinally in the left margin, integral leaf with autograph address “Lord Kaims | Edinburgh | per Mr. Duffield” and with a fine black-wax impression of Franklin’s heraldic seal (Argent on a bend between two lions' heads erased gules, a dolphin embowed of the first between two martlets or); address panel soiled, address leaf trimmed at upper and lower margins, seal tear. Half blue morocco folding-case gilt, chemise. After a more than six-year lapse in their discursive and stimulating correspondence (although the two met in Edinburgh in 1771), Franklin takes leave of perhaps his closest Scottish friend, who was nearing his eightieth birthday, in this the final letter they are known to have exchanged: “Purposing to embark for America in a few Days, I cannot depart without taking Leave of my dear Lord Kaims, to whose Civilities and Friendship I have been so much oblig’d, and for whom I shall ever retain the sincerest Esteem and Affection.” Franklin then acknowledges the recent publication of Kames’s influential polygenist monograph, Sketches of the History of Man. “I congratulate you cordially on the Success of your last Work. It does you great Honour. I hear it every where well spoken of. I almost envy the Abilities you continue to possess of instructing, delighting and being useful at so late a Period in Life; of still going through so much Business with so much Ease to yourself; and of employing your Leisure so advantageously to others.” (Of course, Franklin, too, retained his abilities to a late period in life.) The letter closes with an especially warm valediction, “May every kind of Felicity attend you and your good Lady, is the sincere parting Wish of Your affectionate and most obedient humble Servant.” But after this “parting Wish,” Franklin added an extensive postscript in the left margin regarding the bearer of the letter, Benjamin Duffield (see previous lot): “Mr. Duffield, who will have the Honour of presenting this to your Hands is a young Gentleman for whom I have a great Regard. He at present studies Physic in your University. I beg leave to recommend him to your Protection.” This letter was written at a crossroads in Franklin’s personal and political lives. He had recently learned of the death of his wife of forty-four years, Deborah Read Franklin, with whom he had hoped to reunite in Philadelphia. This is the reason for the letter being sealed with a black-wax impression of his heraldic seal (and explains the neat excision of Franklin’s seal from the letter in the preceding lot by some sigillographer). And less than a week after writing this letter to Lord Kames, Franklin was sailing homeward to Pennsylvania. While he was at sea, the Battles of Lexington and Concord inaugurated the military action of the American Revolution. Although he was in Philadelphia for just a year and a half—arriving from London aboard the Pennsylvania Packet in May 1775 and weighing anchor on the USS Reprisal for Paris in October 1776—Franklin devoted himself entirely to the patriot cause, serving as President of the Pennsylvania Committee of Safety, a delegate to the Continental Congress, the nation’s first Postmaster General, and President of the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention. REFERENCES Papers of Benjamin Franklin, ed. Willcox, 21:523–524 PROVENANCE Deposited in the Scottish Record Office by a Family Trust of Kames’s Descendants (pencilled accession number on verso of letter, “Abercairny” stamp on address leaf) — Sold by the Trust (Christie’s London, 29 June 1995, lot 515) — Roger D. Judd (Christie’s New York, 12 June 2019, lot 111)

View 1 of Lot 110: Benjamin Franklin | “Purposing to embark for America in a few Days …”

benjamin franklin | “purposing to embark for america in a few days …”

Benjamin Franklin Oeuvres de M. Franklin. Paris: Chez Quillau, Esprit, et L'auteur, 1773 2 volumes bound together (275 x 192 mm). Two half titles, an engraved portrait frontispiece, woodcut and typographic ornaments in text, 5 engraved plates at the rear of vol. I, and 7 engraved plates at the rear of vol. II; occasional light foxing, infrequent minor soiling, a few very lightly toned leaves, expert paper repairs to the margins of the frontispiece. Contemporary French mottled calf, spine and board-edges decorated in gilt, red morocco spine label lettered in gilt, all edges stained red, green silk ribbon; a few small scuffs, expert restorations to the joints, a superficial crack at the head of the front joint, a small bump at the foot of the front board, altogether a very attractive and well-preserved book. A presentation copy of the first French-language edition of Franklin's collected works, inscribed by Franklin to his friend and fellow polymath, Aimé-Ambroise-Joseph Feutry on the half-title: “A Mons. Feutry. From the Author,” and inscribed in another hand on the title, "Donné à Feutry, par l'auteur, Le 16 Avril 1777." This edition was translated and edited by another friend of Franklin, Jacques Barbeu-Dubourg. It was based on the fourth English language edition, but also includes numerous previously unpublished texts. The first volume is devoted to electricity, printing the entirety of Experiments and Observations on Electricity, along with 28 additional texts by Franklin, his correspondents, and the editor. The second volume covers a wide array of topics, such as meteors, inoculation, evaporation, sea water, politics, and much more. It reprints many of Franklin's popular essays, including "The Pennsylvania Fireplace," "Observations on the Increase of Mankind," and "The Art of Swimming." It also includes a series of letters to Miss Stevenson, known as the Craven Street letters. This edition's version of Poor Richard, is titled "Le Moyen De S'Enrichir … par le Pauvre Henri." This is the earliest dated version of the Poor Richard text using "The Way to Wealth" as its title — moving forward, this would become its most common title, used consistently throughout the next century (Green and Stallybrass, p. 130). This volume also adds 27 additional unpublished texts by Franklin, his correspondents, and Barbeu-Dubourg. Aimé-Ambroise-Joseph Feutry (1720–1789) abandoned a career as lawyer to become a writer, mostly composing poetry, including some in praise of the American Revolution. He was interested in ballistics, and invented a number of military machines. Feutry was also a member of the American Philosophical Society, nominated by Franklin. He wrote two verses praising his friend, published in his Nouveaux Opuscules (1779), which references his APS membership on the title-page. Though a member of Franklin's social and intellectual circle in Passy, no letters from Franklin to Feutry survive. Their relationship is instead documented through a series of letters between Feutry and Franklin's grandson, William Temple Franklin. The annotation on the title page, presumably by Feutry, dates the gift to 16 April, 1777, a matter of months after Franklin's arrival in Paris. For another book translated into French by Barbeu-Dubourg, also having belonged to Franklin, see lot 104. REFERENCES Ford, 315; James N. Green and Peter Stallybrass, Benjamin Franklin: Writer and Printer (2006), p. 130; Papers of Benjamin Franklin, ed. Willcox, 23:557 PROVENANCE Aimé-Ambroise-Joseph Feutry (presentation inscription from Benjamin Franklin)

View 1 of Lot 106: Benjamin Franklin | First collected edition of Franklin's works in French, a presentation copy to Aimé-Ambroise-Joseph Feutry

benjamin franklin | first collected edition of franklin's works in french, a presentation copy to aimé-ambroise-joseph feutry

