À la découverte: La bibliothèque du Code civil de la province de Québec

Par: George Yeryomin, étudiant à la Faculté de droit de l’Université McGill, assistant de référence à la Bibliothèque Gelber

Le droit civil en tant que tradition juridique s’étend sur plus de deux millénaires et demie d’histoire depuis la fondation de Rome, et ses principes et sa doctrine se trouvent contenus dans un grand nombre de lois et écrits monumentaux : les lois royales, la Loi des XII Tables, la codification monumentale de l’empereur Justinien, dont est issu le jus commune européen, élaboré et enrichi continuellement par tant d’œuvres et commentaires de jurisconsultes illustres, qui a subsisté pendant des siècles en tant que système de droit vivant jusqu’aux codifications nationales récentes (au XIXè siècle). La multitude des écrits formant la tradition et la doctrine civiliste est donc énormément riche et nombreuse. Mais cela veut-il dire que ces ressources doctrinales ne sont qu’accessibles à un nombre très limité de chercheurs? Bien au contraire, il y a une façon assez simple d’avoir accès aux extraits les plus pertinents de anciens docteurs et jurisconsultes qui ont servi de sources pour les compilateurs du Code civil, dont la lecture peut être d’une grande utilité pour comprendre le raisonnement derrière les règles expliquées de façon assez succincte par les codificateurs. Car il faut se le rappeler, le droit civil n’est pas issu du code, mais plutôt le code est l’expression synthétisée du droit civil.

La méthode que l’on vous propose comporte deux étapes, et aura pour but de vous faire découvrir une œuvre monumentale de la doctrine civiliste québécoise du XIXè siècle, La bibliothèque du Code civil de la province de Québec par Charles-Chamilly de Lorimier et Charles-Albert Vilbon1.

Première étape : trouver la concordance entre le CcQ et le CcBC
Une des façons de le faire est sur le site du CAIJ : https://elois.caij.qc.ca/CCQ-1991

Entrez l’article à propos duquel vous faites la recherche. La page consacrée à cet article vous indique l’équivalence dans le Code civil du Bas-Canada, s’il y en a une.

Dans l’exemple ci-dessous, nous cherchons les sources de l’art 1401 CcQ :

Une autre façon de trouver l’équivalence est d’aller voir l’édition Wilson-Lafleur du CcQ. En bas du texte de chaque article, l’article équivalent au CcBC est donné, s’il y en a un. Sinon, il y a aussi une table de concordance qui offre la concordance pour chaque article du CcQ.

Voici la même démarche à propos de l’art 1401 CcQ dans l’édition Wilson & Lafleur :

Veuillez noter que l’édition Yvon Blais n’offre pas la concordance en dessous du texte de chaque article du CcQ, et la table de concordance à la fin est classifiée selon l’ordre des articles du CcBC, ce qui rend la recherche un peu plus compliquée si notre point de départ est le CcQ.

Deuxième étape : trouvez l’article du CcBC dans La bibliothèque du Code civil
L’ouvrage auquel l’on fait référence est La bibliothèque du Code civil de la province de Québec par Charles-Chamilly de Lorimier et Charles-Albert Vilbon, qui est accessible dans son entièreté sur le site de la bibliothèque de McGill: https://www.library.mcgill.ca/hostedjournals/civilcode.html

Non, La bibliothèque du Code civil n’est pas une bibliothèque au sens propre, mais un ouvrage s’étendant sur plusieurs volumes contenant les autorités et les sources utilisées par les codificateurs pour chaque article du CcBC, allant des lois romaines en passant par les grands jurisconsultes français comme Du Moulin, Pothier, et plusieurs autres, terminant par les nouveaux codes, celui de Napoléon et celui de la Louisiane. Ainsi, cet ouvrage est une mine d’or servant de lien entre la tradition civiliste millénaire et le droit civil contemporain.

