Description
Autograph Letter Signed, to M. de Boeuf, discussing a young man’s qualifications. In French. 1 page 8 x 6 inches, with address panel, small hole at seal opening. 24 October 1811. Louis-Benjamin Francoeur (1773-1849), French mathematician, astronomer and author. In 1804 he was appointed professor of mathematics at the École Polytechnique, then in 1805 he became professor of mathematics at the Lycée Charlemagne. In 1808 he was made professor of mathematics at the Faculté des Sciences in Paris, a post he was to hold in addition to others until 1845. It was for his work in line drawing that Francoeur became most famous, the method he proposed being known as “Francoeur’s method”. It was first used in a school in Libourne in Aquitaine in south-western France which had been founded by Élie, duc Decazes. His method was published in 1819 in Le dessin linéaire d’après la méthode de l’enseignement mutuel. Francoeur’s method was used in countries other than France. For example William B Fowle translated Francoeur’s book into English and published it as An Introduction to Linear Drawing: Translated from the French of M. Francoeur, and Adapted to the Use of Public Schools in the United States (1825).