Pierre-André Gargas Union souveraine et conciliatrice, De toutes les Nations d'Europe, & de celles qui sont connues. Ou Projet de Paix générale et perpétuelle. La Haye [Avignon?], 1785 12mo (160 x 92 mm). Half title, woodcut headpieces, tailpieces, and other ornaments in text, contemporary ink dedicatory inscription on leaf C7v, to "son excelence Monseigneur le Ministre Plenipotentiaire de l'infant duc de Parme"; a pale stain and a paper repair to the half title; tiny loss at corner of leaf A5, small hole (paper flaw?) in leaf C4 affecting one word on the verso of the leaf, the inscription on leaf C7 shaved, a small yellow stain at lower corners of final two leaves, otherwise a bright copy. Modern dark brown morocco spine, vellum corners, marbled paper boards, smooth spine with gilt decorations, black morocco spine-label, edges stained yellow; a tiny white stain on front board, very mild rubbing along bottom edge. The only known copy of Pierre-André Gargas's revised plan to establish a union of nations to ensure perpetual peace in Europe, dedicated to Benjamin Franklin. This treatise uses the term United Nations, anticipating the U.N. by over a century and a half. Pierre-André Gargas (1728–1801), a Provençale landowner, was accused of murder, dispossessed of his land, and condemned to twenty years as a galley slave on charges that he always denied. While serving his sentence in a hulk moored off the coast of Toulon, he was somehow able to write a book on phonetic spelling, Alfabet qonciliateur de l’ortografe. . . (Marseille: Jean Mossy, 1773), and draft a manuscript for a short work on establishing perpetual peace in Europe. After sending the manuscript to a number of luminaries, including Voltaire, he sent a copy to Benjamin Franklin. It was accompanied by a note where he begged the famous American diplomat for "the kindness, Monsieur, of having them printed, announced, and distributed to the public as far as it would be possible for you to do so" (Gargas to Benjamin Franklin, 14 February 1779, as translated by Ellen R. Cohn). After his release, Gargas made his way on foot to Paris to visit Franklin at his home in Passy on the outskirts of Paris, at the Hôtel de Valentinois. Despite the ex-prisoner's ragged appearance, Franklin welcomed him, discussed the project, likely gave his own input, and printed the pamphlet, which is titled Concilateur de toutes les nations d’Europe, ou Projet de paix perpetuelle entre tous les souverains de l’Europe et leurs voisins (Passy: Benjamin Franklin, 1782). The major points of the plan were to freeze Europe's borders and settle international disputes through a Perpetual Congress (which in this later version of the text is called the United Nations). The congress would be made up of one delegate from each nation. The president of the delegates would be chosen through a system of hierarchy determined by each sovereign's age, with hereditary sovereigns given precedence over elected ones. He also suggests turning Europe's standing armies into a massive public works force, tasked with building infrastructure and engaging in community services. Gargas's intention was to distribute his work freely to Europe's rulers and diplomats, though he evidently did not get much traction for his improbable ideas. For Franklin, however, embroiled in negotiations with England, the idea of universal peace must have been particularly enticing. In a letter to the British politician David Hartley, 10 July 1782, he wrote: "There is methinks a point that has been too little considered in treaties, the means of making them durable. An honest peasant from the mountains of Provence, brought me the other day a manuscript he had written on the subject, and which he could not procure permission to print. It appeared to me to have much good sense in it, and therefore I got some copies to be struck off for him to distribute where he may think fit. I send you one enclosed. This man aims at no profit from his pamphlet or his project, asks for nothing, expects nothing, and does not even desire to be known... such was his zeal for peace and the hope of forwarding and securing it by communicating his ideas to great men here. His rustic and poor appearance has prevented his access to them or his obtaining their attention; but he does not seem yet to be discouraged. I honour much of the character of this veritable philosophe" (Papers 37:607–608). Having received little notice in Paris outside of Franklin and his circle, Gargas returned south to his home in Theze where, a year later, he decided to print a revised and enlarged version his plan. He wrote to Franklin on 2 May 1783 to ask permission to dedicate the work to him. At that time, dedications functioned as endorsements, and Franklin would often decline them. However, this time he accepted. In August 1785, the present work, Union souveraine, was published, probably in Avignon, under a false imprint without a privilege du roi. The previous pamphlet had been printed on Franklin's diplomatically immune press, but that was not the case here. As it turned out, Franklin never received his copy of the book. According to Cohn, the 300 copies that Gargas intended for him were seized in transit by the censors, and, in any event, Franklin was halfway across the Atlantic when the package was sent. Gargas set off himself for Paris to hand-deliver his Union Souveraine to the king, the royal family, his nine state ministers, and twenty-nine foreign ambassadors. This example, personally addressed to the minister plenipotentiary of the Duchy of Parma, was one of the copies intended for a foreign diplomat. The only other copy of this text that has been traced is a set of page proofs, held at the Archives Nationales in Paris. A few years later, in 1787, Franklin sent Gargas a copy of his own proposal for a national union, The Constitution. Franklin personally inscribed it to "M. Gargas, who propos'd the Union of the States of Europe." However, just as the Union Souveraine never reached Franklin, The Constitution never made it to Gargas—Franklin sent it to his close friend and banker, Ferdinand Grand, who never forwarded it. REFERENCES Ellen R. Cohn, "'he Printer and the 'Peasant': Benjamin Franklin and Pierre-André Gargaz, Two Philosophers in Search of Peace," in Early American Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Winter 2010), pp. 146-172 PROVENANCE Giquello, 1 June, 2017 lot 61 (undesignated consignor)

View 1 of Lot 133: Pierre-André Gargas | Union souveraine et conciliatrice.

pierre-andré gargas | union souveraine et conciliatrice.

