Le duc de Morny, collectionneur du Second Empire

Abstract

The Duc de Morny, a Collector in the Time of the Second Empire Though the legacy of the duc de Morny, pivotal political and social figure of France’s Second Empire, has been largely debated by historians, none have fully addressed the question of his role as one of the most highly-recognized European collectors of his day. This study seeks to shed light not only on the major phases in his twenty-year career as a collector, but also on the relative importance of his collection as an example of 19th-century French taste for 17th-century Dutch and Flemish painting, as well as on the function of the collection for Morny and his contemporaries. The duke’s place in the network of contemporary Parisian collectors, his growing involvement in the artistic scene of his day, and his increasing importance as a public figure provide clues enabling us to sketch a portrait of Morny as a savvy collector motivated by pleasure, profit, and prestige. This article hopes thus to further research in an area that remains relatively unexplored, that of the history and culture of collecting in France from 1840 to 1870.