Death Notice For Rémy François Thomas Of La Froisarderie, France, Douai, 1723

Rare engraved funeral poster – Douai, 1723 – Rémy-François Thomas de la Froisarderie

France, Douai, 1723.
Typographic woodcut printed on laid paper.
Dimensions: 31 × 39 cm.

Rare printed obituary notice announcing the funeral of Rémy-François Thomas de la Froisarderie, a law graduate, who died on December 8, 1723, at the age of 38. The funeral was held on December 9, 1723 at the parish church of Notre-Dame de Douai, with the funeral procession set to depart from the funeral home located on rue de la Cuve d’Or.

The print bears the following inscription at the bottom of the page:

“In Douai, from the Printing House of the Widow Taverne, Printer to the King, 1723.” ”

This address refers to one of the most important printing dynasties in Douai, whose religious, academic, and administrative publications are highly sought after today.

The engraved decoration, of remarkable quality, is fully in keeping with the Baroque funerary iconography of the early 18th century. It consists of a rich frame adorned with full-length skeletons, skulls, crossed bones, gravediggers’ shovels and spades, funeral tears, as well as a spectacular transi resting in his coffin beneath the biblical motto:

“Miseremini mei saltem vos amici mei”
(Job 19:21 – “Have pity on me, at least you, my friends”).

The upper banners bear the famous exhortation:

“Hodie mihi, cras tibi”
(Today me, tomorrow you),

an emblematic phrase of the memento mori, reminding us of the fragility of the human condition.

Large funeral posters of this quality were printed in very small numbers to be displayed or distributed during funeral ceremonies. Their ephemeral nature explains their extreme rarity on the art market; few copies have survived to the present day.

In good condition, with a few creases and slight signs of wear consistent with its intended use and age.

Printed on beautiful laid paper bearing a prominent watermark depicting a crowned shield accompanied by letters, characteristic of the high-quality papers used in the former French Netherlands in the early 18th century.