Books as art objects: Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild’s library at Waddesdon Manor

Figure 1 : The south facade of Waddesdon Manor, overlooking the garden

Waddesdon Manor, a fantasy 19th-century château embedded in a county once nicknamed “Rothschildshire” because of the number of properties owned by the family in such a limited geographical area, is an excellent representation of what may be known as the goût Rothschild. The manor, whose architectural style is an association of decorative elements taken from various French Renaissance Loire Valley castles, was designed to host Ferdinand de Rothschild’s art collection and accommodate it for week-end enjoyment and guests’ entertainment. The visual identity of the site, common to many Rothschild’s possessions, originates from the juxtaposition of French 18th=century decorative art and English 18th-century portraits.

Figure 2 : The grey drawing room, on the ground floor is representative of the Rothschild taste. It allies 18th century British portraits and 18th century French decorative arts.

The fortune of the Rothschild family can be traced back to the career of Ferdinand’s great- grandfather Mayer Amschel Rothschild, born in 1743 or 1744 in the Jewish ghetto of Frankfurt am Main, an independent imperial city. His family, who derived their name from the house of a 16th century ancestor, Zum roten Schield – “At the Red Schield” – had been involved in the textile trade, but Mayer specialised in antique dealing, and ran a mail-order business of coins and other antiquities. The capital he accumulated from this enterprise and the links it gave him with princely collectors enabled him to branch into banking. Having five sons, he was assisted by one of them who remained in Frankfurt and sent four others to important European cities and trade knots, making the family business international: Vienna, Manchester, Naples, and Paris. From those five brothers in five European cities comes the Rothschild’s insignia of the five arrows pointing in different directions. The main reason for the Rothschilds’ eclipse of their rivals, beyond their commercial acumen and energy, was their belief in ploughing back profits into the firm, a policy that was reinforced by endogamy: Rothschilds tended to marry their cousins, keeping the money in the family. They were not known as great spenders, but the family tradition of antique dealing, together with the need to ease their way with attractive and expensive gifts, began to turn their attention to collecting, just at the time that the benefits of cultivating the politically powerful, both as clients and as suppliers of commercially useful information, were encouraging the family to invest in expensive houses and estates where they could entertain. The narrative of this family history is still very present in Waddesdon Manor today, and a room is dedicated to it. The core of the collection displayed today reflects the taste of the first master of the place, art amateur and collector Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild, who decided to build the castle and tailored the building to his collection. Belonging to the Austrian branch of the family, Ferdinand de Rothschild moved to England after the early death of his mother in 1859, at the age of only 52, when he was still 19. He married one of his English cousins, Evelina, in 1865, but she tragically died 18 months later, and Ferdinand was to never marry again. Waddesdon would become his life’s work: having visited the site of the future house in 1874, the empty landscape was turned into the setting for a great house within five years. Ferdinand’s aesthetic outlook was undoubtedly shaped by his childhood homes, and, even as a child, he shared his mother’s interest in interior decoration and gardening. At only 21, Ferdinand de Rothschild bought a rare Sèvres turquoise pot pouri vase in the form of a ship, and had to pay for it in instalments. He had indeed great interest in art, shaped by early experiences: helping to pack his father’s art collection, and “learning under [his] mother’s tuition to distinguish a Teniers from an Ostade or a Wouwermans from a Both”. In this extent, Ferdinand’s taste was characteristic of what by the 1850s had become a clearly defined Rothschild tradition of collecting, distinguished by an interest in precious materials and excellence of craftsmanship: to a certain extent Rothschilds always considered their collecting as an investement and so tended to limit themselves to works with a clearly ascertainable market value. By the time Ferdinand came to build Waddesdon, educated taste favoured interiors that were authentic, in the sense of being composed of genuine fittings and furniture of the past, instead of modern imitations: he was part of a generation that was making a cult of what would soon be called “antiques”. A preference for the authentic furniture and fittings of the past narrowed the field for interior decoration considerably, for there was insufficient material available to equip a whole house with genuine furnishings of a medieval or Renaissance date; the chosen style tended, therefore, to be 18th century, since there was a flourishing market for furniture and decorative arts of the period and because, in Ferdinand’s words, it possessed “that adaptability which more ancient art lacks”. As Lord Hertford sardonically remarked about the optimistic descriptions of works of art he was offered by dealers, “bronzes, pendules et meubles, tout est de Riesener, ou de Boulle,ou de Gouthière et tout a appartenu à Marie-Antoinette, à Madame du Barry, ou à Madame de Pompadour”. That makes it all the more remarkable that Ferdinand secured so many pieces with a royal provenance. Thanks to his eye for quality, Waddesdon possesses treasures by J-H. Riesener such as the secrétaire made for Louis XVI’s study and Marie-Antoinette’s writing table, both from the Petit Trianon, and the rolltop desk made in 1763 for the comte de Provence, the future Louis XVIII. On the contrary, book collecting is a rather late passion in Ferdinand’s life, though books themselves had an important role in his childhood and teenage years. He regretted having never been to university, and had a strong urge to tutor himself, and frequently asked friends for advice about the books he should read in order to make up for the deficiencies of his education. He envied his English cousins the social ease which he believed had been granted by their public-school and university education, contrasting it with his own solitary bookishness as a child: “romances and novels […] increased the dreaminess of my disposition, which lasted until I was well into my teens”. His library at Waddesdon, nowadays enriched by the James A. de Rothschild’s bequest, is relatively small in size and was formed at a series of great English and French sales from Beckford (1882) to Pichon (1892). An incomplete catalogue was printed in a limited edition in 1897, and the words Tome Premier on the title page suggest that the intention was to enlarge the collection; the Baron’s death in 1898 prevented this. To a certain extent, Ferdinand de Rothschild sought in his bibliophilic activity the same criterions as in his art collecting: rarity, provenance, curiosity, and the feeling of a rather exclusive link with a past period or iconic persona. How is this reflected in his library?