Benjamin Franklin Autograph letter signed ("BF") to Jacques-Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont ("Cher Ami"), in French, half page on a sheet of laid paper (227 x 181 mm), Passy, on or after 3 July, 1780, addressed to "Monsieur de Chaumont" on the verso, remnants of red wax seal to recto and verso, two tiny chips and a very short tear at the edges, a closed tear next to the seal, none of which affects the text of the letter, a box of sun-toning around the text. Housed in a custom brown leather clamshell case and cloth chemise, with an earlier collector's paper folder laid in, the folder with a manuscript title and an unidentified, likely French, collector's stamp. A letter that reveals much about Franklin—his diplomacy, his pragmatism, and his preference for avoiding direct conflict. Franklin writes to Chaumont in French regarding the June 1780 mutiny on board John Paul Jones's fleet's flagship, the Alliance. The recipient of this letter, Jacques-Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont, was a French merchant who had made his fortune trading in the East Indies. He became one of the American Revolution's biggest supporters, acting as a go-between for Franklin and the French court. A close friend to Franklin, he rented him a portion of his Hôtel de Valentinois in Passy, initially at no cost, commissioned Jean-Baptiste Nini's portrait medallion of the "docteur" (see lot 118), and refitted an old French East Indiaman into a 42-gun frigate for the U.S. Navy, renamed the Bonhomme Richard. The letter, however, deals with a different ship—the frigate Alliance. When completed in 1777 in Salisbury, Massachusetts, it was the finest and fastest warship ever built in America. First named Hancock, it was renamed in honor of the new alliance between the United States and France. Alliance departed Boston in January 1779, captained by the commissioned Frenchman, Pierre Landais, carrying the Marquis de Lafayette back to France. Once arrived, despite Landais's orders to return with supplies to America, Franklin ordered the ship to join John Paul Jones's squadron. Landais obeyed Franklin but, following a nighttime collision of the Alliance and the Bonhomme Richard, as well as a heated argument between their two captains, he soon stopped taking orders from Jones. In September, the squadron took part in the Battle of Flameborough Head, off the coast of Yorkshire. The Alliance kept its distance from the action until, hours after the first shots were fired, while the Bonhomme Richard and the Serapis were lashed together in a death struggle, she began firing indiscriminately into both ships. Soon after, as Bonhomme Richard sank, Jones commandeered the damaged Serapis and set sail for the Dutch Republic. Once the Alliance had returned to France, Franklin relieved Landais of his command and began an enquiry into the captain's conduct. Franklin's letter to John Paul Jones of 15 October 1779, reveals the seriousness of the matter: "I have accordingly written to him this Day acquainting him that he is charged with Disobedience of Orders in the Cruise and Neglect of his Duty in the Engagement... direct him to render himself immediately here, bringing with him such Papers or Testimonies as he may think useful in his Defence. I know not whether he will obey my Orders... it will be necessary, if he should refuse to come, that you should put him under an Arrest, and in that Case as well as if he comes, that you should either appoint some Person to command his Ship or take it upon yourself; for I know of no Person to recommend to you as fit for that Station" (Papers 30:537–538). In the end, Franklin did install Jones as captain of the Alliance. He planned to send the ship to America with arms, uniforms, and other supplies. However, it took months for Jones to ready himself. Landais, on the other hand, travelled to Lorient seeking passage to America, where he planned to acquit himself in a court martial. While there, he met Arthur Lee, the diplomat who had been sidelined after Franklin's arrival in France. Lee was also awaiting passage to the United States. He told Landais that Franklin had no authority to remove his captaincy, since he held a Continental Commission. On 12 or 13 June, with Jones in Paris and Lee at his side, Landais boarded the ship and assumed command. Around 16 June, Le Ray de Chaumont urged Franklin to command Landais to remain in port. On 19 June, he wrote a longer, more urgent letter to Franklin warning him of Arthur Lee's involvement in the affair, and now suggesting that he order the ship out of port - an unpunished mutiny at port set a bad example for the other sailors. However, when Jones arrived in Lorient on 20 June, he found that the Alliance had already weighed anchor. She had sailed to Port Louis, and was now blocked in the harbor by a boom and surrounded by three French warships with orders to fire if she tried to escape. Jones, however, interceded on the Alliance's behalf — he apparently wished to avoid losing the ship and harming Franco-American relations. Captain Landais took command of the frigate Alliance and absconded with it to America, Franklin had originally ordered that the crew not be paid for its trip—he was obviously angry at being so blatantly disobeyed, and he did not want to support mutineers. However, in the present letter, written to Le Ray de Chaumont after the ship has already departed France, Franklin's fury seems to have cooled: "Notre Intention en donnant l’Ordre de ne pas payer leurs Portions a ceux qui avoient signé le Mutinerie, n’etant qu’un Expedient temporaire pour les reclamer; il me semble qu’actuellement il sera mieux de rapeller cette Ordre; parceque il y a en Amerique des Loix pour les punir; & je crois qu’il sera bon de payer les portions de ces gens en France plutôt qu’en Amerique, parceque ils ont nombre des Creanciers à l’Orient qui perdront beaucoup de leur Droits si l’Argent est envoyé en Amerique, & cela causera grand Clameur. Je suis donc d’Avis de payer à Messrs. Puchelberg tout ce qui est dû aux Matelots & aux Officiers du produit des Prises. On evitera par ce moyen nombre de Soupçons & de Censures—" ["As our intention in giving the order to not repay the shares of those who had signed the mutiny agreement was only a temporary expedient to secure their return; it seems to me that it would now be better to revoke this order; this is because, in America, we have laws for punishing them; and I think that it will be good to pay these individuals' shares in France rather than in America, as they have numerous creditors in Lorient who would stand to lose a significant portion of their claims were the funds to be sent to America, and this would cause a great clamor. I am therefore of the opinion to pay Misters Puchelberg the all that is due to the sailors and officers from the profits of the prizes. We will, in this way, avoid much suspicion and censure"; translation by Noah Goldrach.] The Alliance departed soon after. Landais, however, proved to be a disastrous captain, abusing his men and making unsafe decisions. Thinking him insane, his officers mutinied, forcibly relieving him of his command on 11 August. When the Alliance arrived in Boston, naval authorities found Landais guilty and removed him from service. "A beleaguered Franklin decided it was best to let others sort it all out. He had other things in France to deal with" (Isaacson, p. 390). REFERENCES Papers of Benjamin Franklin, ed. Oberg, 32:544–545; Walter Isaacson. Benjamin Franklin: An American Life. (New York: 2003); "Alliance I (Frigate)," in Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, (2015), (https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/a/alliance-i.html)

View 1 of Lot 122: Benjamin Franklin | Autograph letter to Le Ray de Chaumont, regarding a mutiny on the Frigate"'Alliance," 1780

benjamin franklin | autograph letter to le ray de chaumont, regarding a mutiny on the frigate"'alliance," 1780

