Start bidding on The French Enlightenment Auction

RR Auction is holding quite a rare event this month: a French enlightenment auction which includes remarkable items that are not only unique, but a treat for any collector, especially for those who are passionate about this period. Online bidding has already started and interested parties should take advantage of the small window they have to get hold of one of the amazing items that are featured in the auction.

The lot basically includes three items (three documents, to be more exact) that carry the signatures of three key figures of the time. One of these items is a letter signed by Voltaire and sent to Francois – Louis Defresney, who at the tome was Director of the post in Strasbourg. The 7 X 9 inches document is not dated, but it is believed to have been written around 1753 or 1754. The one page letter is in French and it is signed “V”. In part, it reads: “My dear and lovely child, some people tell me that I will have the pleasure to meet you in Colmar. You will comfort, just like in Strasbourg, a poor ill man and if friendship can heal, you will be my doctor. The Knight of Klinglin and I are the most desperate ill men in the whole province. I am very thankful to you for your kind attention towards my lost luggage. It was coming from Leipzig. I do not know who brought the case at my house. He was probably also in charge of my luggage from Leipzig. I am sure that this will be under your control. I am also expecting a trunk from Paris that has been sent to you by carters. All my consolations come from you. Thousands of tender respects to your mother and to your friends.” The document is in fine condition and it was estimated at over $6,000.

Another breathtaking item in this collection is yet another letter written and signed by Jean – Jacques Rousseau. The one page, 6.5 X 8.5 inches document is dated on January 31, 1762 and it is signed “J. J. Rousseau” at the bottom. It is addressed to the French bookseller Duchesne and it concerns Rousseau’s work “Emile, or On Education”. This letter is in French as well and, in part, reads: “I am worried by the way Mr. Neaulme [printer in Amsterdam] prints my book and I am requesting some pages to him by the post. He answers me that I have to ask your authorization. So I am asking you. Greetings from the bottom of my heart.” The item is in great condition and it was estimated at over $10,000.

Anyone interested in these collectibles or in any other items that RR Auction has to offer, should visit their website or keep up with the constant updates they provide on social media!