LES GRAFFITI DE LA RUE D'AUXONNE

Dijon: Imprimerie Jobard, 1946. Near fine.. First edition of this rare work forging an early link between graffiti and politics. Jacques Foucart-Borville (1912-2005) was just a young magistrate when he wrote this slender account of the political graffiti of Resistance prisoners under Vichy at the Rue D'Auxonne prison in Dijon. Recognizing the essential ephemerality of these wall writings, Foucart penned and published LES GRAFFITI in the immediate aftermath of The Liberation, dedicating the book in part to his grandfather, who was imprisoned during "The Terror" for hiding a parish priest. Foucart organizes the book by types of prisoners, transcribing the graffiti and attributing it when possible to particular prisoners - often with biographical details. Reprinted in 1966 as LES GRAFFITI DE LA RUE D'AUXONNE: Prison de Dijon, OCLC finds just five copies of this first edition, all in France. (We've also handled a copy in brown wraps, otherwise identical, no known priority.) As Foucart argues near the end of this book, these prisoners often died "...pour nous transmettre un message de trois mots: 'Foi, Patrie, Espérance'" ("...to send us a message of just three words: 'Faith, Fatherland, Hope'"). 8.25'' x 5.25''. Original stapled green printed wrappers. 60 pages. Text in French. Mild toning to extremities of wrapper, with some edgewear and mild soil. Else clean and sound.