Benjamin Franklin Letterpress broadside document signed (“BFranklin Presidt.,” with paraph) as President of the Pennsylvania Committee of Safety, printed on a half-sheet of laid paper (195 x 304 mm, sight), Philadelphia, 1 August 1775, accomplished in a clerical hand, being Nicholas Biddle's commission as Captain of a provincial armed boat called the Franklin, countersigned by the Secretary of the Committee (“Wm. Govett Sect:y”), fine embossed paper seal of the Committee (motto “This Is My Right & I Will Defend It” encircling a liberty cap); rebacked with tissue, lightly browned, tiny holes at some intersecting folds touching two letters. Matted, framed, and glazed with Plexiglas. Headed “In Committee of Safety,” the present document commissions Biddle and details his responsibilities: “To Nicholas Biddle Esquire. We reposing especial trust and confidence in your Patriotism, Valour, Conduct and Fidelity, Do by these Presents constitute and appoint you to be Captain of the Provincial Armed Boat, called the Franklin fitted out for the protection of the Province of Pennsylvania, and the Commerce of the River Delaware, against all hostile Enterprizes, and for the defence of American Liberty: You are therefore to take the said Boat into your charge, and carefully and diligently to discharge the duty of Captain by doing and performing all manner of things thereunto belonging. And we do strictly charge and require all Officers, Soldiers and Mariners under your command, to be obedient to your orders, as Captain[.] And you are to observe, and follow such orders and directions from time to time, as you all receive from the Assembly or Provincial Convention, during their sessions, or from this or a future Committee of Safety for this Province, or from your superior Officer, according to the Rules and Dicipline of War, pursuant to the trust reposed in you; this Commission to continue in force until revoked by the Assembly or Provincial Convention, or by this or any succeeding Committee of Safety. By order of the Committee.” Nicholas Biddle (1750–1778), a native of Philadelphia, entered the merchant marine when he was just thirteen, and in 1770 he was appointed a midshipman in the Royal British Navy. After the Boston Tea Party, he resigned from the British service. Despite his youth, Biddle’s experience was recognized by the Pennsylvania Committee of Safety, and he was commissioned a captain and given command of a Pennsylvania row-galley, the Franklin. The Franklin patrolled the Delaware River, and possibly the Schuylkill as well, but less than three months after receiving the present commission, the Continental Congress officially established a Continental Navy. Biddle, longing for more action and more guns, left the service of his home state and accepted command, successively, of the USS Andrew Doria and the USS Randolph, becoming one of the first five captains appointed to the Continental Navy. (The present commission has sometimes been misinterpreted as giving Biddle command of the Continental schooner Franklin, which was fitted out from a Marblehead fishing vessel as part of "Washington's Navy," but Biddle never served on her.) Biddle captured many British prizes, but he was killed at his post when the Randolph was sunk by HMS Yarmouth off Barbados, 7 March 1778. Between 1901 and 1967, four US Navy ships were named for Biddle. This is an exceptionally rare form of document; Benjamin Franklin was president of the Pennsylvania Committee of Safety only from 3 July 1775 until August 1776, when he was succeeded by Thomas Wharton Jr. Franklin had just returned to Philadelphia in May 1775 from London, where he had been resident for a decade. Over the course of the next year, in addition to being named President of the commonwealth’s Committee of Safety, he was appointed as first Postmaster General of the United States and elected to the Second Continental Congress, which in 1776 appointed him to the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence. At the end of October 1776, Franklin sailed to Paris as the American Commissioner to France, an office that would be officially recognized as Minister Plenipotentiary after France had acknowledged the independence of the United States. Rare Book Hub records only three Committee of Safety appointments signed by Franklin, none since 1979 and all for commissions in the First Battalion of Pennsylvania Associators. No other Pennsylvania Committee of Safety naval appointments can be traced in the auction records. REFERENCES Tim McGrath, "I Fear Nothing," in Naval History, Vol. 29, No. 4 (August 2015) PROVENANCE Nicolas Biddle (recipient), by family descent to — Christine Biddle Wainwright (Doyle, 4 May 2022, lot 1122)

View 1 of Lot 111: Benjamin Franklin | Franklin commissions the captain of an eponymous naval vessel

benjamin franklin | franklin commissions the captain of an eponymous naval vessel

Oscar Wilde Two copies of Salome, comprising: (i) Salomé. Drama en un acte... Paris: imprimée pour les souscripteurs, 1907. COPY NUMBER 29 OF 100 DELUXE COPIES ON ARCHES LAID PAPER, from an edition of 500 copies, not for sale, 4to (255 x 190 mm), 16 full-page illustrations by Beardsley, title-page printed in red and black, facsimile of a telegram from Wilde to Louys loosely inserted before half-title, brown morocco gilt by Charles Lanoe, spine with raised bands in six compartments, gilt edges, marbled endpapers, original green wrappers bound in, housed in a modern grey cloth slipcase, transfer onto half-title from facsimile of telegram, boards slightly bowed, spine slightly faded (ii) Salomé. Drama en un acte... Paris: Librairie de l'Art Indépendant and London, Elkin Mathews and John Lane, 1893. FIRST EDITION, 8vo, ORIGINAL PURPLE WRAPPERS, wrappers faded, upper joint partly torn PROVENANCE: (i) Auguste Lambiotte (1862–1920, Belgian industrialist, newspaper director, and liberal politician), bookplate; Baron Alain de Rothschild (1910–1982), bookplate, his sale, Sotheby's Paris, 24 May 2006, lot 183; (ii) Bookseller's label of Brentano's, Paris, bought by Francis King Harte (1865–1917, son of the American short story writer Bret Harte in the year of publication, ownership inscription to upper wrapper ("Francis King Harte | Paris | 1893"); Frank J. Hogan (1877–1944, prominent American lawyer and president of the American Bar Association), morocco booklabel to verso of front free endpaper; sale, Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, 12 November 1954, lot 846; sale in our New York rooms, 3 July 1989, lot 955 LITERATURE: (i) Lasner 591; (ii) Mason 348

