François-Charles Oberthür
Encyclopedia
François-Charles Oberthür (1818, Strasbourg
– 1893) was the founder of the French
printing group Imprimerie Oberthur (fr). In Strasbourg, François-Charles, an engraver
, ran a printing press, with Alois Senefelder
, the inventor of lithography. He moved to Rennes
in 1838, qualified as a lithographer in 1842 and then founded a printing company, with a partner. He became the sole owner in 1855, calling his enterprise the Imprimerie Oberthür.
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Imprimerie Oberthür was the exclusive printer for Compagnie des Chemins de Fer de l'Ouest
(Western Railway Company), published the first French telephone directory
publisher and the "Almanach des Postes" Post Office
almanac
. These became a huge success, bringing cheap but very high quality art printing to many thousands of families across France. The press also specialized in colour plates featuring flowers, butterflies and beetles. François-Charles Oberthür also devised the French standard reference for tints.
He was an amateur entomologist specialising in Lepidoptera
especially Zygaenidae
and Lycaenidae
. He had two sons
René Oberthür
and Charles Oberthür
. Both became entomologists.
The Oberthur house, n° 82 de la rue de Paris, is preserved in Rennes and a "jardin anglais
" in Rennes is named for him.
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
– 1893) was the founder of the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
printing group Imprimerie Oberthur (fr). In Strasbourg, François-Charles, an engraver
Engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...
, ran a printing press, with Alois Senefelder
Alois Senefelder
Johann Alois Senefelder was a German actor and playwright who invented the printing technique of lithography in 1796.-Actor, playwright:...
, the inventor of lithography. He moved to Rennes
Rennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
in 1838, qualified as a lithographer in 1842 and then founded a printing company, with a partner. He became the sole owner in 1855, calling his enterprise the Imprimerie Oberthür.
Chemins de Fer de l'Ouest
The Compagnie des chemins de fer de l'Ouest , often referred to simply as L'Ouest or Ouest, was an early French railway company.- Birth of the company :...
(Western Railway Company), published the first French telephone directory
Telephone directory
A telephone directory is a listing of telephone subscribers in a geographical area or subscribers to services provided by the organization that publishes the directory...
publisher and the "Almanach des Postes" Post Office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
almanac
Almanac
An almanac is an annual publication that includes information such as weather forecasts, farmers' planting dates, and tide tables, containing tabular information in a particular field or fields often arranged according to the calendar etc...
. These became a huge success, bringing cheap but very high quality art printing to many thousands of families across France. The press also specialized in colour plates featuring flowers, butterflies and beetles. François-Charles Oberthür also devised the French standard reference for tints.
He was an amateur entomologist specialising in Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
especially Zygaenidae
Zygaenidae
The Zygaenidae moths are a family of Lepidoptera. The majority of zygaenids are tropical, but they are nevertheless quite well represented in temperate regions. There are about 1000 species. Various species are commonly known as Burnet or Forester moths, often qualified by the number of spots,...
and Lycaenidae
Lycaenidae
The Lycaenidae are the second-largest family of butterflies, with about 6000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies...
. He had two sons
René Oberthür
René Oberthür
René Oberthür was a French entomologist who specialised in Coleoptera.With his brother Charles Oberthür he worked in "Imprimerie Oberthür" the very successful printing business founded by his father François-Charles Oberthür....
and Charles Oberthür
Charles Oberthür
Charles Oberthür was a French entomologist specializing in Lepidoptera. He was the son of François-Charles Oberthür.Oberthür named 42 new genera of moths -Works:...
. Both became entomologists.
The Oberthur house, n° 82 de la rue de Paris, is preserved in Rennes and a "jardin anglais
English garden
The English garden, also called English landscape park , is a style of Landscape garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, replacing the more formal, symmetrical Garden à la française of the 17th century as the principal gardening style of Europe. The...
" in Rennes is named for him.
See also
- Oberthur TechnologiesOberthur TechnologiesOberthur Technologies is a French secure technology company, providing security services in smart cards, printing, identity, and cash protection...
, a modern French company created after partitioning and regrouping of original Imprimerie Oberthur.