Napoleon Bonaparte I Consul’s personal volume of the French Civil Code
Sold on March 6, 2025
On the occasion of its auction of books and manuscripts on March 6, the Tajan auction house was honored to offer for sale the personal volume of the French Civil Code by Napoleon Bonaparte I Consul.
NAPOLÉON BONAPARTE. — Code civil des Français. First and only official edition.
Paris, Imprimerie de la République, 1804. In-4, long-grained red morocco, framed palm-leaf scroll, radiating disk at corners, large central escutcheon bearing the numeral NB,
smooth spine adorned with alternating antique-style urns and serrated ovals, and small fans in the corners, on the edges and in the inner frame, frieze of Greciques, gilt edges (Contemporary binding).
Precious personal copy of Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul, of the first edition of the Civil Code.
Printed on large wove paper, bearing a red wax stamp with the words “Bonaparte Ier Consul de la Rep”, it is bound in the First Consul’s NB cipher.
Estimate: €100,000 / €200,000
Sold: €395,000 (buyer’s premium included)
The genesis of the Civil Code was fully presided over and led by Napoleon, who actively launched this major reform from 1800 onwards. The work was therefore a major stake for Napoleon Bonaparte, who used it as a tool of power and prestige.
The original in-4 edition is rare, and only one other copy on large vellum paper is mentioned in La Malmaison’s catalog (1829, no. 284). We know of 3 copies of this original in-4 edition on vellum for the consuls, two of which are kept at the BnF. But this volume on large wove paper with the First Consul’s cipher is the only one in private hands. Since the fall of the Empire, it has remained in the same family.
The First Consul’s personal volume is particularly precious, as the Code civil is Napoleon’s great work. It was one of the most important titles in his private libraries, and the Emperor wanted it in every study in all his residences, even on Elba. Before his death on St. Helena, the deposed Napoleon said:
“What nothing will erase, what will live forever, is my civil code!”
INFORMATION
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Thursday, March 6,2025
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