Sénéchaussée de Lyon – Rente au profit des prêtres de Saint-Symphorien-le-Château - Grand parchemin vélin notarié - - 1540

This large parchment on parchment dates from the Renaissance. It is a remarkable testimony to the legal and religious life of the Lyonnais under the reign of François I. It is issued in the name of Jean du Peyrat, doctor of laws, counselor to the king and lieutenant general in the sénéchaussée of Lyon. It brings together in a single document two acts: a Latin contract from February 1523 and its expedition in public form, drafted in French twenty years later.

The original act is a sale of a perpetual annuity. The sellers cede to the priests of the church of Saint-Symphorien an annual and perpetual pension of twenty tournois sols. It is payable each year on the feast of Saint Matthieu and guaranteed on their houses, meadows, and lands located notably in the parish of Pomeys. These foundations, granted for the salvation of souls, funded the masses and services carried out by the community of priests. The act details the properties mortgaged and the obligation clauses. It thus constitutes a valuable source for rural history, toponymy, and the genealogy of the Monts du Lyonnais.

In 1544, the lieutenant general of Lyon authorized Maître Estienne Paparin, notary and royal scribe of Saint-Symphorien-le-Château (today Saint-Symphorien-sur-Coise), to expédier this contract. It had been received by a previous notary, Maître Martin [Thimon ?], whose registers had been handed over to Paparin. The document illustrates the transmission of the minutes between notaries and the role of the royal sénéchaussée in authenticating acts.

The act is validated at the bottom of the page by the signature and initial of the notary, accompanied by a note of expedition. The verso bears an old archival shelfmark (“N° 37”) and the name of Claude M[aucenay ?], presumably a later debtor of the annuity. These markings show that this title served for generations.

The cursive notarial handwriting, dense and regular, opens with a large “We” calligraphed. It testifies to the mastery of the Lyonnais practitioners of the sixteenth century. The brown ink has remarkably withstood the centuries.

- Dimensions: 72 x 67 cm
- Condition: good state of conservation for a document of this era, the lower right corner is missing, a few small holes along the folds. See photos for more details.

Careful shipment in a rigid and waterproof box.