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The Henry A. Meyer Collection of French Revolution and Napoleonic Covers

12.22.2021
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By Scott W. Devine, Museum Conservator

The Henry A. Meyer Collection consists of fourteen volumes (1979.0098; 1981.0819; 1983.0780; 1985.0026; 1986.0025) of covers and documents from the French Revolution and Napoleonic era and represents an invaluable resource in French postal history. Henry Albert Meyer (1894-1968) was considered one of the leading students and collectors of the postal histories of the French Revolution and Napoleonic eras. He wrote or co-wrote numerous scholarly works, including The Postal History of the Kingdom of Westphalia Under Napoleon, 1807-1814. Co-authored by Carroll Chase, this study was largely based on Meyer’s collection which was donated to the Smithsonian by Meyer’s niece, Dr. Margery W. Shaw, over a period of nine years beginning in 1978.

Photograph of four books standing up in a row with yellow-tan binding
The Henry Meyer Collection was housed by the collector in traditional file boxes pictured above. The need to stabilize the worn and now fragile boxes precipitated a comprehensive condition survey and repair project.

Organized as a series of story boards recounting the history of the French Revolution and Napoleonic era, the collection offers a spellbinding account of historical events alongside an astonishing collection of letters and covers that bring these events to life.

A recent condition survey and repair project highlighted the value of this extraordinary collection and its potential for continued scholarly research. This post provides background on the collection and its significance, summarizes work done to stabilize the collection, and discusses potential future projects related to digitization and research.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

At the outbreak of the Revolution in 1789, French postal markings and place names had long been standardized. The National Convention, the assembly that governed France during the most critical period of the Revolution, met on September 20, 1792 to formally abolish the monarchy and declare the Republic of France. The National Convention lost no time in changing the existing royalist names of departments, districts, cantons, and communes. Specifically, the National Convention changed town names with regal and religious bearing, eliminating names that referenced the former monarchy in particular. The Meyer Collection documents these changes and includes postmarks showing the new revolutionary place names.

Photograph of page of album with envelope with red wax seal adhered to page; above, typed text describing the envelope
This early example of a handmade envelope found in Volume I and marked as containing official correspondence from the “Ass(emblée) Nationale” represents one of the many treasures found in the collection.

The collection also documents the Napoleonic era (1799-1815) and contains exceptional examples of correspondence sent from the Napoleonic campaigns in Egypt. The letters from Egypt provide insights into the creation of postal routes and the establishment of French post offices in occupied Egypt.

Photograph of page of album with envelope with red wax seal adhered to page; above, typed text describing the envelope
This letter from Volume V was sent from Cairo during Napoleon’s occupation of Egypt. The post office in Cairo was one of six French post offices established in Egypt during the occupation.

CONDITION SURVEY

The primary goal of the condition survey was to assess the condition of the letters and covers, including the quality and flexibility of the paper, the condition of the writing inks, and the attachment of these materials to the card stock supports. Of particular concern was whether the letters could be easily unfolded and flattened for future digitization.

The condition survey confirmed that the collection is in overall good condition, especially the paper on which the letters and covers are written. The paper in the collection is extraordinary. Produced before the introduction of mechanically pulped paper (c. 1790) and well before the introduction of acidic ground wood paper (c. 1825), most of the paper in the collection is made of high-quality cotton and linen fibers. Aside from a small number of minor tears, the letters and covers are in excellent condition; the wax seals are in good condition as well, with no observed treatment needs. The most significant preservation issue is the deterioration of iron gall ink, with some letters showing characteristic haloing of ink and, in rare cases, embrittlement in areas around text; continued storage in a stable environment will help reduce the rate of deterioration of these inks.

Photograph of 2 pages of collectors album with close up images of folded up letters adorned with elaborate, handwritten cursive
These letters from Volume II were sent from the island of Saint-Domingue, a French colony from 1659-1804 and presently home to the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The acidic iron gall ink has begun to damage the paper as seen in the haloing on left and the bleed through on right.

