Napoleon opinion poll

 According to a new opinion poll, a third of French people still love Napoleon ...Tant pis!

Rothschild auction results

Christie’s announce that their landmark Rothschild Masterpieces auction series, which took place in New York this October has finished in triumphant style, totalling $62,656,516 

A bust by Bouchardon - to sell or not to sell?

 The town council of Invergordon in the Highlands of Scotland has caused controversy by proposing to sell a  portrait bust by Edmé Bouchardon which it acquired for a fiver in the 1930s. 

Our Lady of the Old Silverware

The Catholic news website Aleteia features an article on the plaster Madonna, known as "Our Lady of the Smile", which belonged to St Theresa of Lisieux.  The statue is a replica of an 18th-century original in silver by Edmé Bouchardon which once adorned the church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris.

Condorcet's Life of Voltaire

A post by Gabriel Darriulat  dated 26th October, on the Voltaire Foundation blog, discusses Condorcet's Vie de Voltaire.

Robert Darnton on pre-Revolutionary Paris

Professor Robert Darnton's new book, The Revolutionary Temper: Paris, 1748–1789, is published by Penguin on 7th November.

Voltaire manuscripts at McGill

An important collection of manuscripts relating to Voltaire has been donated to Montreal's McGill University.

In defence of Robespierre

The American left-wing magazine Jacobin publishes (in English) an interview with Antoine Léaument, MP for La France Insoumise,  and an active defender of Robespierre’s legacy. 

Emigré tales from Florida

According to a post on a local history blog, "folklore claims" that the neighbourhood of Moncrief in Jacksonville, Florida is named after a certain French pawnbroker who fled there during the French Revolution, with Marie-Antoinette's diamonds.

Pastels at the Muséee Cognacq-Jay

 A new exhibition dedicated to 18th-century pastels opens at the Musée Cognacq-Jay in Paris.  Pastels, between line and colour runs from 12th October 2023 to 11th February 2024.

The Catholic Church in Revolution

 Dr Ambrogio Caiani of the University of Kent announces the publication on 12th October of his new book,  Losing a Kingdom, Gaining the World, The Catholic Church in the Age of Revolution and Democracy.

Remembering Andrew Brown

 The Association Voltaire à Ferney announces the death on 3rd October of its president Andrew Brown (1946-2023).

A rediscovered Girodet

The Burlington Magazine for October features an article on Girodet's painting, "Coriolanus taking leave of his family" acquired by the National Gallery of Art, Washington in 2019.   The picture, until recently presumed lost, once belonged to Lavoisier.

Azilum - French émigré colony (web post)

The website of the local NY state radio station, WNBF News, features a new post (dated 12th October) on Azilum, the colony founded by French émigrés in Bradford County Pennsylvania.

Tom Paine one-man show

 The Hollywood-based actor Ian Ruskin is currently touring England and Ireland with his one-man show "To Begin the World Over Again: the Life of Thomas Paine’.  He will be in  Paine's birthplace of Thetford, tomorrow (13th October)

Toussaint Louverture - graphic novel

A new graphic novel Toussaint Louverture: The Story of the Only Successful Slave Revolt in History is published by Verso.

Jewellery exhibition at the Hôtel de Mercy-Argenteau

The École des Arts Joailliers  (School of Jewellery Arts) presents a free exhibition of historic stage jewellery from the collection of the Comédie Française.

Tarrare the Glutton (novel)

 A.K. Blakemore's new novel The Glutton, which is just published, is a fictional account of the life of Tarrare, the Glutton of Lyon, who was famous in the late 18th century for his huge and indiscriminating appetite. 

Liberty gets a facelift

 Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People has been temporarily removed from display in the Louvre as part of an ongoing programme of conservation.  The painting is expected to be back on display in Spring 2024.