[Ledger of Slave Trading Voyages].

France [Le Havre?], 1786-1787.

8° (19 x 12 cm). [6] pp; [225 blank] pp. Manuscript in ink on paper.

Very fine contemporary portfolio in gold-tooled decorated red morocco with overlapping flap and silk ribbons, gilt edges.

Manuscript ledger containing detailed accounts of the (slave) trading voyages of five ships that traveled between France and its colonies: Saint-Domingue (Haiti), Tobago, Cap de Monte (Senegal), and La Côte (Ivory Coast). The entries are handwritten on six pages mounted in an otherwise blank, luxurious notebook.

Each of the five entries offers insight into the ships involved, detailing their names, the names of their captains, ports of departure and destination, as well as valued cargo manifests, associated commissions, deductions, and insurance details.

This ledger likely belonged to someone deeply engaged in the global trade of enslaved people. It meticulously documents the financial and logistical aspects of the transatlantic slave trade, reflecting the commodification of human lives through its use of livres and precise record-keeping.

As an artifact of French colonial activity in the Caribbean, it provides a vivid window into the triangular trade, illustrating how maritime commerce facilitated the slave trade. The explicit inclusion of enslaved individuals alongside other cargo starkly underscores the dehumanizing nature of this system. Its financial records offer valuable data on the economic dynamics of 18th-century colonial trade.

Details of the entries:

1. La Bonne Sophie

• Captain: Fallouard
• Route: Departed from La Côte (Ivory Coast) for Saint-Domingue (Haiti).
• Cargo:
• Enslaved individuals (nègres esclavés) with a total value of 109,000 livres, valued at 960 livres per head, amounting to a total of 113 individuals.
• Delivered on September 14, 1785, to a Mr. B.
• Additional 3% commissions or fees calculated on the following transactions related to four individuals:
• 35,000 livres for F. Delattaye & Le Bois: 1,050 livres commission.
• 12,000 livres for Lémonier: 360 livres commission.
• 32,000 livres for Papillon: 960 livres commission.
• 30,000 livres for Maru: 900 livres commission.

2. Le Maréchal de Castries

• Captain: La Chèvre
• Route: Departed from Le Havre (France) for La Côte (Ivory Coast).
• Cargo:
• 15 bundles of unidentified goods coded as “MB,” valued at 8,500 livres (possibly ebony wood).
• Commission of 212.10 livres on 8,500 for client Lalanne.

3. La Concorde

• Captain: Jourdan Passardieu
• Route: From Marseille to Le Havre (France).
• Date: February 15, 1786
• Cargo:
• Glassware and provisions valued at 1,900 livres.
• Commission of 22.15 livres on 1,900 for client Lalanne.

4. L’Empereur

• Captain: John Bell
• Route: From Le Havre (France) to Tobago.
• Date: February 8, 1786
• Cargo:
• Assets and merchandise valued at 3,600 livres, including "everything that may belong to Captain Bell."
• Commission of 216 livres on 3,600 for Ruellan & Co.

5. Le Bassa (Sloop)

• Captain: F.N. Maugras
• Route: Departed from Le Havre (France) to Cap de Mont (Senegal).
• Date: February 22, 1786
• Cargo:
• 16,000 livres covering the hull, rigging, fittings, provisions, and full outfitting of the vessel.
• 50,000 livres for 100 enslaved individuals, valued at 1,000 livres per head.
• Commissions:
• 16,000 livres commissioned at 2.5%: 100 livres for La Lanne and 60 livres for Ruellan.
• 50,000 livres insured in St. Malo at 3%: 1,500 livres commission.

Condition: binding in excellent condition, the content leaves have old repairs and thumbing, with a hole in the second leaf, but without loss of text.

Provenance:

From the Justin Godart collection, with ex-libris (not listed in the catalogue of his auction).

A radical-socialist politician and collector from Lyon, Justin Godart (1871–1956) served as a deputy from 1906 to 1927, a senator from 1927 to 1956, Minister of Labor in 1924, Minister of Health in 1932, and Mayor of Lyon from 1944 to 1945.