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In French
Our
collection is now richer by one more work. It
happens that the title "L'Aurore" is already used
for the monograph of a slave ship whose deceptive
name ("The Dawn") masked her sinister activities.
This other Aurore, that Gérard Delacroix was
kind enough to call a" pleasure sloop-of-war",
bears an appropriate name. The fact that it evokes
daybreak is justified as it refers to the first
successes in calculating longitude thanks to the
use of clocks or time-keepers, as chronometers were
originally called.
Like its predecessors, this
monograph comprises two inseparable aspects. The
first aspect, properly developed, presents the
historical context of the ship which justifies and
valorizes the second aspect, the ship itself, which
is the subject of the monograph. With the building
of a ship's model, the topic took on greater
importance. The Aurore monograph provides us with
an excellent historical case of how the marquis de
Courtanvaux decided to prepare and finance a cruise
so as to experiment with naval clocks intended to
determine longitude. For that kind of cruise, a
sloop-of-the-war was built in Le Havre on a private
building site. After this presentation,
Gérard Delacroix describes the 1767 voyage,
including long excerpts from the book published in
1767, that gave a detailed account of that voyage.
This historical context is completed by documents
(manuscripts from the Bibliothèque
Sainte-Geneviève), the importance of
armament in 1767; and especially the detailed list
of the sloop-of-the-war's contents when she was
handed over to the King in 1769.
The
ship's model that was built just after the cruise
is the main topic of the monograph. It is preserved
in the Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève.
The modest dimensions of the Aurore made it
possible to use 1:12 scale for that model. The
interest of this ship model is exceptional as a
civil ship is very rare in our collections,
especially at that time. The large scale allowed
the smallest details to be shown, and the model is
surprisingly realistic. The fact that this ship
model was built by professionals who were on the
voyage gives it an absolutely authentic value.
However, one wishes that a few elements (such as
boats and guns) would not have disappeared . Ship's
model builders being practical-minded, they will
certainly appreciate the numerous details and there
is much to be learned from the abundant
illustrations. This sloop-of-the-war was actually
conceived as a small yacht. Its decoration is very
stylish and even the accommodations were arranged
in an originalfashion. The scientists were able to
work in a very refined-even luxurious-setting.
Nearly one hundred plates allow the viewer to judge
the smallest details, such as the very well-made
carved patterns. Gérard Delacroix's
commentaries give the necessary explanations for
the seventeen plates at 1:36 scale. There is a
detailed description of rigging, and various notes
constituting the "building file" that will not
disappoint amateurs nor the most demanding ship's
model builders.
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