Lady in sports car!

That was the title for this photo for a long time. Or in fact 'Mademoiselle en voiture de sport', as on the back of the photo was written: Chambéry, Clos Savoiroux, Mai 1911. In the Parc du Clos Savoiroux, now a place for peace and meditation, you will find a statue of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (the man who inspired the leaders of the french Revolution and who was also at the roots of the Age of Romanticism). Moreover the parc has a monument to commemorate the victims of the wars of the 20th century. In 1911 however the age of Romanticism was over, and the great wars hadn't started yet, at least not in Europe. So why not drive your sports car into the parc to pose for this photo, in a time when nature and technology hadn't become fierce enemies yet?

Recently I found out more about the photo. E.g. that the car is a ca 1909 Motobloc, recognizable by the grips on top of the bonnet, and belonged to her father. The family resided at the Château de Beauregard in La Bazoche-Gouet, so sometimes you could spot her in more lady-like outfit. Her name? I still don't know, though I do know now that a certain Adrien Harmand, an artistic painter, was the owner of the castle in the early '20s. If he already was living there around 1910 is still a mystery. But do not worry, the lady will be the subject of another post in the near future, together with another interesting car. This will give me some time to do more research. And of course if you can help me, please share it in a comment.....

Words and picture: Ariejan Bos

Pubblicato:

giovedì febbraio 2nd, 2017

Ariejan

07 Febbraio 2017, 16:02

Dear Richard, it is my experience that it works very well, at least for the pre-WW1 era I've specialized in. And several of your compatriots will agree! Of course I will never rely on just one feature, but it is a fact that many cars or models have that one feature which distinguishes it from all the other. A fact that is of all eras by the way. And although indeed a few coachbuilders before the Great War succeeded in making cars unrecognizable, most of them didn't. The main problems for many people now in identifying the old cars are that they aren't used looking at them anymore and that their database is too small. Best wishes, Ariejan

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Sconosciuto

03 Febbraio 2017, 21:23

i wonder if it is safe to state the make of an old car because of numbers of bonnet louvres, types of lifting brackets, shapes of mudguards-things like that.We do not usually do this in England because so many different bodybuilding firms bodied the same make of chassis, & they used all kinds of body details & fittings, so not reliable identification.

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Sconosciuto

03 Febbraio 2017, 20:06

Try Googling 'reeds for old car horns'. You might find something suitable. They will not necessary be CICCA, but there may be modern equivalents.

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Sconosciuto

03 Febbraio 2017, 14:50

Google 'Reeds for old car horns'. There are several suppliers who may be able to supply alternatives to CICCA reeds.

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Sconosciuto

03 Febbraio 2017, 08:15

Very interesting photograph - the first I have seen of a period French photograph of a car with a "Le Testophone" most likely to be seen on sporting cars. It may have two, three or four trumpets and and plays as many as four different 'musical' sounds one after another as one squeezes the bulb ('poire'). I am trying to help Bertil Osterby in Sweden who advertised in the spare parts section of this magazine wanting a reed. In fact he needs four - one for each trumpet. There are however many different sized reeds to match many different sized trumpets. These were made in France by C.i.c.c.a.(and that is stamped on the bottom of the reeds). I am sending him two reeds but that is all I have spare and I also need some. So is there anyone out there who knows where we can find a source of CICCA reeds for some sporty horns?

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Lady in sports car!

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