Pour vous faciliter la recherche à travers La bibliothèque du Code civil, voici une liste de tous les articles du CcBC contenus dans chacun des volumes de La bibliothèque :
• Vol 1 : 1–122
• Vol 2 : 123–307
• Vol 3 : 308–466
• Vol 4 : 467–565 (début)
• Vol 5 : 565 (suite)–718
• Vol 6 : 719–857
• Vol 7 : 858–1026
• Vol 8 : 1027–1149
• Vol 9 : 1150–1265
• Vol 10 : 1266–1384
• Vol 11 : 1385–1501
• Vol 12 : 1502–1603
• Vol 13 : 1604–1714
• Vol 14 : 1715–1809
• Vol 15 : 1810–1897
• Vol 16 : 1898–1975
• Vol 17 : 1976–2078
• Vol 18 : 2079–2196 (début)
• Vol 19 : 2196 (suite)–2233
• Vol 20 : 2234–2266
• Vol 21 : 2267–2277

Dans l’exemple ci-dessous, nous essayons de trouver les sources de l’art 993 CcCB (l’équivalent de l’art 1401 CcQ) dans La bibliothèque. Grâce à la liste ci-haut, on voit que cet article se trouve analysé au volume 7.

Les deux premières pages à partir d’où l’art 993 CcBC est abordé nous offrent un extrait du Digeste de Justinien (le signe « ff » signifie Digeste) et un extrait de Pothier. Dans les pages suivantes, on peut lire d’autres extraits tirés de Domat et un article du Code Napoléon.

Des questions ? N’hésitez pas à nous contacter : law.library@mcgill.ca.

1Charles-Chamilly de Lorimier et Charles-Albert Vilbon, La bibliothèque du Code civil de la province de Quebec (ci-devant Bas-Canada) : ou recueil comprenant entre autres matières, Montréal : Cadieux & Dérome, 1871-90.

Focus on: LITE Newsletter

Today we rediscovered Lite Newsletter, a newsletter published between 1968-1974 by the Office of the Judge Advocate General of the United States Air Force. After it was found, we decided that it was too rare of an item to keep in our regular journal collection, and so moved it into our rare book collection to ensure preservation (McGill owns volumes from 1970-1974). The content was so unique and interesting, we thought we would share a little bit about the newsletter and its contents!

Lite Newsletter was a newsletter dedicated to sharing news about the LITE System, a computerized information retrieval system for legal research that was developed by the Air Force and which provided search service to government agencies in the United States. LITE, which stands for Legal Information Thru Electronics, seems to have been a game changer in legal research in the Department of Defense in particular, saving “countless hours of manual research”.  Run by a staff of attorneys, LITE was meant to help lawyers deal with the “information explosion” of the time. The LITE attorneys were trained in building effective queries for the LITE system to run. Based on descriptions of the search functions, it looks like LITE attorneys were essentially researchers who were particular adept at using Boolean and proximity operators (!).

LITE included many databases, including the United States Code, decisions of various boards and tribunals, published and unpublished international law agreements, and extensive regulatory material. The LITE Newsletter would keep government lawyers up to date with new additions to the databases, interesting and common LITE searches, and more. Eventually, a library was built with these searches, to save “computational time” on urgent requests that effectively repeated a previously completed search.

In one issue of the newsletter, a list of potential explanations for not using LITE were enumerated. Particularly entertaining reasons included:

2. Dreamed of the possibility of computerized research, but didn’t know that it was feasible.
9. Didn’t realize the breadth and depth of a computer-produced research report. Didn’t realize that some problems which may have been impossible to research manually can now be researched by the computer.
12. Does not trust any kind of research prepared by a machine.

Other explanations might resonate with fellow librarians today:

5. Was afraid, or at least nervous asking for information on the system.
6. Didn’t believe that LITE data bases were relevant to the user’s problems, however, didn’t bother to inquire.
7. Satisfied with manual research techniques.

One issue of the newsletter also goes into the importance of using computers for research: “The computer is the only tool of technology that can store, manipulate and retrieve data of any kind in many different and general ways […] It is the most powerful tool ever available to man and to society.”

It is interesting to note how far we have come with computer-assisted research, and yet sometimes, our struggles remain the same. “Information explosion” is now known as “information overload,” and is one of the most significant challenges of the Digital Age. People may now be comfortable with researching using traditional databases, but when artificial intelligence is thrown into the mix – for instance, with new document analyzers – there is increasing skepticism. Finally, students continue to struggle with library anxiety, and librarians continue to put significant efforts into library outreach.

The LITE Newsletter is available by consultation only, Mondays to Fridays, from 9am-5pm.

