Villette, François I
Contenu
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Nom
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Villette, François I
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Date de naissance
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1621
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Date de mort
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Beginning of March 1697
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Lieu de naissance
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Lyon ?
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Lieu de mort
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Lyon
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Couverture temporelle
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2/2 17th century
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Couverture spatiale
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Lyon
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Biographie
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A pewterer and merchant. who was also an optician, Villette specialised in making burning mirrors. He also looked after fire-work displays for the city of Lyon (1). A report in the Journal des Sçavans for 1666 (2), on one of his mlmirrors compared it with those made in Italy for Magini and Settala. In c. 1670, He made a 34inch diameter (98cm), focal length mirror which mightily pleased Louis XIV. He, on viewing it at St Germain gave Villette 100 pistoles for the demonstration and ordered the mirror to be purchased for the Observatory which it was at a cost of 7000 livres. There it was tried on 6 April and 6 July 1680. It is shown in Le Clerc's engraving of an imaginary visit of Louis XIV to Académie des. Sciences, and is still preserved in the Observatory (3). In a letter of 10 April 1680 Justel reported from Paris to Robert Hooke in London that Villette was working on a 3 feet 7 inch diameter mirror with a focal distance of 3feet 6 inches (4). Of other mirrors made by Villette, one was purchased by Tavernier and presented to the King of Persia 'qui le garde encore comme une des plus rare et des plus precieux curiositez qu'il ayt. Another was acquired by the King of Denmark and a third by the Landgraf of Hessed-Kassel. Villette possessed an apartment in the Rue du Faubourg St Antoine in Paris (5). His two sons Jean Claude and Nicolas François worked. with him and completed his 47inch diameter mirror which the latter took with hime Liège where it was described in 1715. In 1718/19, it was it was demonstrated for sale in London. (6).
The probabte inventory of Villette's goods is dated 4 March 1697 (7).
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Notes biographiques
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1. Text on the engraved portrait of Villette by Etiene Jehandier Desrochers, which describes him as an 'ingénieur'.
2 1724 edition, pp. 125-6.
3. Catalogue exposition 1966, N° 62. On the burning mirror see further Henry Oldenburg in PT November. 1965 and Tolmer 1943, p. 303.
4. Gunther vi, 554. Journal des Sçavans 62, 4 December 1679 (1728 edition, p.p. 158-60.
5. Fremontier 353.
6 See the pamphlets produced on this occasion listed in the entries on his sons.
7 Archives de Lyon, BP 2037.
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Adresse ; enseigne ; période ; source
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Rue St Jean, Lyon
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Relation
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Jean Claude Villette
Frfançois Villette
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Identifiant
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ark:/18469/2p06f