View 1 of Lot 152: Oscar Wilde | Salome, two copies with interesting provenance

oscar wilde | salome, two copies with interesting provenance

Lincoln, Mary Todd Autograph letter signed ("Mrs. Lincoln") as first lady, [Washington, D.C., 2 December 1861], to Ruth Harris ("Mad[ame] Harris"), 2 pages written on the rectos only of two leaves of blue-ruled machine-laid paper; remnants of hinges on versos and faint edge discoloration, evidently from earlier framing. "Mary Lincoln's interest in clothes as well as her penny-pinching proclivities are … evident in the letters she wrote her favorite milliner in New York, 'Madame' Ruth Harris. The most elaborate headdress, made to precise specifications, must be ready in no time and must not cost more than $5.00. The letters to Madame Harris crop up all through Mrs. Lincoln's years in Washington. They provide fascinating insight into her skill as a designer, her meticulous attention to changing styles, her awareness of her own best features, and her sureness of taste" (Turner & Turner, p. 113). Mrs. Lincoln may have written frequently to Ruth Harris, but those letters are extremely rare in the market. Justin G. Turner and Linda Levitt Turner's Mary Todd Lincoln: Her Life and Letters (New York, 1972) print eight letters and telegraphs from Mary Todd Lincoln to Ruth Harris in addition to the letter offered here; seven of these are in institutional collections and the other is unlocated. The present missive is apparently one of two ever to appear at auction; the other was unknown to Turner & Turner and is now in the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. The only other item tangentially related to the two women cited in Rare Book Hub is an envelope (without letter) addressed to "Madame Harris & Son, 729 Broadway, New York," 7 April of an indeterminate year, that was franked by President Lincoln. This letter, then, is evidently the only known Mary Lincoln fashion-design commission in private hands. The First Lady evidently wrote to Harris on 1 December 1861, requesting the hatmaker to "make up a purple silk velvet headdress." From the date of that letter (now in the Huntington Library), the date of the present letter can be determined to be 2 December 1861: "I wrote to you on yesterday. I will also get you to make a real black velvet head dress twisted as you did the crimson, the true real velvet bow & strings behind of your richest velvet—also a bow on the top. A bow also on the purple with a loop—in case I take off the flowers. Remember a bow & loop in front on each. To be made in your handsomest style. In front & behind a handsome bunch of black berries—with those peculiar leaves—your richest berries—without they are of the best & most stylish, I do not want them. Remember under the flowers of each—bows & loops. Please send them by Wednesday or Thursday Express." In a postscript, Mrs. Lincoln reiterates, probably unnecessarily, "All of the richest velvet." The Turners misdated the letter regarding a "purple silk headdress" as 21 November, because Mary Lincoln misdated the original manuscript as 31 November—a date that does not exist. She apparently got confused and neglected to advance the month. Correctly dating the present letter to 2 December also helps explain its urgent tone: Mrs. Lincoln may well have wanted the new black velvet hat for a levee at the White House on 17 December, which the Washington Star described as "the opening public reception of the season." Ruth Harris was born in Poland, probably around 1808. She gave birth to a son, Morris, when she was just fifteen. Nothing is known about Morris's father, including whether he married Ruth. However, in the 1851 census, as well as in New York City directories of the day, Ruth Harris is described as a widow. She and Morris emigrated about 1841–1842 to London, where they worked as furriers. About a decade later, the Harrises left London for the United States. In New York City, Harris established a French millinery on Broadway called Madame R. Harris & Son. An advertisement in Frank Leslie's Monthly in 1860 claimed that Harris & Son "make a specialité of most exquisite Parisian flowers for garniture and head-dresses. During a late visit to the French capital, Madame Harris made arrangements to become the branch house of the celebrated Duteis, the great artist in flowers to the Empress Eugenie, and whose perfect and natural creations are the passion and delight of the Parisiennes." Harris also advertised regularly in the first English-language Jewish weekly newspaper in the United States, New York's The Asmonean: A Family Journal of Commerce, Politics, Religion, and Literature Devoted to the Interests of the American Israelites. Although Ruth Harris’s connection to Mrs. Lincoln is well documented, her Jewish identity has gone unrecognized in the literature; genealogical research now establishes her and her son's Jewish Identity. Their advertising in The Asmonean places them firmly within New York’s Jewish commercial network. The 1860 U.S. census records Ruth living with Morris, his wife Selina, and their son Reuben; Morris is listed in the millinery and fur trade, aligning with the family business. Ruth remained part of this household during the firm’s operation. Morris married Selina Prince in 1856 in a ceremony officiated by Rabbi Rev. M. R. de Leeuw. Selina was the daughter of Abraham Prince, a silk hat and fur manufacturer of Edinburgh, whose 1822 marriage to Nancy Moses is the earliest recorded Jewish marriage in that city, linking two families in related trades. Jewish communal ties are further documented: Selina’s funeral invited Congregation Shaaray Tefila; Morris’s funeral was conducted by a rabbi of the Hebrew Congregation in Washington, D.C.; and both were buried in Beth Olom Cemetery, New York, with records appearing in JewishGen. During the Civil War, Ruth Harris acted as Mary Todd Lincoln’s New York milliner, maintaining ongoing correspondence. The First Lady was a demanding and precise client, placing repeated orders for bonnets and headwear and frequently requesting adjustments rather than one-time purchases. The letters show her detailed instructions and high expectations; despite criticism and cost concerns, she continued to rely on Harris, who remained professional, responsive, and adaptive. Harris’s role was especially significant after Willie Lincoln’s death in 1862, when she supplied Mary with a formal mourning bonnet and veil, meeting her exacting standards during a period of personal grief. Ruth Harris left the United States before the end of the war, after which the business continued under Morris Harris.

View 1 of Lot 372: Lincoln, Mary Todd | A meticulous order for a hat from her Jewish milliner, Ruth Harris

lincoln, mary todd | a meticulous order for a hat from her jewish milliner, ruth harris

Benjamin Franklin Autograph letter signed (“BFranklin”) to Mary “Polly” Stevenson Hewson (“My dear dear Friend”), 2 pages (228 x 183 mm) on a leaf of laid paper (watermarked posthorn GR), Passy, 13 April 1782, a warm letter on domestic topics, that also looks forward to seeing “Peace & Good Will restored between our Countries,” reception docket in left margin of verso “Passy April 13—82.” Half red morocco folding-case gilt, chemise. In the midst of his residence at the Hôtel de Valentinois, Passy, while American Minister to France, Franklin sends an affectionate letter to Mary “Polly” Hewson. “I received your kind Letter of the 23d of December. I rejoice always to hear of your & your good Mother’s Welfare, tho’ I can write but Seldom, safe Opportunities are Scarce.” Franklin renews an earlier invitation that Hewson visit him in Passy with her mother and children: “Looking over some old Papers I find the rough Draft of a Letter which I wrote to you 15 Months ago, and which probably miscarried, or your Answer miscarried, as I never receiv’d any. I enclose it, as the Spring is coming on and the same Proposition will now again be in Season and easily executed if you should approve of it.” Franklin was wise to include his draft, because the original of his earlier letter, 10 January 1780, evidently never reached London and Polly would have had no idea of what the “Proposition” entailed. Still thinking of a reunion in France, Franklin inquires about John Viny and Joseph Jacobs, partners in a wheelwright and carriage-building firm who had worked with Franklin to develop a new method of making wheels in one piece. “You mention Mr. Viny’s being with you. What is his present Situation? I think he might do well with his Wheel-Business in this Country. By your Newspapers Jacob [sic] seems to have taken it to himself. Could he not make up a good Coach with the latest Useful improvements, & bring you all in it. It would serve here as a Specimen of his Abilities, if he chose to stay; or would sell well if he chose to return.” He next commiserates with Mrs. Stevenson about the health consequences of growing older: “I hope Your Mother has got over her Lowness of Spirits about the Dropsey. It is common for aged People to have at times swell’d Ancles towards Evening; but it is a temporary Disorder, which goes off of itself, & has no Consequences.— My tender Love to her.” Benjamin Franklin Bache, Franklin’s twelve-year-old grandson, was at the time attending school in Geneva, and his grandfather requests Hewson to send the books that he arranged for her to purchase to him there: “If you have an Opportunity of sending to Geneva, I like well enough your sending the Books thither for my Grandson, who goes on well there.—” (Franklin had earlier suggested that she use a smallish amount of money that she owed him—about £5—to purchase duplicate sets of appropriate books for his grandson and her son William, Franklin’s godson, who was the same age). Perhaps referencing a running joke that the young Bache would one day wed Hewson’s daughter Elizabeth, Franklin endorses not dressing the girl too soon in mature undergarments, “You do well to keep my Grandaughter without Stays. God bless her, and all of you.—” In its conclusion, the letter transcends familial themes as Franklin thoughtfully reflects on the unsettled period between Cornwallis’s surrender at Yorktown and signing of the Treaty of Paris: “You may imagine that I begin to grow happy in my Prospects. I should be quite so, if I could see Peace & Good Will restored between our Countries; for I enjoy Health, Competence, Friends & Reputation; Peace is the only Ingredient wanting to my Felicity. Adieu, my dear Friend, and believe me ever Yours most affectionately.” REFERENCES Papers of Benjamin Franklin, ed. Cohn, 37:144–145 (not locating the original, text [surprisingly accurate] from Stan V. Henkels, Catalogue No. 1262) PROVENANCE Stan V. Henkels, Catalogue No. 1262, The Great Autograph Sale, 1 July 1920, lot 31 (undesignated consignor) — American Art Association, 22 April 1924, lot 295 (undesignated consignor) — “A Gentleman” (Christie’s New York, 4 December 2018, lot 141)

