The Cité de l’Automobile has acquired the personal archives of the Schlumpf family, almost 40 years after the collapse of the Schlumpf empire. These archives, now part of the museum's collection, will be on display until the end of March.

Fritz Schlumpf was the biggest collector of cars in the twentieth century. His extensive collection features over 120 Bugatti, and nearly one hundred European automobile brands, including Rolls Royce, Bentley, Alfa-Romeo, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, Gordini, Panhard & Levassor, etc. A truly unique collection.

These highly sought after personal archives were pre-empted by the Cité de l’Automobile at Christie’s in Paris on 28 April 2015 and include letters by Schlumpf to Europe, the United States, and even India, hundreds of photographs of cars, before, during and after their restoration, and blueprints used for the building of the Bugatti Royale or for an Alfa Romeo 8C. The archives also include the museum’s first visitors’ book dating from 1965.

The archives provide an important insight into the history of many of the cars housed in the collection, particularly their condition at the time of their entry into the collection. They also shed light on the man himself: through his correspondence, the visitor gets a glimpse of his personality and tastes, his skill as a collector (sales, exchange and reselling techniques), and above all, his passion for collecting.

Photo : © Denis Sollier