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Original 8-Page Vellum Legal Document
Dated 16 October 1640
A rare and substantial 17th-century French judicial manuscript written on genuine calfskin vellum (parchment), dated:
16me 8bre 1640
(16 October 1640)
This document consists of eight attached manuscript pages, written in rich brown iron-gall ink in elegant period secretary hand.
🏛 Historical Context
Created during the reign of Louis XIII, in the era of Cardinal Richelieu, this manuscript originates from a Siège Royal (Royal Court) jurisdiction.
The text references:
• Juge Civil & Criminel
• Siège Royal
• Opposition
• Condamnation
• Hypothèque & Garantie
• Judicial production & injunction
• Greffier (court clerk)
This indicates a formal court proceeding involving financial obligation and legal enforcement.
📖 Content Summary
The manuscript concerns a judicial dispute involving multiple parties, including references to Daniel Isaac and other named individuals.
It appears to involve:
• Financial claim / debt
• Court-ordered execution
• Official opposition filing
• Formal procedural actions
A remarkable survival of early modern French legal administration.
📜 Material
• Genuine calfskin vellum (thin, slightly velvety texture)
• 8 attached leaves
• Brown iron gall ink
• Original period handwriting
• Marginal notations & archival marks
• Approximately 384 years old
Vellum documents of this size and completeness from the early 17th century are increasingly scarce.
📏 Condition
Authentic age wear consistent with 17th-century vellum:
• Natural toning
• Surface waviness
• Minor staining
• Edge wear
• Period handling marks
No modern restoration observed.
🎯 Ideal For
• Collectors of early manuscripts
• French legal history specialists
• Institutional archives
• Museum-level collections
• Genealogical researchers
💎 Rarity
Multi-page vellum court manuscripts from the 1640s rarely appear on the open market in complete 8-page format.
This is not a decorative reproduction — it is an original archival judicial record from early modern France.