Figure 3 : The Morning Room hosts the library in its original 19th-century bookcases

Baron Ferdinand de Rotschild’s bibliophilic collection in Waddesdon Manor mostly consists of late 17th and 18th century publications, from 1516 (W.Cat.137) to 1843 (W. Cat. 137). Chronologically, the collection could be said to start with Beaujoyeulx’s Balet comique de la Royne (1582, fig. 4). The 27 intaglio plates are ascribed to Jacques Patin (Nancy, c. 1540-c.1610), a friend of François Clouet and an artist who worked on the Louvre and on Fontainebleau, and are his only known engraved work. This plate (fig.4) shows the Grande Salle du Petit Bourbon, here still used without a proper stage, and the audience. The Balet comique de la royne was danced on October 15th 1581 to mark the marriage of the duc de Joyeuse, the king’s favourite, with the queen’s half-sister, Marguerite de Vaudémont. The theme of the ballet is based on the story of Circe. The music was composed by Lambert Beaulieu and Jacques Salomon, the costumes were by Jacques Patin, and the whole organised by Baltasar de Beaujoyeulx. This occasion was an important one in the history of ballet and has been called the first in which dance and music were arranged together for the display of coherent dramatic ideas.

Figure 4 : Baltasar de Beaujoyeulx, Balet comique de la Royne faict aux nopces de Monsieur le duc de Joyeuse & Madamoyselle de Vaudemont sa soeur, 1582, W. Cat. 35, Acc. Num. 4588.

20% of the collection are published before 1700, and books after 1789 only represent 9% of the total: this library is truly one of an 18th-century connoisseur, and 70% of it was published during this time period. The library is also one of a Francophile: more than half of the works are Parisian imprints and though one third of the books are in English, the vast majority of them are in French. Most of the books were acquired for their visual appeal: Ferdinand de Rothschild’s collecting wasn’t led by classical bibliophilic criterions such as seeking first prints or different editions for textual reasons. He was rather attracted to books as art objects which could be appreciated for their beauty, which translates, in his library, in a large number of remarkable bindings.

Figure 5 : Almanach royal, année M.DCC.LXIX. Présenté à Sa Majesté pour la première fois en 1699 […] A Paris, chez Le Breton, Premier imprimeur ordinaire du roi, rue de la Harpe [1768], W.Cat.8, Acc. Num. 4641 : Contemporary mosaic binding of red morocco with onlays of green morocco and insertions of mica, arms (possibly those of Deume de la Chenaye) painted in their proper colours under mica in the center of both covers. The spine panels are alternately red and green, endpapers with gold floral decoration on yellow ground, gilt edges. 198x135mm.

