1950? Black-and-white postcard of "Vie Illustrée" of LaFontaine. Artists Ch. Leclerc and Léon Garnier. Editions L.G. & Ch. L. Série A. €7.95 from Hip Postcard, April, '24.
Is this image supposed to represent La Fontaine's life? It seems to have sparse elements. People interested in fables will notice the sheep and the crow. Might there rather be a whole book of La Fontaine's life for which this is but one illustration? The serrated edge at the top of the card suggests that it once belonged to a series of connected cards. It is hard for me to date this card.
1950? La Fontaine Puzzle Game. 8 cards with three open "hinges" for an additional puzzle piece. Plus 24 cards matching these images. Cards 5.7" x 5.3". Puzzle pieces 2.3" x 1.75".
I played this game and it is really fun! The little cards present each several lines from a fable of La Fontaine. The challenge then is to connect this saying with the fable to which it belongs. I had to set aside a few until I came to the end! There is a confirming clue in the match of the tab of the little piece: it matches the picture it belongs to. One missing piece has been reconstructed, I believe, by a beleaguered parent whose child lamented that one piece was missing!
2004 La Fontaine Playing Card Collection. Art by Dante Moglisi. Turin: Lo Scarabeo. €10 at Variantes, Paris, Dec., '04. Two extra copies.
"54 cards dedicated to some of the most famous tales." The 54 full-color illustrations here are small but delightful. Variantes was a store I came to love for its various puzzles and games. These cards were a great find on my way to Africa, when I wisely took an overnight in Paris along the way.Click on a card to see a larger version of it.
2000? Photograph of the La Fontaine Memorial in Jardin du Ranelagh in Paris. Unknown source.
This statue is dear to me for several reasons. The strongest is that the video team I was a part of in June, 2025 spent several hours in our last morning together doing video work on and around this statue. It pictures La Fontaine’s best known fable, FC. The original statue was erected in 1891, but it was melted down during World War II. The current bronze statue, created by French-Portuguese sculptor Charles Correia, replaced the original in 1983.
1952 4 colored prints of La Fontaine fables by Jacques Ferrand. "The Two Goats"; FC; GGE; and “The Sun and the Frogs.” About 8½” x 10½”. Unsigned. Blank versos. $19.56 from La Brauderie through Etsy, Dec., ’20.
Excellent color work, both in the conception and in the printing. I presume that these prints are identical with pages in his 1950 Mame editions, though I am unable at the moment to check them. The blank versos argue against these being pages cut out of a book.
1947? La Fontaine's Fables in children's scenes. 18 cards produced by M. Barré and J. Doyez, Paris. The artist's signature seems to be "Lack" or "Jack." Series 1426; each card has a different letter following that number. No. 614. The fable is printed in script on the message side of the post card. At about the same time, this publishing firm did a series of colored postcards by Starling. Imprimé en France. 30 Francs each from Normand Antiquités at the Marché aux Puces, Clignancourt, May, '97 and July, '98. 45 Francs each for eleven cards from M. d'Autreppe at Clignancourt, August, '99. Fourteen more cards for €4 each, St. Ouen, August, '17. Persistence has paid off: I now have what I believe are the last two cards ("D" and "H") for $12 from Bertrand Cocq, Calonne Ricouart, France, Sept., '18.
1950? Portrait of La Fontaine. (1621-1695). 18268. Paris: Braun & Cie. $7 from Alexandre Przopior, April, '00.
Here La Fontaine looks right from within a rectangular portrait done principally in brown tones and placed on a cream-colored background. The back of the card contains a message, and the stamp has been canceled.
2005 La Fontaine and Le Gaucher. La Fontaine and Le Gaucher. Pierrejean Gaucher. Paris: Nocturne.
Here is a 50-minute compact disc featuring sixteen fables musically rendered. Fourteen are in French, with one Italian version of OF and one English version of GA. Guitars, pianos, accordion, trombone, saxophone, flute, counterbass, and percussion all contribute. Pierrejean Gaucher did the composition and arrangements of the music. A few bars of taps for the exploded frog in the Italian version of OF is a nice touch! FC and WC have multiple parts. TMCM is wonderfully frantic music, well matched to the lively colored cartoon work! Overall, the disc shows a strong integration of poetry and music.
1950? Portrait of La Fontaine. (1621-1695). Poete Français. 225. Fabriqué en France. Paris: AN. $9 from Alexandre Przopior, April, '00.
Here La Fontaine looks left from within a medallion placed on a gray-white background. The card stock seems to be almost photograph paper. The back of the card is clean.
1992 Four pins commemorating the thirty-third "Fêtes de Jean de La Fontaine" at Chateau-Thierry, June, 1992. €25 from Collectiomania-France through Ebay, Oct., '23.
In a fashion that I believe is typical for this festival, the four pins bring together the poet, his home, his fables, and their characters. Small but lovely!