An obvious concern was the condition of the original storage boxes. The boxes were manufactured by Smith and Butterfield in Evansville, Indiana for use as file storage boxes. Composed of paper board and wood joined with adhesive and covered in thin leather and marbled paper, the boxes were never intended to support the weight of the story boards and covers.

Photograph of book/album opened to blank pages; next to the album, white ribbon
In addition, overstuffing the boxes had also led to cracks in joints and breaks at the fore edge where string ties had been used to stabilize the boxes, as pictured here in Volume VI.

Wear and tear at the edges of the boxes was also an issue, especially at joints where the acidic marbled paper had begun to crack and separate from the box structure.

Photograph of book box with grey and maroon marbling on the cover
Joints were particularly fragile at points where the wood and paper board components of the structure meet. Cracking and loss of the marbled paper contributed to a lack of stability.

Complicating the issue and contributing to further instability of the box structure, extra space in the margins of the boxes had been filled with newspapers from the mid-1950s. The acidic components of the newspaper created an unfavorable environment for the collection and needed to be removed.

Photograph of newspaper comics page folded up and resting on open box
While it makes for interesting reading, this acidic newspaper found in Volume IV is not conducive to long term preservation.

When possible, we prefer to keep original housings, especially ones that have been labeled or modified by the collector. The original housings provide insight into how the collection was formed and organized and provide a record of how the collection was used by the collector. Creating new enclosures and retaining the original boxes would have doubled the storage requirement for the collection, so rather than taking up additional space, it was decided to retrofit the original boxes with custom-designed acid free inserts that would stabilize the boxes and provide a better environment for the covers and letters.

CONSERVATION TREATMENT

Extensive conservation treatment was required to stabilize the original storage boxes. Treatment included removing newspaper inserts, designing new interior supports, and reinforcing the boxes to address structural and aesthetic issues.

The treatment proposal summarizes the major actions taken to stabilize the collection:

  1. Repair original storage boxes with Japanese paper (Sekishu Tsuru toned with Golden Artist Acrylic Bone Black) and Zen Shofu wheat starch paste, reinforcing box edges as needed and reattaching delaminating paper.
  2. Remove and discard interior supports of crumpled newspaper and replace with custom inserts constructed with acid-free corrugated blue board.
  3. Survey box contents and confirm that all objects are present or accounted for (i.e., items removed for exhibition have been replaced with physical notes marking where the objects belong in the box).
  4. Review physical condition of each cover and complete repairs as needed.
  5. Reconcile paper inventory in collections file with contents of boxes and work with collection manager and curator to resolve discrepancies.

The original storage boxes were repaired by reattaching loose pieces of marbled paper and reinforcing fragile cloth joints. The cloth joints were repaired with thin pieces of long fibered Japanese paper toned with acrylics to match the original cloth. Once reinforced, the box hinges function remarkably well and the boxes are significantly more stable.

(Left): Photograph of book box with grey and maroon marbling on the cover; a metal tool holds a piece of black material up to the side; (Right): Photograph of book box with grey and maroon marbling on the cover
Japanese paper mends were applied with Zen Shofu wheat starch paste. The mends were applied to areas of cloth that had split or was in danger of splitting from continued use. The mends integrate well and do not compromise the original appearance of the boxes.

Once the boxes were repaired, it was possible to move on to designing and constructing the box inserts. The insert design utilizes acid-free boxboard fitted to the size and depth of each box. The new inserts lock into original clips inside the boxes, providing a stable attachment to the original box without the use of adhesive. The inserts can be easily removed or modified in future if needed, making this part of the treatment completely reversible if needed.

(Left): Image of book-storage cover folded up and resting on long table in museum conservation lab; (Center): Photograph of book-storage cover opened and resting on green mat’ (Right): Photograph of album/book within book cover/box
The inserts were constructed from one piece of corrugated box board cut to the height of the box and folded to account for the extra space in the box previously filled by newspaper (image left); the new inserts are held in place by original clips present in each box (image center); the inserts fold over to protect the contents when the box is opened (image right).