View 1 of Lot 85: Benjamin Franklin | "Peace is the only Ingredient wanting to my Felicity"

benjamin franklin | "peace is the only ingredient wanting to my felicity"

Finest & Rarest Wines | Collecting the Extraordinary

Château Rhude 2026 R H U D E × Sotheby's Wine: One-of-One Collector's Hat Designed exclusively for Sotheby's Wine, this one-of-one custom hat is created by Rhuigi Villaseñor, founder and creative director and founder of R H U D E, in collaboration with Richard Young of Sotheby's Wine. Inspired by Villaseñor's personal passion for wine collecting and global wine culture, the piece brings together fashion, lifestyle, and wine in a singular expression. Much like a great vintage wine produced only once, this hat is the sole expression of its kind and never to be repeated. Produced as a unique work of art and defined by its moment of creation, it stands as a true collector's item at the intersection of contemporary design and fine wine. The successful bidder will also be invited to an exceptional private experience: the "R H U D E Wine Party" co-hosted by Rhuigi Villaseñor and Richard Young of Sotheby's Wine. This intimate gathering will feature a curated selection of the world's finest wines from iconic producers and will take place in Los Angeles, New York, or Lake Como. Date to be mutually agreed. Travel and accommodation not included. For more information, please contact the wine department. R H U D E, founded by Rhuigi Villaseñor in 2015, is a design venture born out of Los Angeles, balancing luxury techniques with streetwear elements, showcased as ready-to-wear collections. Designed from a narrative standpoint R H U D E is both a reflection of modern socioeconomics and personal stories as Villaseñor came to Los Angeles. Now a reoccurring theme season-to-season, R H U D E combines American iconography with nostalgic references, a visual commentary on Los Angeles style and culture itself. Rhuigi studied art history shortly after graduating HS and was an understudy/intern to Shaun Samson. With no formal training specific to fashion design, Villaseñor credits his understanding of garments and construction to growing up with a mother who was a tailor, providing a foundation and understanding of how to build each piece and the subsequent stories told with each collection. RHUDE’s journey parallels Villaseñor, chronicling the evolution of a man from adolescence to maturity, a narrative reflected each collections both the Creative Director and brand continues to grow-up with its ever-expanding fanbase, culminating in the most recent debut presentation during Paris Men’s Fashion Week for the Spring/Summer 2020 Collection. rh-ude.com ﻿Please note that for Wine and Spirits Lots, the Buyer’s Premium rate is 24% of the Hammer Price and the Overhead Premium rate is 1% of the Ha mmer Price. The Buyer’s Premium and Overhead Premium are subject to any applicable VAT/GST and/or sales or use tax. Please refer to the Conditions of Business for further details.

château rhude 2026

Bauche, Philippe Carte Physique des Terreins les plus élevés de la Partie Occidentale du Canada. [Paris:] Publiée sous le Privilege de l'Académie des Sciences, 4 Septembre, 1754 Engraved map (250 x 357 mm). Partly hand-colored in outline, signed to the plate "Delahaye l'Aine sculpsit"; lightly toned, some pale staining, laid down on linen, short marginal tears, pin holes in margins, a small loss to the lower left corner affecting the "D" in Delahaye. Bauche's unusual map displays two distinct theories about the geography of the then uncharted lands in Canada to the west of Lake Superior, one based on an indigenous source and the other from western sources. As such, it contains an uncommon example of indigenous cartography on a printed map. It is also notable for its representation of the Upper Midwest and Plains, three of the Great Lakes, and its inclusion of the spurious "Mer de l'Ouest." Both are centered around a supposed waterway that connects Lake Superior to the Mer de l'Ouest. The smaller, less detailed map at the top of the sheet purports to be a copy after a map made by a Cree Indian, Ochagach, for a French officer in 1728. It shows a series of lakes connected by rivers and provides information about where to exit the river for portages. The map underneath is drawn from three different sources, all French. It covers a larger area in far greater detail. To the left of this map is a cartouche containing a sizeable text that points out some of the inconsistencies between the two maps, and cites some of the sources for the French map's geographical information. Taken together, Bauche's map is emblematic of the problems that European cartographers faced when trying to accurately map the North American frontier sight unseen, choosing between various uncertain sources, and building on unstable foundations in their attempts to prove a hypotheses or fill in a blank space. This map was published in Bauche's major work on the geography of the Pacific Northwest, Considérations Géographiques et Physiques Sur Les Nouvelles Découvertes au Nord de la Grand Mer (1753–55). Only seven copies of the atlas have appeared at auction in the past 100 years, and this is the only separate copy of the map to have appeared at auction, per Rare Book Hub.