Figure 6 : Almanach royal, année M.DCC.LXXVIII. Présenté à Sa Majesté pour la première fois en 1699, mis en ordre, publié et imprimé par Le Breton, Premier imprimeur ordinaire du roi, à Paris, rue Hautefeuille, au coin de la rue des Deux Portes. [1777] W.Cat.9, Acc. Num. 2840 : Contemporary mosaic binding of red morocco with onlays of green morocco, and much silver ornamentation on a puce ground mica, the field being repoussé in a herringbone style. The arms of Marie-Antoinette, painted in their proper colours, on a white ground under mica in the center of both covers. Attributed to Nicolas-Denis Derome. 198x135mm.

Figure 7 : Giordiano Bruno, Spaccio de la bestia trionfante, proposto da Giove, effettuato dal conseglo, revelato da Mercurio, recitati da Sophia, udito da Saulino, registrato dal Nolano. Diviso in tre dialogi, subdivisi in tre parti. Consecrato al molto illustre et eccellente cavalliere Sig. Philippo Sidneo. Stampato in Parigi. [London, J. Charlewood], 1584, W. Cat.92, Acc. Num. 907 : Binding of early eighteenth century French citron morocco with a green and red mosaic à répétition design based on ovals on the covers and spine and featuring a shell on the red onlays. The intervening areas speckled with gold dots around a larger one with a black centre. Spine with green lettering-piece, , red and black headbands, red silk marker, gilt edges over marble, black leather doublure with regular deep gilt border, free endpaper lined with gold leaf. By Antoine-Michel Padeloup le jeune for Count Hoym. 142x92mm.

Figure 8 : Longus, Les amours pastorales de Daphnis et Chloé [translated from the Greek by J. Amyot], [Paris, Quillau], 1718, W. Cat. 420, Acc. Num. 5459 : Binding of contemporary French mosaic binding onlaid on red morocco. The covers have the arms of the duc d’Orléans, the field dark brown and the silver-guilt label having apparently oxidised. Surrounded by a brown leather frame with, further, leafy swags of dark and light brown leather. Green circles in the corners feature fleurs- de-lis on the red morocco at their centres. Pink and black headbands, edges gilt over marble, pink silk marker and linings. Possible attribution to A. Du Seuil or A.-M. Padeloup. 162x102mm. The remarkable character of this binding is underlined by a newspaper contemporary to Ferdinand : « Quel objet serait plus capable de faire tressaillir les entrailles d’un bibliophile ? La plus charmante production du XVIIIe siècle, recouverte d’une reliure à ornements en mosaïque aux armes de Philippe d’Orléans, Régent de France ! Tous les éléments de la curiosité se trouvent réunis dans ce morceau doublement royal : ouvrage rare et recherché, reliure exceptionnelle, provenance illustre ! » (« Les Reliures en Mosaïques du XVIIIe siècle », Gazette des beaux-arts, 2, XX, 1879, p.,365).

Figure 9 : Le nouveau testament de nôtre-seigneur Jesus-Christ. Nouvellement traduit en françois, selon la Vulgate ; par m. Charles Huré, ancien professeur de l’Université de Paris, & Principal du Collège de Boncour. Imprimé avec la permission de son eminence monseigneur le cardinal de Noailles, arch-évêque de Paris. A Paris, chez Louis Roulland, rue S. Jacques à S. Louis & aux armes de la reine, 1709, W.Cat.569, Acc. Num. 5469 : Mid eighteenth century French mosaic binding in à répétition style. Black morocco base with onlays of red and light brown, the covers bearing a trellis, slightly sloping diagonally down to the right across the two boards, and filled with squares with corners shortened by the circular intersections of the trellis. The interior areas bear a palm leaf. A red frame with the characteristic Derome decorative border, made with a pallet, surrounds the covers. 165x97mm. (2 vols.)

