The Last Splendors of the Crédit Foncier de France Collection

Today's sale may not be the first (the same auction house sold works from this provenance about ten years ago), but it is certainly the last. Crédit Foncier de France ceased to own its historic headquarters in Rue des Capucines in 2003, but remained a tenant until the last few months. The story began on February 28, 1852 with Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte's decree establishing credit companies to finance agricultural activities. A month later, the Banque Foncière de Paris was created, soon to be renamed Crédit Foncier de France. Over the years, its most important missions consisted of financing the work of Baron Haussmann (1853-1870), the construction of the schools planned by Jules Ferry, the modernization of the merchant fleet, and housing loans for buildings damaged in the Second World War.   General view of the governor's office in the historic headquarters of the Crédit Foncier, Rue des Capucines in Paris Cessation of Activity Development, expansion and diversification followed on in turn. But things went wrong in the mid-1990s with the real estate crisis. On June 25, 1999, Crédit Foncier was merged with the Caisse d'Épargne group and then with the Banques Populaires group, giving rise to BPCE.…