  • Lite service for government agencies

Book Restored in Honour of Professor Margaret Somerville

In honour of Professor Somerville’s work and achievements, the Faculty of Law of McGill University has restored the 1773 edition of An Interesting Appendix to Sir William Blackstone’s Commentaries on the Laws of England. This volume is part of the Rare Book collection of the Nahum Gelber Law Library, and its record will carry in perpetuity a notice in tribute to Professor Somerville on behalf of McGill University.img_0014

An interesting appendix to Sir William Blackstone’s Commentaries on the laws of England. Philadelphia: Printed for the subscribers, by Robert Bell, 1773. This book is a collection of correspondence between William Blackstone, Joseph Priestley, and Philip Furneaux published as a reaction to the fourth volume of his Commentaries on the Laws of England, where Blackstone argued in support the suspension of legal penalties against nonconformists, and that essentially nonconformity remained a crime. The correspondence powerfully reveals and illustrates the philosophical, religious, and ethical tensions in the 18th century England. Priestley criticised Blackstone’s positions in the Commentaries relative to offences against the doctrine of the Established Church, while Furneaux in his letters on his Exposition of the Toleration Act offered powerful statement moral arguments against enforcing religious truths by civil penalties. After this public exchange of opinions, Blackstone made alterations to the subsequent editions of his Commentaries: he rephrased some offending passages, moderated his language in others, and corrected the errors and inaccuracies that had been pointed out by his correspondents.

img_0015Joseph Priestley (1733 – 1804) was English clergyman, political theorist, and physical scientist whose work contributed to advances in liberal political and religious thought and in experimental chemistry. He is best remembered today for his contribution to the chemistry of gases, while during his time day he was known also as a vigorous advocate of unitarianism and of liberal reform of government, education, and theology. Philip Furneaux (1726–1783) was an English independent minister, known for his work on behalf of the rights of nonconformists.

Beauty of Book Covers

We are not supposed to judge the books by their covers, but we cannot help admiring their beauty and the skills and quality of the workmanship of the book binders who created them hundreds of years ago. Book covers are an intrinsic part of the readers’ experience that can be used by the book producers or book owners to enhance the appeal or the importance of their contents, to market the book to a specific category of readers, or to produce a desired impression on visitors browsing the contents of a private library. These are some stunning examples from the Law Library’s rare books collections:

Corpus juris civilis (1612) in wooden boards, brown embossed calf leather, with fragments of clasps and metal corner-pieces.

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Collection of 16th century pamphlets bound in vellum manuscript waste

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Volumen parvum (Corpus juris civilis) (1588) in embossed pigskin

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Manuscript Institutions au droit françois (1715) in 18th century marbled paper

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Trois livres du domaine de la Couronne de France (1613) in brown calf with gold ornaments

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Praxis criminalis (1678) in limp vellum

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Liber qvintvs receptarvm sententiarvm integer (1604) in contemporary vellum with embossed ornaments and red leather label on the spine

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Les six livres de la republique de I. Bodin, soft leather covers embossed with fleurs-de-lys, coats of arms of France, Polland, and Henry III

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Controversiarum juris libri tredecim (1678) in contemporary vellum with embossed ornaments

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Enchiridion: ov Brief recveil du droict escript, gardé et observé ov abrogé en France (1606) in brown calf with gold ornaments

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New acquisition: Vocabvlarivm ivrisprvdentiae romanae (1718)

 vocab 3 3 We are happy to welcome a new addition to our Wainwright Collection: Vocabvlarivm ivrisprvdentiae romanae. It is a wonderful example of an early eighteenth century hand-written legal vademecum. The dictionary is a quick and simple reference guide to the principle terms and concepts of Roman civil law. It is written in fine hand, arranged alphabetically, and has foldable margins to facilitate the marking of places. The book covers all the principle aspects of civil law from inheritances and property rights through to contracts and martial law. It includes also a section on Juris primordia, on the structure and development of the Corpus Iuris Civilis. vocabThis dictionary was compiled by a 18th century lawyer, possibly a member of the Anyot family as it has a note on the front paste-down “dominus Anyot eques, 1718.” It is known that members of this Huguenot family were active as doctors, lawyers, and watchmakers in the later part of the seventeenth century in France, but after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, many of them left France to move to England. The dictionary is a beautiful example of a “18th century pocket reference book” bound in contemporary calf, with gilt spine decorated with raised bands. It is in a well-preserved condition with just some moderate rubbing to extremities, chipping to spine ends, and somewhat worn corners.vocab 2