Nevertheless, the collector wasn’t only interested in the superficial aspect of the books and did focus on certain subjects, while some themes seemed to be of particularly little interest to him such as theology, philosophy, and jurisprudence. First of all, as an amateur of paintings and decorative arts, the baron could not fail to be interested in books reproducing the contents of his collection. As a French 18th-century art enthusiast, Ferdinand also sought, in his library, works by major painters who occasionally turned to book illustration. Hence, Francois Boucher (1703-1770) may be found as a printmaker or designer in at least 11 books at Waddesdon, including the six-volumes of the Œuvres de Moliere (1734, W. Cat. 498, fig.10). Boucher, who had returned from Italy in 1731, was becoming fashionable as a portrait painter and worked here with his old colleague, Laurent Cars, to produce the illustrations and offer a new 18th- century glance on 17th- century comedy.

Figure 10 : Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, called Molière, Œuvres de Molière. Nouvelle edition. A Paris, 1734, W. Cat. 498, Acc. Num. 5436.

The books were also collected for their provenance. The connection to the famous historic character, which Ferdinand seemed to have been particularly seeking, may be established through a personalized binding indicating its provenance thanks to its coat of arms. For instance, Ferdinand owned 14 books that belonged to Madame de Pompadour including Du Perron’s Discours sur la peinture et sur l’architecture, divisé en deux parties (1758, fig.11). This item features the arms of Madame de Pompadour on both covers and her towers have been worked into the general design as well as featuring on each panel of the spine. Similarly, the arms of Jean-Baptiste Colbert (1619-1683) may be found on a book offered to this son for his entering into office (fig.12); Colbert’s armorial stamps are said to have been engraved in 1672 by Simon Thomassin. Its history also adds to the book value: it was owned by Horace Walpole and bears his Strawberry Hill bookplate, and was also part of Destailleur’s library.

Figure 11 : Du Perron, Discours sur la peinture et sur l’architecture, divisé en deux parties. A Paris, chez Prault père, quay de Gêvres, au Paradis, 1757 [1758], W. Cat. 222, Acc. Num. 3697: Binding of contemporary French red morocco by Pierre-Paul Dubuisson with plaquette designs on both covers. 205x135mm.

Figure 12 : Sébastien Le Clerc, Divers desseins de figures dédiés à monsieur Colbert d’Ormoy, receu en survivance à la charge de Sur-intendant des bâtimens et jardins de sa majesté, arts et manufactures de France. A Paris chez N. Langlois rue St. Jacques à la Victoire [1679], W.Cat.386, Acc. Num. 4624 : Contemporary French red morocco gilt, roll border, snakes in corners and arms of J.-B. Colbert. Spine gilt but not lettered. 118x152mm. The Baron indeed emphasised that the historical associations of an object were an important part of its attraction: “Old works of art are not […] desirable only for their rarity or beauty, but for their associations, for the memories they evoke, the trains of thought to which they lead, and the many ways they stimulate the imagination and realise our ideals”. Hence, many of the books in the Waddesdon collection come from celebrated libraries. Among those of royal provenance there are copies bearing the arms of Anne of Austria, Maria Leczinska, Mme Elisabeth, Mme Sophie, the Dauphine Marie- Josèphe de Saxe, the Comtesse de Provence, Queen Charlotte of England, Queen Christina of Sweden, Princess Louisa Augusta of Denmark, Leopold I of Lorraine, the Emperor Charles VI of Austria, and Stanislas Leczinski of Poland. Louis XV’s arms are found on a book printed by the young King himself, called Cours des principaux fleuves et rivières de l’Europe, composé et imprimé par Louis XV, Roy de France et de Navarre (1718); the binding is of green morocco and the doublures of red morocco are tooled with fish, birds, snakes and crustaceans, as is appropriate to the book’s subject (fig.13). This work, thought to be a summary of Louis XV’s lessons in geography from Guillaume Delisle, was composed when the king was only eight years old. It was doubtless used for presentation and the king appears to have given a copy later to Madame de Pompadour. It describes the geographical location of 21 French rivers, indicating those which flow into others, before going on to six German, six Spanish, two English, five Polish, three Russian and four Italian rivers. This is the only book known from this press.

Figure 13 : Louis XV, King of France, Cours des principaux fleuves et rivières de l’Europe. Composé et imprimé par Louis XV, Roy de France et de Navarre. En 1718. A Paris, dans l’Imprimerie du Cabinet de S.M. dirigée par J. Collombat, Imprimeur ordinaire du Roy, Suite, Maison, Bâtiments, Arts & Manufactures de Sa Majesté. 1718, W.Cat.429, Acc. Num. 3737 : Early eighteenth-century French green morocco gilt, with straight-tooled dolphin and fleur-de-lis roll border, royal arms with fleurs-de-lis on solid gold background. Lettered directly on spine, fleurs-de-lis in other panels, red and green headbands, blue silk marker, edges gilt over marble. Special red morocco doublure with silver- gilt border to represent water and, in the centre, eight tools of fish, birds, snakes and lobsters, doubtless alluding to the subject-matter of the book.

Original sketches for book illustrations and early states of the engravings in proof (and often before the late addition of the descriptive underline) were also eagerly acquired by collectors from the 18th century onwards and a number are to be found in the Waddesdon collection. Original sketches are included in multiple items such as Du Perron’s Discours du la peinture et sur l’architecture, divisé en deux parties (1758) which contains two full-page original drawings in Chinese ink and wash by Gabriel de Saint-Aubin. The second drawing, on page 38 (fig.14), shows the Salon of 1757 with people admiring the portrait of Madame de Pompadour by Boucher and cherubs above. In the 19th century, the Boucher portrait belonged to Baron Ferdinand and later to his sister Alice de Rothschild.

Figure 14 : Du Perron, Discours du la peinture et sur l’architecture, divisé en deux parties. A Paris, chez Prault père, quay de Gêvres, au Paradis, 1757 [1758], W. Cat. 222, Acc. Num. 3697: 205x135mm.

Ferdinand’s library also includes the art of calligraphy, which reflects an art collector’s taste for uniqueness. For example, he possessed the unillustrated version of the Guirlande de Julie produced by Nicolas Jarry for Julie d'Angennes, Duchesse de Montausier in 1641. Baron Ferdinand’s version is a duplicate of the text of the presentation copy of the poems, which entirely relies on its calligraphy for its effect (fig.15). This anthology of poems exists in the illustrated presentation copy on velum, decorated with floral designs by the well-known specialist painter Nicolas Robert (now in the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris), and in an immediately contemporary copy, probably made for the promoter, which is the Waddesdon copy. There are no illustrations or decorations to this copy. The manuscript was written by Nicolas Jarry (c.1615-c.1674), one of the leading calligraphers of his days, and each page has at its head the name of a flower in italic capitals, then the word ‘Madrigal’ and, below, the verses in italics. The Waddesdon copy was retained by Montausier for his personal use; both copies are bound identically and, because of the marriage of the parties, were for a long time together.

Figure 15 : Charles de Sainte-Maure, duc de Montausier, editor, La Guirlande de Julie. Pour mademoiselle de Rambouillet. Julie-Lucine d’Angenes. Escript par N. Jarry. 1641, W. Cat. 506, Acc. Num. 5454

Moreover, the baron’s interest and writings were of an historical cast: he even gave lectures in the Waddesdon town hall for the villagers. This subject was therefore bound to predominate in his book collection, if only for his own research. French history received most attention, and particularly that of the Ancien Régime. Classical antiquities is not covered, and Commines (1747, W. Cat. 153) and Guiccardini (1738, W. Cat. 303) alone represent the Middle Ages, which Ferdinand nevertheless showed interest in through his collecting of illuminated manuscripts: those were not part of his library in the Morning Room, and were kept in the Smoking Room. Moreover, the baron seemed to have a particular interest in prints and publications related to state occasions, theatre and social life. Social history concerned with state events such as coronations, royal processions or similar moments of display, especially those for which current sartorial fashions are recorded. Social subjects thus also included works depicting fashion, jewellery and hairstyling. Hence, Ferdinand’s collection includes the Costumes des représentants du peuple […] (1795, fig.16) : those plates show costumes, based on classical and medieval models for the members of the government and form a remarkable evocation of the brave new world of the French Revolutionary period. Grasset de Saint-Sauveur (1757-1810) was consul in Hungary and the Levant before producing numerous works on the costumes and peoples of various times and places. In a similar scope of interest, the Waddesdon library includes Legros de Romigny’s L’Art de la coeffure des dames françoises (1768, fig.17) : Legros had published his first engravings of hairstyles in 1765, and there were regular supplements which are collected in revised form here. He also ran a hairdressing academy with tokens to authenticate the proficiency of his pupils.

Figure 16 : Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur, Costumes des représentants du peuple, membres des deux conseils, du directoire exécutif, des ministres, des tribunaux, des messagers d’Etat, huissiers, et autres fonctionnaires publics, etc. Dont les dessins originaux ont été confiés par le ministre de l’intérieur au citoyen Grasset S. Sauveur ; gravés par le citoyen Labrousse, artiste de Bordeaux, connu par ses talents, et coloriés d’après nature et avec le plus grand soin. Chaque figure est accompagnée d’une notice historique. A Paris, chez Deroy, libraire, rue du Cimetière André-des-Arts, n°15, 1795, W.Cat. 289, Acc. Num. 4758

Figure 17 : Legros de Romigny, L’Art de la coeffure des dames françoises, avec des estampes, où sont représentées les têtes coeffées, gravées sur les desseins originaux de mes accommodages, avec le traité en abrégé d’entretenir & conserver les cheveux naturels. Par le sieur Legros, coeffeur des dames, enclos des Quinze-vingts. A Paris, chez Antoine Boudet, Imprimeur du roi, rue Saint-Jacques, à la Bible d’or, 1768, W. Cat. 310, Acc. Num. 4425.

The baron also seems to have a particular taste for more unusual documents such as Oudry’s strange book of rebuses (1716, W. Cat. 525, fig.18) ; such publications are not only enjoyable for the collector because of their rarity, but they are also a great entertainment to the intrigued guests invited to admire the collection. Rebuses were a fashionable pastime in France from the early seventeenth century, but the meaning of the rebuses is both difficult to interpret and then hard to understand, being based on the contemporary in-jokes of a particular social group. Apart from the present item, at least three other similar items are attributed to Oudry.

Figure 18 : Jean-Baptiste Oudry, Rebus logogrif[p]he[s] dedie[s] a son altesse royal[e] madame la Duchesse de Bery. Se vend A Paris chez l’auteur sur le Pont Nostre-Dame au Soleil d’Or, et rue Saint- Jacques vis-à-vis la rue des Mathurins au Mécenas [1716], W. Cat. 525, Acc. Num. 4562 : [Régent, né pour le bonheur de la France, tout le monde est charmé de vos nouveaux exploits ; plus grand par vos vertus que par votre naissance, chacun se croit heureux en vivant sous vos lois.]

Ferdinand also possessed the rather surprising Les chats by François-Augustin Paradis de Moncrif (1727, W.Cat.500, fig.19). Written as a series of letters to a lady at court, this a charming and witty satire of pedantic erudition, which gives a general history of cats, bringing in ancient Egypt, Homer and Locke, discusses the place of cats in society and describes contemporary cats. The death of Marlamain, the duchesse du Maine’s cat, is recorded on page 106. His funeral urn is still to be seen in the public gardens at Sceaux with the inscription: Ici git Mar-la-main le roi des animaux. Later works on this theme are rather rare but include a Dissertation sur la prééminence des chats dans la société, Rotterdam 1741, Lettres philosophiques sur les chats, 1748, and a commentary on Moncrif’s election to the Académie française entitled Le miaou, ou très-docte et très-sublime harangue miaulée par le Sgr. Raminagrobis, le 29 décembre 1733, jour de sa réception à l’académie françoise.

Figure 19 : François-Augustin Paradis de Moncrif, Les chats. A Paris, chez Gabriel-François Quillau fils, Imp. Lib. Jur. De l’Université, rue Galande, à l’Annonciation, 1727, W.Cat.500, Acc. Num. 5504

