BOYER Albert (EN)

Biographical article

Dr Albert Boyer was born on 18 March 1839 in Villefort (Lozère) (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 404W72). He was educated at the Collège de Perpignan (in the Pyrénées-Orientales), then he studied medicine in the Faculty of Paris. He became one of the first house officers in the departments of the Hôpitaux de Paris, in the Hôpital Lariboisière. He was received as a doctor of medicine in 1867, and as a result of his dedication during a cholera epidemic his exam fees were covered (A M Commercy, 305W1). He moved to Sarreguemines (Moselle), where he lived between 1867 and 1869, then to Commercy (Meuse) in 1869. On 12 August 1867, in Puttelange (in the Moselle region), he married Élise-Madeleine, called Marie Thiébaut, whom he divorced on 12 August 1885 (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 305W1).

In 1870, during the war, he enlisted and was sent to Verdun. During the siege of the city, he had to cope with an epidemic of typhoid fever. In 1871, he was sent to work in the Hôpital des Haras in Perpignan, then returned to Commercy the same year. Dr Boyer had many honorary posts until the end of his life: an epidemic doctor, a pathologist, a doctor in the Hôpital de Commercy and subsequently a surgeon, a railway doctor, a member of the Hygiene Committee, an officer of the Académie, and president of the Syndicat des Médecins (doctors’ union) de la Meuse (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 305W1).

Suffering from an illness at the end of his life, he died on 13 November 1911 in Commercy. He bequeathed his collections to the town and his surgical instruments to the Hôpital Saint-Charles in Commercy. He wanted his collections to be used to establish a museum (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 8W20). His maid, Catherine Beckrich-Hudelot (1855–1913, who looked after him from 1893 until his death, became his universal legatee as a reward for her loyal service (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 8W20). She enriched Dr Boyer’s collections until 15 June 1913, the date of her death (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 404W73).

The collection

Dr Boyer’s collections were famous in his lifetime because during the funeral of the latter the Sous-Préfet of Commercy mentioned ‘the wealth of objects in his small museum on the Rue Colson, well-known collections, which are highly appreciated by the collectors in the region’ (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 305W1). However, the collection’s constitution is not documented. The municipal archives only have a memorial (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 305W1) and his hand-written will dated 19 October 1909 (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 8W20). The latter document, which is not very detailed, gives us an idea of the collection as it was in 1909:

Pictorial works

Sixty-three drawings, pictures, and engravings by various artists, such as Jacques Callot (1592–1635), Jacob Philipp Hackert (1737–1807), Georges Appert, Brueghel (without specifying which one), Jean-Baptiste Greuze (1725–1805), Edmond Petitjean (1844–1925), Paul Eugène Goepfert (1849–?), and Léon Calves (1848–1923).

Most of the works are still anonymous and any attributions are difficult to verify.

Bronze works

Forty-seven bronze pieces.

Here again, most of the works remain anonymous, aside from some names such as Auguste de Wever, Albert Foretay (1861–1944), and Adrien Gaudez (1845–1902). The themes are varied: animal sculpture, famous or anonymous figures, and mythology. There are also some Asian articles such as a ‘Japanese cooker’ or ‘a Hindu divinity’ (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 8W20).

Faience objects

Around 145 pieces, mainly crockery, and mostly European, even though there are some Asian pieces. Eight dishes from the school of Bernard Palissy (1510–1589) are also worthy of mention. These were nineteenth-century reproductions.

Weapons

Several hundred articles from various eras and origins: European, Asian, American, and African; these include knives, guns, and articles connected with armour and equipment.

Ivory pieces

There were around 250 articles in the 1909 inventory: sculptures, utility objects, decorative objects, and religious scenes. Dr Boyer’s ivory objects have no specific theme: they were disparate, diverse, and marked by a distinct taste for pastiche. Most were not very old (Gonse, F., 2005, p. 16). ‘The Boyer Collection consists of a large variety of mostly European objects but also includes objects of African and Asian origin. The origins of the articles virtually match the map of the French colonial empire, which underwent [between the years 1880 and 1900] its largest expansion’ (Pagnotta, P., 2002, p. 16).

The ivory objects seem to be one of the collections Dr Boyer paid great attention to. After visiting his collections on 11 July 1911, the Société des Lettres, Sciences et Arts in Bar-le-Duc wrote in its bulletin that they ‘include many curiosities and they were presented to us with tireless goodwill by the owner, a collector with highly eclectic tastes, but with a specific focus on collecting ivory objects.’ (municipal archives (AM) Commercy, 305W1).

The following articles featured in Catherine Beckrich’s post-death inventory but not in Dr Boyer’s. Hence, they appear to have been added to the collections by the latter:

Porcelain items

Seventy-one articles, including twenty-three Sèvres biscuit pieces. These include mythological and historical themes, boxes, and vases. Certain articles were created after Paul-Louis Cyfflé (1724–1806). Some Japanese articles are mentioned: a pitcher and a cup and two goblets, one of which is mounted on wood. However, the inventory is not detailed enough to determine the origins of all the articles.

Glass works

Catherine Beckrich bequeathed a collection of fifty-two glass articles, including some created by Émile Gallé (1846–1904) or from the Daum Manufactory.

Sculptures

A collection comprising sixteen marble items and twelve terracotta articles. Although some of the artists are named, most of the articles remain anonymous and undated. Worthy of attention, however, are two vases and three columns said to have come from a Roman forum.

Copper wares

Seven different articles: ewers, vases, dishes, a mirror, and sculptures.

Jade objects

The main contribution to Asian art from Catherine Beckrich, comprising seven articles, including a vase, a stamp, a pot, and four articles that were not identified when the inventory was drawn up.