COGNACQ (Gabriel) - Lot 45

Lot 45
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150 - 180 EUR
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COGNACQ (Gabriel) - Lot 45
COGNACQ (Gabriel) (Paris, 1880 - 1951) French merchant, philanthropist and administrator. He inherited and continued the work of Ernest Cognacq-Jay, founder of the department store La Samaritaine, and played a major role in the development of the eponymous foundation and in Parisian social works. Set of 3 autograph letters signed, "Gabriel Cognacq". Paris, May 21, 1919, June 15, 1920 and undated. 6 pages in all (3 pages small in-8 and 3 pages large in-12). Two letters on La Samaritaine letterhead. Varied correspondence combining social life, business and institutional concerns. Interesting set of letters revealing many aspects of Gabriel Cognacq's personality and activities. In the first letter, addressed to a lady, he wittily responds to a social invitation, humorously evoking his wife's difficulty in participating in social pleasures: "Madame Cognacq is very unhappy to be a very very old lady whose age and pains oblige her to shun worldly pleasures..." In a second letter, more administrative in tone, he refers to his duties within an organization, requesting his "discharge for Strasbourg" and commenting with some irony on his role in preparing answers to an official questionnaire. In passing, he criticizes an overly intrusive approach to commercial realities: "...a French merchant does not like it when one lifts the heavy draperies behind which he hides his sales figures with fierce care..." The third letter shows a more formal availability, announcing his presence at a convocation. Interest This set is particularly interesting for : the quality of the signatory, a major figure in Parisian commerce ; the use of La Samaritaine letterhead, emblematic of modern commerce; the diversity of content: social, economic and administrative; the personal, sometimes ironic tone, revealing the psychology of a great merchant; the link with the Fondation Cognacq-Jay and Parisian social history. Context As successor to his uncle Ernest Cognacq-Jay, Gabriel Cognacq took charge of the family business and the foundation. Under his leadership, the philanthropic work continued, while La Samaritaine remained a key player in Parisian commerce. The letters bear witness to a pivotal moment in the post-First World War era, when economic, administrative and social networks were being rebuilt.
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