The Jammes Collection: “books condemned, hunted down and destroyed" | Andrew Sergeant

Summary: To Deprave and Corrupt: Forbidden, Hidden and Censored Books | Andrew Sergeant In 1968, the National Library of Australia acquired a collection of 135 books from the renowned booksellers, Librairie Paul Jammes in Paris. These works had formed part of a larger collection that had been put together over a number of years by Andre Jammes on the theme of books that had been banned and destroyed in 16th, 17th and 18th century France. The catalogue that was produced to advertise the collection, ‘Le Bûcher Bibliographique: Collection de Livres Condamnés Poursuivis et Détruits’, has itself been described as having ‘come to be recognised as a pioneering venture in documenting the movement of human thought that it chronicled’ (‘Librairie Jammes’, editorial article, The Book Collector vol 54 no 1, Spring 2005, p. 17). The catalogue is divided into ten sections, each with detailed notes on the books and pamphlets listed therein. The Library’s copy has been annotated in pencil, indicating the desired items (but some had already been sold by this time). The sections comprise: I. Bulles, Edits, Censures II. La Réglementation du Livre III. La Réforme. Critique et Exégèse de la Bible IV. Jansénisme et Quiétisme V. Les Jésuites VI. Pamphlets historico-satiriques VII. Politique. Théories du Gouvernement, etc VIII. Sources et Développements du Rationalisme IX. Encyclopédistes, Déistes, Matérialistes X. Livres Documentaires sur les Hérésies.