COSTAZ (Louis) - Lot 50

Lot 50
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Estimation :
150 - 200 EUR
COSTAZ (Louis) - Lot 50
COSTAZ (Louis) Champagne-en-Valromey (Ain), 1767 - Fontainebleau, 1842. Prefect of La Manche, intendant of Crown buildings under the Empire, Baron d'Empire, member of the Académie des Sciences. L.A.S. to his doctor, Fontainebleau, April 4, 1841, 2 pp. in-8, accompanied by an original burin-engraved print of his bust in profile. Beautiful autograph letter signed by Louis Costaz, a leading administrative and scholarly figure of the First Empire, addressed to his physician. In it, the signatory gives a detailed account of his state of health, his scrupulous compliance with the prescribed treatment and the progress of his convalescence. The text, which is particularly lively, successively evokes : taking ferruginous medicines the croton oil / croton-tiglione mentioned in the treatment a strict diet therapeutic baths frictions with a wool mitt soaked in a soapy solution daily walks and car rides This passage is particularly evocative: "I took my first bath... I was rubbed with a woolen mitt often soaked in a soapy solution". and further on: "I am quite well... my condition is improving". An interesting document combining 19th-century medicine, administrative history and the personal testimony of a high-ranking imperial dignitary at the end of his life. A fine original burin-engraved proof of Costaz's profile is attached to the letter, reinforcing the museum-like character of the whole. Very good condition, despite some scattered foxing on the engraving.
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