View 1 of Lot 351: Bauche, Philippe | Western Canada and the Great Lakes, featuring an uncommon example of indigenous cartography, 1754

bauche, philippe | western canada and the great lakes, featuring an uncommon example of indigenous cartography, 1754

Fine Books and Manuscripts, Including Americana. Part 1

Chassériau, Benoît A highly significant group of 69 documents, mostly manuscripts, in Spanish, concerning the “Expedicion secreta” against the forts of Portobelo (Panama) led in January 1814 by the Free State of Cartagena de Indias—the first area of current Colombia that declared itself absolutely Independent from Spain. Benoît Chassériau was commander-in-chief of the secret expedition and of the Western Army of Cartagena. These records are of particular importance because most of the official Columbian archives related to the Free State of Cartagena of indias (1811–1815) were destroyed during the wars of independence. Panama became both a military depot for supplies and troops as well as a staging area for operations against the rebels on the Atlantic coast of New Granada. This naturally made Panama the target of the rebels in Cartagena. The attack by the secret expedition began on 16 January 1814, when a force of eight schooners and 460 men, mostly privateers, under the command of Benoît Chassériau, attacked Portobelo. The royalists, under Governor Joaquin Rodriguez Valcarcel, repulsed the invaders and sent them fleeing back to Cartagena. To lead the naval division, Benoît Chassériau selected Renato Beluche, a corsair associated with the Lafitte brothers who was known for his bravery and his soul as a leader. Beluche had obtained the rank of lieutenant in Cartagena and later became Bolívar's "favorite admiral." From the schooner General Bolívar, he would lead eight captains and privateers: Charles Lominé who will continue fighting alongside Bolívar, Pedro Dupin, Jean-Baptiste Pemerlé, Juan Lachicotte, Matías Padrón, Fortunato Lepta and Domingo De Mesa. (See Nouvion, L'ami des Colombiens, Benoît Chassériau (1780–1844), Paris, 2018 (pp. 47–59 specifically discuss the secret expedition to Portobelo); Sosa, Compendio de Historia de Panamá, Ediiciones LAVP, 2017; Vogel, “Rebel without a Cause: The Adventure of Louis Aury,” in Laffite Society Chronicles VIII (2002): 3.) Calendar of the 69 documents * Chassériau, autograph manuscript report of military operations to the President of the Free State of Cartagena de Indias, Manuel Rodríguez Torices (1788–1816), on board the schooner General Bolívar, 19 January 1814. * Proclamation of Benoît Chassériau, commander-in-chief of the Western Army of Cartagena to his fellow citizens and neighbors of Portobelo (Benito Chasseriau, comandante en Jefe del ejército de occidente de Cartagena a sus conciudadanos los vecinos de Portobelo” “en frente de la ciudad de Portobelo, 15 de enero de 1814”). 2 pages. This proclamation was printed for distribution to the population of Portobelo. * Proclamation of Benoît Chassériau, commander-in-chief of the to the Authorities of Portobelo, 2 pages. This proclamation was printed for distribution to the authorities of Portobelo. * Address of Benoît Chassériau to the soldiers of the Expedition ("A todos los militares que componen la Expedición … Terrible en el combate, y generoso en la Victoria, tal es la divisa del verdadero guerrero," “en la ensanada de Buenaventura, 15 de Enero de 1814”), 2 pages. * 5 notes and letters of Lieutenant Renato Beluche, privateer, commander the naval forces of the expedition. Beluche became Bolívar’s favorite admiral and was the victor of the battles of Lake Maracaibo. His remains are in the National Pantheon of Venezuela. * Note on the necessity of the 16-gauge artillery piece, one page. * “Cantidad de los tripulación embarcado a bordo de los corsarios”; a roster of the crews on board the corsairs, one page. * “Cantidad de los fusiles desembarcados por los corsarios de la División baro el mando del Comandante Chassériau”; inventory of the umber of rifles by schooner, one page; with 2 related letters. * 7 letters of Antoine Leleux, Secretary of War of the Free State of Cartagena, former aide-de-camp of Francisco de Miranda and close friend of Simón Bolívar, including the letter confirming that President Torices had authorized the expedition. * “Relación de los gastos indispensables que he pagado del dinero entregado a mi disposición en la expedición dirigida contra Portobelo en el presente mes de Enero de 1814,” 2 pages. * “Relación de las armas que par orden al Excelentísimo Señor Presidente gobernador del Estado siguen para la expedición” by Juan Bolsa and Antonio Anoulo; 4 inventories of weapons, 4 pages. * “Proyectos de instrucciones para el comandante de la Expedición secreta”; instructions for the commander of the Expedicion secreta, 5 pages. * Budget of the expedition (“2300 pesos … 600 en platas y 1700 en billetes”) by Marcos Fernández de Sotomayor (from 1811, he occupied the Secretariat of the Bishopric and later became Secretary of the Treasury until the fall of Cartagena in the hands of Morillo). * Report of the abandonment of the brigantine Hercules following damage, 9 January 1814, 2 pages. Signed by the eight captains: Charles Lominé, Pedro Dupin, Jean-Baptiste Pemerlé, Juan Lachicotte, Matías Padrón , Fortunato Lepta and Domingo De Mesa. * Memorandum of the official decision to retreat in the face of much larger Spanish armed forces, 24 January 1814, 2 pages. Signed by Captain Félix Layet, Lieutenant Jeronimo Scarpetta (New Grenada Battalion), Captain Carlos de Lamereux (infantry), Captain Hippolyte Dufour Davas (Cavalry). * Memorandum on the need for weapons and food for the schooner El Ribon, by Captain Jean-Baptiste Pemerlé, one page. * Memorandum on the need for weapons and food for the schooner El Carmen, one page. * “Repartición de embarque de las tropas destinadas a la expedición secreta a bordo de los buques de la División”; memorandum regarding the distribution of the troops aboard the ships of the division, one page. * 8 receipts for sabers and other weapons (“Recibos de sables etc… ”), signed by Lieutenant Jeronimo Scarpetta, Dr. Federico Meyer, chief medical officer of the expedition, and others. * “Repartición de 342 pesos en doblones, los 2/5 para la Cámara, y los 3/5 a las tropas,” one page. * 30 letters and notes including one letter by Juan Guillermo Ros, Secretary of State and Interior — 3 letters by Juan General Salvador Narváez (1788–1827) — one letter by Juan Robertson (1767–1815), General Secretary General of the Government of Curaçao (1808–1812), who sympathized with the revolution of Caracas. (In 1812, he settled in Caracas and served Miranda there. Bolívar sent Lino de Clemente and Juan Robertson to the British government for recognition of Latin American Independence. Robertson was the English translator of the "Carta de Jamaica" and the author of the first known biography of Simón Bolívar.) — one letter by Juan Elias Lopez, governor of Cartagena — one letter by Juan Bolsa — one letter by Captain Félix Layet — one letter by Lieutenant Jeronimo Scarpetta — one letter by Captain Roberto Capoul — one letter by Captain Domingo De Mesa — one letter by Doctor Federico Meyer — one letter by F. Dupeyron, former secretary of Francisco de Miranda. This lot and lots 341–347 in Part 2 are components of an extensive and remarkable archive of papers, manuscript and printed, by and relating to the French diplomat and spy Benoît Chassériau (1780–1844), whose life reads like swashbuckling fiction: patriotic combatant during Colombia's war of independence; Minister of the Interior and of Police for the Free State of Cartagena de Indias (Colombia); comrade in arms of Simón Bolívar; commander-in-chief of the Western Army of Cartagena in the campaign against Portobelo (Panama) in 1814; schemer-in-chief of the planned French secret expedition against Panama in 1820; the first diplomat sent to Colombia in 1824 by Viscount François-René de Chateaubriand, French minister of Foreign Affairs; Consul in Saint Thomas (U.S. Virgin Islands) and Puerto Rico—and father of the Dominican-born French Romantic painter Théodore Chassériau (1819–1856). All of this material, mostly in French or Spanish, descended within the family from Benoît Chassériau to his son Frédéric-Charles Chassériau (1807–1881; State Councilor and historian of the Navy), thence to a cousin, Baron Arthur Chassériau (1850–1934; stockbroker, banker, art collector, and major donor to the Louvre), and by continued descent to the present owner.

View 1 of Lot 201: Chassériau, Benoît | The “Expedicion secreta” of the Free State of Cartagena de Indias against the forts of Portobelo (Panama) 

chassériau, benoît | the “expedicion secreta” of the free state of cartagena de indias against the forts of portobelo (panama)

Cassatt, Mary Autograph letter signed to "Cher Monsieur" Lazard, Mesnil-Beaufresne, 3 December 1905 Four page letter on Mesnil-Beaufresne stationery (174 x 260 mm to sight); old mailing fold, a pale spot, and a few ink smudges. In a gilt double-sided frame, with a portrait of Cassatt. Not examined out of frame. Cassatt discusses Lazard's young son, her plans for painting a a mother-child portrait, "Lady avec son bébé," the differences between French and American babies as artist's models, and with an unusual postscript, reading "The water seems to be coming back to us on this side, and I dream of giving public baths, especially for the children." 3 Dec. 1905 MESNIL-BEAUFRESNE FRESNEAUX-MONTCHEVREUIL MESNIL-THÉRIBUS (OISE) "Cher Monsieur, Moi aussi j'ai bien regretté de ne pas avoir eu le plaisir de vous voir pendant la journée que j'ai passée à Paris; je me suis empressé de retourner à la campagne. Car a trois heures de l'après midi il n'y avait pas moyen de distinguer un tableau au Musée du Louvre. Je suis sûr que votre fils doit être à la [?????] à l’heure présent, et il fait la joie de la maison, je le verrai j'espère quand vous reviendrez à Paris. Mais cher monsieur vous ne me devez rien du tout ! Excusez votre pauvre amie si mal réussi ce que je tenais tant à bien faire. Le fait est que j'aurais dû prendre le conseil de ma bonne Mathilde qui me disait de faire une esquisse au pastel de bébé et de sa jolie mère, car c'est par la couleur que je les voyais, et puis après j'aurais pu faire ma petite étude. - Si Madame Lazard veut encore avoir un peu de confiance en moi nous ferions cela quand nous nous reverrons, et alors je pourrai peut être remonter dans mon propre estime, si c'est [??????] cela est pour moi et j'espère que vous voudrez ne pas me parler de payment, car je tiens m’amuser et tâcher de faire ce que j’ai toujours désiré comme le portrait d’une "lady avec son bébé" — Jamais avant je n’ai eu cette chance, en Amérique les enfants sont trop souven eleve au biberon, ce qui n’a rien d’artiste — J’ai eu un mot de Madame Neill me demandant s’il y avait des propriétés à louer de ce côté, hélas ! non, excepté un petit château à 6 kilomètres de Meaux avec un petit parc j’en avais parlé à des amis, et le propriétaire Mr de Lubersac en demande la petite somme de 15,000 frs de location — Il y a des gens qui n’ont pas le sens de la proportion. Vous devez être désolée des horreurs en Russie. Il y a une histoire dans le Temps d'aujourd'hui qui fait frémir. Mille amitiés à Madame Lazard et un baiser à votre fils et croyez cher Monsieur à mes sentiments très amicaux. Mary Cassatt L'eau a l'air de nous revenir de ce côté et je ne rêve que de donner des bains publiques spécialement pour le enfants." PROVENANCE The Kenneth Rendell Gallery

View 1 of Lot 437: Cassatt, Mary | A long, charming letter touching on Cassatt's artwork and her love of children

cassatt, mary | a long, charming letter touching on cassatt's artwork and her love of children

(Bible in Latin) Illuminated manuscript fragment on vellum, Northern France, ca. 1240 13 consecutive leaves (153 x 102 mm), bound. Written in small dark brown gothic bookhand in two columns of 44 lines, ruled, 17 initials painted in shades of red, white, black, and blue, the majority of which with gold leaf, many with charming drolleries, with running titles in red and blue and countless one-line initials as well as pilcrows; margins slightly darkened and occasionally showing minor marks of usage, a few short tears to edges. Modern half vellum over marbled paper-covered boards, blackletter sticker title to upper board, red manuscript symbol to spine; lightly rubbed, sticker label lifting slightly. A attractive 13th-century example of Parisian manuscript illumination, likely accomplished by the renowned Gautier Lebaube Atelier, including the complete Books of Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, and Habakkuk. These beautiful leaves were likely created by the renowned Gautier Lebaube Atelier, active around 1240 in Paris. The atelier was named by Robert Branner after its leading illuminator, whose name survives on a full-page miniature showing a Tree of Consanguinity (formerly Glazier collection ms. 37, now Morgan Library). Below the kings’ feet a scroll unfolds bearing the words “GAUTIER.LEBAUBE.FIT.LABRE” (Gautier Lebaube made this tree). Under the reign of King Louis VIII and Queen Blanche of Castile, Parisian manuscript illumination experienced a Golden Age in which the Lebaube Atelier, and particularly its master, was a rising star. The artist and his atelier worked for high profile patrons including King Louis VIII and established themselves as one of the leading workshops of their time, producing stylistically cohesive and attractive works whose additional details deviated from the standard 13th-century iconography and added an enticing twist to the visual imagery of the period. Works by the artist and his collaborators can be found in leading public collections such as the BnF, Latin 36; Latin 14397, Pierpont Morgan Library, MS G.37, the Huntington Library, MS HM 1074, and Avranches, BM 24 (Gospels with gloss). Small and fantastic creatures, birds, and monsters feature prominently in the visual language of the workshop. A feature of the atelier are the tightly coiled hybrid creatures, often combining avian bodies with different animal heads, which appear in several of the initials in the present lot. REFERENCES Branner, Manuscript Painting in Paris during the Reign of Saint Louis, 1977; Two miniatures, (MS G.37.1-2), formerly Glazier Collection, https://www.themorgan.org/manuscript/77492; Sforzolini, "Un codice dell’atelier di Gautier Lebaube," in Classicismo: Medioevo, Rinascimento, barocco (1993), p. 57–63

View 1 of Lot 461: (Bible in Latin) | Illuminated manuscript fragment on vellum, Northern France, c. 1240

Results for "An American in Paris"