New Additions to our Digitised Collection

  • The Law Library continues to work on enlarging our collection of digitised books from our rare and special collections. These are some latest additions that eloquently illustrate the breadth and depth of our collections:
  • The compleate copy-holder, wherein is contained a learned discourse of the antiquity and nature of manors and copy-holds … Necessary, both for the Lord and Tenant: Together, with the form of keeping a Copy-hold Court and Court-Baron / Edward Coke, 1644.StreamGate3 7

Do not be deceived by the title of this book authored by nobody else but famous, Sir Edward Coke (1552 – 1634). StreamGate3 9It has nothing to do with copies as we understand them now. According to Britannica, “copyhold, in English law, a form of landholding defined as a ‘holding at the will of the lord according to the custom of the manor.’ Its origin is found in the occupation by villeins, or nonfreemen, of portions of land belonging to the manor of the feudal lord. In 1926 all copyhold land became freehold land, though the lords of manors retained mineral and sporting rights.” Until 1926, manors themselves were freehold property, and were bought and sold between major landowners, while smaller landholdings within manors were held by copyhold tenure, while the land was technically owned by the Lord of the Manor. StreamGate3 5The term ‘copyhold’ originates from the custom when the official record of the copyhold on landholding was written up in the manorial court rolls and an official copy of the court roll entry was made for the tenant as their proof of title. This particular copy is especially interesting because printers’ waste (unused pages printed for other book) have been used as end papers.

  • Collection of legal documents relating to a lawsuit by Francis Rybot against Pierre DuCalvet, in the Court of Common Pleas, Province of Quebec, District of Montreal, 1783-1786.

StreamGate1 6This uninviting title is in fact an illustration to a less-known episode of the life of one of the famous figures of the Québec history. The digitised manuscript documents are related to the court case against Pierre DuCalvet, who was a Montreal trader, justice of the peace, epistle writer, author of the famous Appel à la justice de lÉtat, and passionate advocate of the reform of justice and constitutional system in Québec. The full biography of Pierre DuCalvet can be found in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography.

StreamGate 7Ce livre est le récit romancé des méfaits, vols, sacrilèges et meurtres d’une bande de brigands qui a terrorisé la ville de Québec et ses environs de 1834 à 1837. Vous pouvez trouver plus d’information sur la bande des Chambers ici. According to the Dictionary of Canadian Biography, this work by François-Réal Angers was considered “one of the most readable and widely circulated books of the first half of the 19th century in Canada.”  It was published in several monograph editions in 1834, 1867, 1880, and 1969, serialised in at least three newspapers, and  translated into English in 1867 as The Canadian brigands; an intensely exciting story of crime in Quebec, thirty years ago!

  • A declaration of His Majesties royall pleasure, in what sort he thinketh fit to enlarge or reserve himself in matter of bountie / James I, King of England, 1897.

StreamGate 4 7This book is a facsimile reprint produced by the British Museum in 1897. The original was published in 1610. This declaration was issued by James I (1603-1625) as a clarifying statement concerning granting of monopolies following the grievances expressed in and by Parliament. The culmination of this discussion was adoption of the Statute of Monopolies 1624, 21 Jac 1, c 3, one of the key texts in the history of patent law. You can read more on the 1624 Statute of Monopolies in this article ‘Generally Inconvenient’: The 1624 Statute of Monopolies as Political Compromise. 33 Melb U L Rev 415 (2009).