La danse des morts (1744, W. Cat. 179, fig.20) is also a rather unusual document in Ferdinand’s collection and reflects his taste for curiosities, with its binding evoking a mourning one while representing a bizarre temple of Death. The series reproduced in the book was originally painted in oil on the walls of the cloister round the cemetery in the Dominican Convent at Basle, executed by an unknown artist in 1441 at a time of plague and when the ecumenical and antipapal Council of Basle (1431-1449) was in session in that city. The paintings were restored by Hans Kluber in 1568, and again in 1616, 1658 and 1705. The pictures were copied by Mathias Merian the elder in 1616 and from the drawings he made a series of large copper-plates which he sold. The plates were re-engraved by J.-A. Chovin and a French translation added for the present 1744 edition. In common with other 19th-century gentlemen collectors, and perhaps particularly those of a more liberal frame of mind such as Monckton Milnes, the Baron was also drawn to scenes of persecution, bandits, highwaymen, pirates and similar criminals, with descriptions of both their crimes and their expiations of these; this book belongs to the same moral yet macabre field of interest.

Figure 20 :La danse des morts, comme elle est dépeinte dans la louable et célèbre ville de Basle, pour servir d’un mirroir de la nature humaine. Dessinée et gravée sur l’original de feu mr. Matthieu Merian. On y a ajouté, une description de la ville de Basle, & des vers à chaque figure. A Basle, ches Jean Rudolph Im-hof, 1744, W. Cat. 179, Acc. Num. 3968 : Binding of late eighteenth century French black morocco with onlaid ivory and red mosaic decoration of an architectural frame with central steps and pillar topped by an urn, skulls and crossed bones at intersections. Flat spine, red lettering- piece, skulls and crossed bones. Black and white headbands, white silk marker, gilt edges, gilt metallic endleaves. Bound by Pierre-Jean Bradel, with his engraved ticket on the verso of the front endleaf, Relié par Bradel le jne. Rue Décosses, No.1. quartier Ste. Généviève, A Paris. 197x166mm.

The astonishing or unusual nature of a book may also result from the prosaic aspect of its subject, revealing a rather unknown facet of an era. This is the case for Pierre Petit’s Art de trancher la viande […] (c.1650, W. Cat 542, fig.21). The act of carving, at least at formal meals, was long seen as an important function, often carried out by a major personality. The Grand écuyer tranchant or royal carver, as opposed to other functional écuyers, was a state official, and seventeenth-century manuals for young gentlemen gave lists of cuts in order of preference (with, for example, birds wings taking precedence over legs, as the latter touch the ground).The Escole parfaite des officiers de bouche (Paris, 1662) gave ten ways to peel apples and eighteen each for pears and oranges. Very few copies of Petit’s work are recorded and few facts are established. Ferdinand de Rothschild also collected a certain number of board games, and was interested in daily uses of engravings for trade cards, bottle labels and posters which were compiled in his scrapbook volumes entitled « Recueil d’adresses ». He similarly collected 730 loose bookplates, of which the vast majority were French. This aspect of the library sets aside his taste for books and prints as resulting from a rather different approach than that of his art collection : the print is an object of curiosity, and its very ephemeral use offers a glimpse into the everyday details of an era.

Figure 21 : Pierre Petit, L’Art de trancher la viande, & toutes sortes de fruits, nouvellement à la françoise. Par Pierre Petit écuyer tranchant [ ?Lyon, c. 1650], W.Cat.542, Acc. Num. 8561

In Waddesdon, books were not only displayed for their beauty, prestige or curiosity, but also served as social objects, and some of the illuminated manuscipts (medieval and early Renaissance) were exhibited in the Manor’s Smoking Room for the guests’curiosity during Ferdinand’s time. After they were given to the British Museum as part of the Waddesdon Bequest, Ferdinand’s sister Alice displayed his mosaic bindings, many of which are on 16th-century texts such as G. Bruno and Bandello. Such a link between the books, the art collection and the layout of the rooms is reproduced in today’s display for the visitors’enjoyment.

Figure 22: The Smoking Room

Figure 23: Today's display of books in the Smoking Room

A special thanks to Rachel Jacobs, curator or books, and Dr Mia Jackson curator of decorative art in Waddesdon Manor for their help with this article !

Bibliography

Michael Hall, Waddesdon Manor, The Heritage of a Rothschild House, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers, 2002 Anthony Hobson, “ The Waddesdon Library”, extrait de la Gazette des Beaux-Arts, juillet-août 1959 Giles Barber, The James A.de Rothschild Bequest at Waddesdon Manor: Printed Books and Bookbindings, The Rothschild Foundation, 2013