The new inserts make the boxes easier to handle and secure the story boards in such a way that there is little chance of them falling out when the box is opened. The relatively thin corrugated board used for the inserts fits easily into each box without having to adjust the contents or modify the original order of material.

Photograph of two albums/books within custom book covers/boxes; one is sturdy while the other looks unstable
A side-by-side comparison of Volume V (after treatment) and Volume VI (before treatment) illustrates the improved functionality and appearance of the boxes after treatment.

INVENTORY

An inventory was conducted in conjunction with the condition survey. As the objects were reviewed for condition, the location of each object in the box was verified, making sure that any objects previously removed for exhibition had been adequately accounted for with an “object removed” form. Inventorying the collection was made easier by using photocopies made when the collection was accessioned beginning in 1978.

Photograph of collector’s album opened to pages with typed text and image of medieval drawings on right; on left, a black and white photocopy of the right page
This letter from Volume IX features a hand-colored letterhead with the French Imperial Eagle and a view of Mainz. The letter was mailed from Mainz by Meyer’s great-grandfather (to his future great-grandmother) in 1814. The adjacent photocopy made when the collection was accessioned provides visual evidence that the letter has remained in good condition.

The photocopies also made it possible to visually assess whether there had been any damage to the object since being accessioned. Fortunately, the collection is intact and in overall good condition, making it an excellent candidate for a future digitization project. The first step in a digitization project would be scanning each story board, upgrading the photocopies with high quality digital images. The second step in a digitization project might include unfolding and scanning individual letters based on research needs.

RESEARCH POSSIBILITIES

(Top): Photograph of page of collector’s album page with typed text, cover with cursive writing, and images of Napoleonic crests: a side profile portrait and an eagle; (Bottom): Enlarged image of eagle; paper appears to be green due to the close up scanned image
This French Imperial Eagle watermark was found on a letter in Volume IX: the letter was sent to St. Louis via New Orleans. The watermark is easily identified in transmitted light (image bottom).

Aside from documenting a significant period in French postal history, the Meyer Collection offers a range of research possibilities related to material culture. In particular, the collection provides an interesting index to the type of paper that was being produced and used for postal stationery during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Meyer was particularly interesting in identifying papers based on watermarks. The best example of Meyer’s watermark research is a letter dated 1819 written on paper featuring the French Imperial Eagle watermark with a countermark bearing the profile of Napoleon.

Watermarks allow paper historians to identify the location and date of production for a given paper, leading to insights about local economies, trade, and the availability of raw materials during specific periods. A preliminary study of the watermarks indicates that the paper in the collection was produced primarily in France and Italy, although this is only a starting point. The collection provides many possibilities for in depth study of paper manufacture and the paper trade during the French Revolution and Napoleonic eras.

CONCLUSION

Condition surveys like the one conducted for the Meyer Collection are necessary both when a collection is acquired and throughout the lifecycle of a collection as it is used for research and exhibition. Condition surveys allow us to monitor a collection and undertake preventive actions as needed to ensure the collection remains in good condition and readily available for consultation by researchers and museum staff. Surveying the Meyer Collection led to preventive conservation actions which have made the collection easier to handle and minimized the possibility of future damage. The survey also revealed that the collection is in good condition and an excellent candidate for future digitization and research initiatives.

Scott Devine

About the Author
Scott W. Devine is a rare book and paper conservator and preservation administrator with over 20 years of experience in the field of conservation. He holds a Masters of Information Science with an Advanced Certificate in Conservation Studies from the University of Texas at Austin and received additional training in rare book conservation at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. and at the Centro del bel libro in Ascona, Switzerland. Scott has established preservation programs at major academic research libraries in the United States and advised on conservation projects at libraries and museums throughout Europe. He is a Professional Associate of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC).