In 1916, the Musée du Louvre and the Bibliothèque Nationale de France received a legacy from Georges Marteau (1851–1916), in accordance with the late engineer’s wishes: a collection built up throughout his lifetime.

It included playing cards, artworks from Japan, specimens of Indo-Persian art of the book, metals from the Middle East and Coptic textiles. In 1917, Major Ferdinand Seiler, Georges Marteau’s brother-in-law and sole legatee, also gifted Marteau’s full collection of textiles from the Far East and the Islamic world, as well as Japanese stencils, to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs. The present exhibition, more than a century after Marteau’s death, seeks to commemorate this singular and little-known collector, whose generosity has significantly enriched France’s national collections.

Organized by:

Charlotte Maury, Musée du Louvre

Musée du Louvre