JARRY Nicolas Conclusiones ex philosophia universa.

Portalis, Nicolas Jarry, no. 104; McCarthy Reagh, I, 1815, no. 1437.

A masterpiece of calligraphy and illumination from the Grand Siècle, produced for the Prince de Conti.
Exceptional manuscript attributed to Nicolas Jarry and Nicolas Robert of the thesis defended at the collège de Clermont in July 1647 by victor Méliand, dedicated to the young Armand de Bourbon, Prince de Conti (1629-1666).

Armand de Bourbon, Prince de Conti (1629-1666), younger brother of the Grand Condé, whom he compared to at a very young age, was destined for the Church. Educated by the Jesuits at the Collège de Clermont, his fellow student was Molière.  He renounced his ecclesiastical state and joined the parliamentary Fronde to become one of its leaders, while his brother led the royal armies. Elected general of the parliamentary army, he intrigued for a while to obtain the regent’s cardinal’s hat (shown under his illuminated portrait), then threw himself back into politics. After the Peace of Rueil, he spent a year in captivity with his brother. He took an active part in the Condé Fronde but did not follow his elder brother to the Netherlands. Instead, he submitted to the king and was reconciled with the court: whereas his brother had married a niece of Richelieu, Conti had to marry a niece of Mazarin. He replaced Condé, taking over his position as Grand Master of the King’s Household, his government of Guyenne and several of his estates. He was also a lover of the theatre and protected Molière and his troupe. At the end of his life, this former libertine converted to religion. 

The contents of this extraordinary manuscript are as follows: a calligraphic title page adorned with a large floral decoration, a portrait of the dedicatee surrounded by putti and allegorical images as well as his coat of arms, a double-sided dedication, 40 calligraphic theses surrounded by large, magnificent illuminated borders on 5 leaves, and on the last leaf a representation of a flower, Fritillaria imperialis, admirably painted no doubt by Nicolas Robert.

The century of Louis XIV is represented here through symbolism, emblems and allegories. The shades of colour in the identical decorative borders vary in the most beautiful way across the pages.

This manuscript was not signed by either the calligrapher or the illuminator, but since its discovery by Guillaume de Bure in 1815, it has rightly been regarded as an absolute masterpiece, produced by the most famous Parisian calligrapher of the time, Nicolas Jarry (c. 1610-c. 1674). From 1637, Nicolas Jarry held the title of “noteur de la musique du roi”. This great artist was not only a calligrapher but also, as Portalis points out, an illuminator. On the other hand, Jarry often called on other illuminators, such as Nicolas Robert, to create his most important works, so the attribution of the illumination in our manuscript to Nicolas Robert seems entirely plausible. In 1896 and 1897, Baron Roger Portalis published an overview of Jarry’s life and work in the Bulletin du Bibliophile, revealing his work in the form of all his known manuscripts and an introductory text. In it, Portalis reaffirmed the attribution of Guillaume de Bure to Jarry and his enthusiasm for the “plus grande beauté” of our manuscript.

“Thèse manuscrite sur vélin, de la plus grande beauté, que l’on peut attribuer presque avec certitude, suivant de Bure, à Nicolas Jarry, quoique son nom ne s’y trouve point écrit. Chaque page est décorée d’une bordure élégante et riche formée d’emblèmes, d’allégories, de couronnes, de chiffres et d’armoiries, le tout exécuté avec beaucoup de goût et rehaussé d’or. Au commencement, le portrait peint sur vélin du Prince de Conti, frère du grand Condé, pour lequel le grand volume a été exécuté, entouré de plusieurs figures, et à la fin on a peint la plante nommée Couronne Impériale, avec la devise: Decorat me purpura junta coronae” (Portalis).

The painting of Fritillaria imperialis on folio 10 of our manuscript places us in a very specific artistic context. This flower, painted directly on the parchment without a frame, is very much inspired by another work that Jarry calligraphed in 1641 and had illuminated by the painter Nicolas Robert, the famous Guirlande de Julie  (Portalis, Nicolas Jarry, p. 517 p., n° 16  ; J. Vanuxem , Enluminures tardives, in: L’Oeil 28, 1957, p. 50 pp.), whose manuscript was in the collection of the Marquis de Ganay before joining the collections of the BnF.

La Guirlande is a collection of botanical poems of a symbolic and allegorical nature, with drawings of flowers painted on vellum by Nicolas Robert, the best flower painter in France, alternating with sixty-two madrigals copied by Nicolas Jarry, “famous among all because it was impossible to discern where his pen had stopped to pick up ink”. It begins with the Fritillaria imperialis, the imperial crown, the flower with which our work ends. 

Furthermore, a comparison of leaves 4v, 5r and 7r of our manuscript and the title page of the Guirlande de Julie (Vanuxem, Late Illuminations, fig. p. 50) as well as the representations of the flowers and fruit on leaves 3v, 4r, 5v etc. and their symbolic power are by the hand of an artist who knew the Guirlande de Julie very well, undoubtedly Nicolas Robert, and was able to place it in a new context in terms of content and form in our manuscript. This also explains the pictorial programme of the volume, which combines princely-spiritual and secular-natural-philosophical allegories and emblems with botanical-poetic symbolism.

“L’on trouve dans la même pièce la Thèse gravée et imprimée sur vélin, avec deux portraits du prince. Toutes les pages sont également ornées de riches bordures gravées” (vente Mac-Carthy).

It is one of a number of large-format theses printed on parchment in very small numbers for those close to the candidate; they are usually lavishly illustrated. This edition is no exception, and includes a medallion portrait of the Prince of Conti, in a 3/4 bust, supported by two angels and several putti holding emblems. The plate is signed by Pierre Daret (1604?-1678). Each page of text is decorated with two types of framing composed of emblems, figures, allegories, the cipher of Armand de Bourbon and his arms, based on the decoration of the manuscript bound at the head. These frames are not signed but are in all likelihood also by Daret. 

A talented painter and engraver, Pierre Daret first studied in Paris and then completed his training in Rome. He began and ended his career as a portrait painter. Most of his life, however, was devoted to engraving. His work in this field consists of more than four hundred plates, mainly portraits. His success in this field was considerable: he was commissioned to engrave portraits of the King of England, the Polish royal family and the Pope, among others. During the 1660s, Pierre Daret lived and worked in Italy on several occasions. Pierre Daret was admitted to the Académie royale française as a full member in 1663.

One of the most extraordinary illuminated manuscripts of the 17th century still in private hands for the quality of its execution and its format.

Provenance : Armand Prince de Conti – Mac-Carthy Reagh, II, 1815, 1474 – Handschriften Sammlung Ludwig (bookplate engraved by Picasso for Irene & Peter Ludwig and label for the inventory number).

Two scratches on the binding, skilfully restored.