And some more books…

  • A letter to Henry Warburton, Esq. M.P. upon the emancipation of the Jews / Basil Montagu, 1833.StreamGate 5 9
  • The work of a faculty of law in a university (An annual university lecture delivered by Frederick Parker Walton, the Dean of the Faculty of Law, and Professor of Roman Law at McGill University), 1898.StreamGate 6 3
  • A guide for constables, churchwardens, overseers of the poor, surveyors of the high-ways, treasurers of the county-stock, masters of the house of correction, bayliffs of mannors, toll-takers in fairs, &c. A treatise briefly shewing the extent and latitude of the several offices, with the power of the officers therein, both by common law and statute, according to the several additions and alterations of the law  / George Meriton, 1679.StreamGate 5 1
  • Index professionnel des avocats, notaires, protonotaires régistrateurs, shérifs, huissiers, médecins, pharmaciens, dentistes, architectes, arpenteurs, ingénieurs civils, et médecins vétérinaires de la province de Québec, 1894.StreamGate9 1

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Nouvelle version de bibliothèque numérique Gallica

A compter du 1er octobre, une nouvelle version de Gallica est mise en ligne. Elle comprend une refonte technique complète ainsi que des évolutions ergonomiques et graphiques. Parmi les nouveautés à découvrir : le visualiseur de documents et ses différents modes d’affichage (simple et double page, défilement vertical, zoom plein écran), les pages de présentation des fonds numérisés accessibles depuis le bouton “Collections”, des évolutions concernant la navigation et la recherche au sein des titres de presse et de revues, l’arrivée de nouveaux types de documents (objets, vidéos), etc. Pour en savoir plus sur cette nouvelle version de Gallica, consultez le billet du Blog Gallica.

New Exhibition: “Justice, justice shall you pursue”: Jewish Law from Biblical Times to the Present”

Arthur Szyk PosterJewish Law has a history of more than three thousand years. This extended time, can be divided in two main periods: The first broad period begins with the written Torah and ends with the completion of the Talmud. The second broad period is the post-Talmudic period, from the completion of the Talmud until our own day (Elon, Menachem. Jewish law: history, sources, principles).

The Hebrew word “halakhah” is usually translated as “Jewish Law”, although a more literal translation might be “the path that one walks”. The word is derived from the Hebrew root Heh-Lamed-Kaf, meaning to go, to walk, or to travel (Encyclopaedia Judaica).

The principles and rules of Jewish Law are based on the Bible. While some rules are mentioned quite explicitly, others are only implied. All are elucidated in the teachings of the Tanna’im and Amora’im – the Rabbis of the Mishnah and Talmud – and presented systematically in the codes. Thus, over the generations, a comprehensive legal system has developed.

Jewish tradition compares Jewish law to a living tree. As the Torah, the sacred scroll of the Five Books of Moses, is returned to the ark after being read in synagogue services, the liturgy quotes from the biblical book of Proverbs (4:2, 3: 18, 17): I give you good instruction; never forsake My Torah. It is a tree of life for those who hold fast to it, and those who uphold it are happy. Its ways are pleasant, and all its paths are peace. (A Living Tree. Roots and Growth of Jewish Law)

JEWISH LAW EXHIBITION title2The books for this exhibition come from the holdings of the Rare Books and Special Collections, the Nahum Gelber Law Library Special Collections, and the Humanities and Social Science Library.

Among the books presented we find a volume of the Ḥamishah ḥumshe Torah: ketav yad Temani. This is a facsimile edition of 390 copies of a manuscript of the Pentateuch, in accordance with the Yemenite tradition, with the Targum, Tafsir of Saʼadya Gaon and the Collecteana of R. Yaḥya Siani.

A miniature Shulchan Aruch, printed in Venice, in 1574. The Shulchan Aruch, or “Set Table” is a codification of Jewish law composed by Rabbi Joseph Karo in the 16th century. Together with its commentaries, it is considered the most authoritative compilation of halakha since the Talmud.

The book Sefer ha-hinukh: yavo’u vo ha-613 mitsvot, yesod Torat Moshe u-nevuato, was also printed in Venice in the Jewish year 361 [1600 or 1601]. This is an anonymous work on the 613 precepts in the order of their appearance in Scripture, giving their reasons and their laws in detail. The book is mainly based on the Sefer ha-Mitzvot and the Mishneh Torah of Maimonides.

IMG_4131One of the centerpieces is The Codex Maimuni: Moses Maimonides’ Code of law: the illuminated pages of the Kaufmann Mishneh Torah. This book, published in 1984 reprints sixty-eight of the most beautiful pages from the illuminated codex of the Kaufmann Mishneh Torah, one of the most outstanding surviving exemplars of mediaeval Hebrew book production.

