Les Rougon-Macquart Histoire naturelle et sociale d’une famille sous le Second Empire

Inspired by Balzac’s Comédie humaine, the cycle aims to study the influence of environment on man and the hereditary flaws of a family, originating in Plassans, across five generations, from the ancestor Adélaïde Fouque (born 1768) to an unborn child, the fruit of the incestuous relationship between Pascal Rougon and his niece Clotilde (1874). Zola also sought to depict the society of the Second Empire as exhaustively as possible, omitting none of its components and giving full weight to the great transformations of the period (Parisian urbanism, department stores, the development of the railway, the emergence of modern trade unionism, etc.). The cycle marks the triumph of the literary movement known as naturalism, of which Zola, together with Edmond and Jules de Goncourt and later Guy de Maupassant, is the principal representative.

The first six volumes are the only ones to carry a volume number in the title, a practice abandoned from L’Assommoir onward, which is also the volume in which deluxe papers first appear. These were initially Hollande copies, in increasing numbers, later joined by China paper printings (from Nana onward) or Japanese paper (from Au bonheur des dames onward), without any systematic rule. A few volumes (at least two, L’Argent and Le Docteur Pascal) also had copies on vellum.

Here is the complete print run — a non-exhaustive list, but in any case more complete than the bibliographies:

1. La Fortune des Rougon (1871). 2. La Curée (1872). 3. Le Ventre de Paris (1873). 4. La Conquête de Plassans (1874). 5. La Faute de l’abbé Mouret (1875). 6. Son Excellence Eugène Rougon (1876): no deluxe paper.
7. L’Assommoir (1877). 75 copies on Hollande.
8. Une page d’amour (1878). 100 copies on Hollande.
9. Nana (1880). 5 copies on China paper (for MM Céard, Charpentier, Hennique, Huysmans, Zola). 325 copies on Hollande.
10. Pot-Bouille (1882). A few copies on China paper. 250 copies on Hollande.
11. Au Bonheur des Dames (1883). A few copies on China paper. 10 copies on Japanese paper. 150 copies on Hollande.
12. La Joie de vivre (1884). A few copies on China paper. 10 copies on Japanese paper. 150 copies on Hollande.
13. Germinal (1885). 10 copies on Japanese paper. 150 copies on Hollande.
14. L’Œuvre (1886). 10 copies on Japanese paper. 175 copies on Hollande.
15. La Terre (1887). 30 copies on Japanese paper. 275 copies on Hollande.
16. Le Rêve (1888). 25 copies on Japanese paper. 250 copies on Hollande.
17. La Bête humaine (1890). 30 copies on Japanese paper. 250 copies on Hollande.
18. L’Argent (1891). 5 copies on vellum. 30 copies on Japanese paper. 250 copies on Hollande.
19. La Débâcle (1892). A few copies on China paper. 33 copies on Japanese paper. 330 copies on Hollande.
20. Le Docteur Pascal (1893). 5 copies on vellum. 40 copies on Japanese paper. 340 copies on Hollande.

Our set comprises the following volumes. Unless otherwise noted, the wrappers and spines have been preserved.

1. La Fortune des Rougon (1871). Green wrapper with the correct date of 1871. A significant number of copies have a straw-colored wrapper dated 1872. Contemporary half morocco, unsigned.
2. La Curée (1872). Straw-colored wrapper dated 1872 (as it should be), and title page dated 1871. Half morocco with corners by Semet et Plumelle.
3. Le Ventre de Paris (1873). Half morocco with corners by Alix. Without the spine.
4. La Conquête de Plassans (1874). Half morocco with corners by Charles Septier. Without the spine.
5. La Faute de l’abbé Mouret (1875). Half morocco with corners by Victor Champs.
6. Son Excellence Eugène Rougon (1876). Half morocco with corners by Victor Champs. Without the spine.
7. L’Assommoir (1877). Copy 12/75 on Hollande. Doublured morocco by Semet et Plumelle. Without the spine.
8. Une page d’amour (1878). Copy 42/100 on Hollande. Half morocco with corners by Affolter. Without the spine.
9. Nana (1880). Copy 183/325 on Hollande. Half morocco with corners and mosaic spine by Charles Meunier.
10. Pot-Bouille (1882). Copy 109/250 on Hollande. Contemporary half morocco, unsigned.
11. Au Bonheur des Dames (1883). Copy 11/150 on Hollande. Signed presentation inscription on the half-title: “à Monsieur Prévauts, offert par l’auteur, Emile Zola.” Half morocco with corners by Semet et Plumelle.
12. La Joie de vivre (1884). Copy 90/150 on Hollande. Half morocco by Durvand.
13. Germinal (1885). Copy 118/150 on Hollande. Doublured morocco by Semet et Plumelle. Without the spine.
14. L’Œuvre (1886). Copy 87/175 on Hollande. Half morocco by Durvand.
15. La Terre (1887). Copy 133/275 on Hollande. Half morocco by Durvand.
16. Le Rêve (1888). Copy 54/250 on Hollande. Half morocco with corners and mosaic spine by Charles Meunier.
17. La Bête humaine (1890). Copy 99/250 on Hollande. Half morocco with corners and mosaic spine by Charles Meunier.
18. L’Argent (1891). Copy 124/250 on Hollande. Half morocco by Durvand.
19. La Débâcle (1892). Copy 297/330 on Hollande. Half morocco by Durvand.
20. Le Docteur Pascal (1893). Copy 259/340 on Hollande. Morocco by Viaud. Without the spine.

Added: Les Personnages des Rougon-Macquart (1901). Copy no. 1/50 on Hollande. In wrappers.

“Série de la plus grande rareté” (Carteret, II, pp. 487–488); Vicaire, VII, 213–215; Laporte, Bibliographie d’Emile Zola, 254–268; Clouzot, 277–279; En français dans le texte, 296.