A most attractive illustrated price list for Monteux, France fireworks manufacturer Aulagne & Cie.

One side of the brochure lists a great range of individual pyrotechnics, including rockets, a striking variety of ground-mounted pinwheels, and ground-based illuminations. Not surprisingly there is much patriotic content, such as a 4-meter-high “statue république” (30 francs) and an even grander “statue equestre de Jeanne d’Arc” (50 francs). All are illustrated in full color, making this a striking display piece.

The reverse side features more bombs, rockets and ground-mounted illuminations, but also an array of decorative garlands, flags, paper lanterns and “ballons grotesques”. The title panel at upper left features a small bird’s-eye view of what I assume to be the Aulagne factory… set well outside of town, presumably to forestall the possibility of damage from a catastrophic explosion.

Though the brochure describes Aulange & Cie as “fondée en 1840”, I find reference to its activities only in advertisements and promotional materials from 1887 through 1911. The high production values and wide range of offerings in this 1904 brochure certainly suggest that the firm was by then very well established.

The brochure is not recorded in either OCLC or CCfr (Catalogue collectif de France). Indeed, OCLC notes a single promotional piece by the firm, an illustrated booklet dated 1906, while CCfr notes none whatsoever.