A surviving example of Das talmudische Recht : auf den verschiedenen Stufen seiner Entwicklung mit dem römischen verglichen und systematisch dargestellt. Sachenrecht by S. Rubin (Wien: Druckerei-und Verlags-A.-G. Ig. Steinmann. 1938). This copy was printed in Viena, in 1938. According to a review written by W. R. Taylor, the author has planned a study of Talmudic law to be embraced in three volumes. The purpose of the project, according to Taylor, was to bring the Talmudic legislation into a scientific arrangement in harmony with modern methods and to institute a comparison of the Talmudic material with the relative parts of Roman law. At the end of each chapter there are extensive notes inclusive of references, citations, and expositions of maxims from the Talmud and the later codes of Maimonides, Asher, and Karo, and from Roman law.

Ioannis Seldeni, De synedriis & praefecturis juridicis veterum Ebraeorum. Londini: Typis Jacobi Flesher: Prostant apud Cornelium Bee …, 1650-1655. John Selden, 1584-1654, was an English jurist and a scholar of England’s ancient laws and constitution and a scholar of Jewish law. In 1650 Selden began to print the trilogy he planned on the Sanhedrin, the assembly of sages that constituted the highest political magistracy of the country.

IMG_4154 IMG_4157This exhibition was planned and organized by Sonia Smith and Svetlana Kochkina, librarians at the Nahum Gelber law Library.

Une nouvelle acquisition : Le code Henry IV … avec des violettes.

Grace à la générosité du Wainwright Fund, qui attribue chaque année un budget destiné au développement et élargissement de la collection de notre bibliothèque dans les domaines du droit civil non-québécois, nous avons ajouté un nouveau livre rare à la Collections Wainwright :

  • Le code du très-chrestien et très-victorieux roy de France et de Nauarre, Henry IIII : Du droit ciuil iadis descrit, & à nous delaissé confusément par l’Empereur Iustinian & maintenant reduit & composé en bon & certain ordre, avec le droit ciuil de la France, contenant trente & vn liures / par M. Thomas Cormier …

photo 2L’auteur, Thomas Cormier (c.1523-1600), a été un historien et jurisconsulte français et un président en l’échiquier d’Alençon. Son Code Henry IV n’est pas un recueil d’ordonnances du souverain comme le Code Henry III, qu’on détient aussi dans notre collection, mais un traité de droit civil où l’auteur compare le droit romain et le droit civil français. L’ouvrage, destinée aux étudiants et praticiens de droit, est une synthèse du droit romain de Justinien qui selon l’auteur “à nous délaissé confusément par l’Empereur Justinien et maintenant réduit et composé en bon et certain ordre” auquel Cormier a ajouté du droit  français et plus précisément du droit français tel qu’il a été suivi en Normandie. Le traité a été rédigé d’abord en langue latine (1602) et traduit en français en 1603.

photo 5 photo 3L’exemplaire récemment acquis pour notre bibliothèque est notable par sa rareté (à notre connaissance il y a une seule copie identique de cette édition recensée dans la bibliothèque de l’université de Gand). Cette édition imprimée en 1615 à Rouen par Jean du Bosc est en toute évidence la reproduction non-autorisée de l’édition publiée en 1608 par Jean Arnaud. Jean du Bosc a copié non-seulement le texte mais aussi toute la typographie de l’ouvrage d’Arnaud et même sa marque d’impression  (Arion sur un dauphin) en mettant toutefois son propre nom sur la page titre et faisant une omission prudente de la mention de privilège. Malgré des multiples petits travaux de vers, essentiellement marginaux et affectant seulement légèrement le texte, le livre est en bon état de conservation : il a préservé sa reliure de l’époque pleine basane marron avec le dos à cinq nerfs orné aux motifs floraux dorés.

photo 1Pourquoi le Code Henry IV avec des violettes demanderiez-vous ? Parce que ce livre a conservé des traces charmantes d’un de ses lecteurs sombrés dans l’oubli, quatre violettes pressées et séchées entre ses pages, marquant peut-être la section que ce lecteur anonyme a contemplée plus longtemps et plus pensivement que les autres parce que selon Ophélie, « des pensées, [sont] en guise de pensées ».