1374 - Africa - West Africa

Africa - West Africa Original materials by Jean and Juliette Logerais in 2 notebooks. 1. Souvenirs de Voyage. Journal du Dahomey. February 4, 1902 – May 22, 1903. Excerpts from letters addressed to Mother. Signed J. Logerais. 2. Journal de Dahomey. Continued. And: 14 inserted sheets of coated paper, handwritten with the title “Dahomey – Lagos – Senegal – Sudan” and a mounted title image (King of Dahomey), with 61 original silver gelatin prints, mostly inserted into slits or glued in on one side, on various types of paper, all with handwritten, mostly dated captions in pencil or ink beneath the inserts or on the reverse. ca. 1902–1903, 1908. 8°. Unbound. The front covers each titled “Dahomey” and bearing the mounted monogram “J L”; the spines numbered “A” and “B”; and 2° (sheets) with photographs: 13 x 18 cm – 7.5 x 11.5 cm (worn, the title page somewhat stained). A unique collection of two notebooks along with ephemera, containing reports on stays, work, and travels in present-day Benin—primarily Porto-Novo and Abomey—as well as Lagos (Nigeria), plus rare photographs, including some from present-day Mali. - From the estate of Dr. Jean Logerais, who served as the chief health official in Porto-Novo (the capital of French Dahomey (Benin) since 1894) in the early 20th century. - The notebooks contain copies, made in the 1910s, of 36 letters written between 1902 and 1903 in Porto-Novo and Cotonou by Logerais’s wife, Juliette, to her mother, mainly containing vivid descriptions of medical services in Dahomey and the lives of the French upper class living there. - The main text is occasionally illustrated with ink drawings and extensively supplemented by pasted-in or enclosed handwritten or printed ephemera, e.g., a hand-drawn map of Porto-Novo showing the hospital, three extensive handwritten reports by Jean Logerais on the celebrations for the French National Holiday on July 14, 1902, in Porto-Novo, a trip to Lagos (December 1902), another trip to Abomey and the Dan region in Dahomey (March 1903), as well as a list of deaths among French residents in Dahomey (1902–1918) and a chromolithographed postcard titled “Souvenir de Dahomé.” - The 61 photographs (15 measuring approx. 13 x 18 cm, 10 measuring approx. 12 x 17 cm, 9 measuring approx. 9 x 12 cm, and 27 measuring approx. 7.5 x 11.5 cm) featuring views of and buildings or scenes in Porto-Novo and Cotonou, including the lagoon, the market, a traditional house with carvings, as well as a group portrait with King Toffa I (ca. 1850–1908) and the Logerais couple, portraits of local girls and women, wedding parties, etc. Five of the photographs, taken during a trip to Abeokuta (British Nigeria), show, among other things, people with leprosy and Jean Logerais examining a sick child. Another group of photographs from 1908 documents Logerais’s journey to French Sudan (Mali) and features camel riders, views of Kayes and Koulikoro, portraits of balafon players, local women grinding wheat, and more. - The prints are in places slightly silvered at the edges, faded, and occasionally show mostly slight browning. - Overall, these are historically significant original documents and predominantly sharply defined, extremely rare photographs from the early days of the French colonial territories of Dahomey, Senegal, and Mali. Africa. - West Africa A unique collection of two notebooks and ephemera, containing reports on stays, work, and travels in present-day Benin—particularly Porto-Novo and Abomey—as well as Lagos (Nigeria), plus rare photographs, including some from present-day Mali. - From the estate of Dr. Jean Logerais, who served as chief health officer in Porto-Novo (present-day Benin, capital of French Dahomey since 1894) at the beginning of the 20th century. - Notebooks containing copies made in the 1910s of 36 letters written between 1902 and 1903 in Porto-Novo and Cotonou by Logerais’ wife, Juliette, to her mother; the letters mainly feature vivid descriptions of medical services in Dahomey and the lives of the French upper class living there. - The main text is occasionally illustrated with ink drawings and extensively supplemented by pasted-in or enclosed handwritten or printed ephemera, e.g., a hand-drawn map of Porto-Novo showing the hospital, three extensive manuscript reports by Jean Logerais on the celebrations of the French national holiday on July 14, 1902, in Porto-Novo, a trip to Lagos (December 1902), another trip to Abomey and the Dan region in Dahomey (March 1903), a list of deaths of French residents in Dahomey (1902–1918), and a chromolithographed postcard titled “Souvenir de Dahomé.” - The 61 photographs (15 measuring approx. 13 x 18 cm, 10 measuring approx. 12 x 17 cm, 9 measuring approx. 9 x 12 cm, and 27 measuring approx. 7.5 x 11.5 cm) featuring views of buildings and scenes in Porto-Novo and Cotonou, including the lagoon, the market, and a traditional hou