Art, objects, furniture and rare books from the magnificent country house that Voltaire once called home

In 1758, Voltaire acquired the Château de Tournay in the old canton of Geneva, Switzerland, under a lifetime lease. Located far from the French court, where he had fallen out of favour, the property served as a refuge where he could be ‘independent and perfectly free’. ‘He staged theatrical performances at the chateau, adapting the premises specifically for that purpose,’ says Hippolyte de la Féronnière, head of European Furniture at Christie’s in Paris. ‘He lived there until he moved to the Château de Ferney in France in 1760.’

Since then, the Château de Tournay has passed through the hands of other notable figures, including the Swiss businessman, philanthropist and art collector Alfred Baur. In 2009, the property was acquired by the current owner, who initiated a major renovation and historical restoration of the property. He preserved the medieval and 18th-century heritage of the exterior, while also upgrading the interior to create a refined and coherent setting for his collections.

Assembled between the 1960s and 1990s, the Château de Tournay Collections include European furniture, tapestries and works of decorative art, including English silver and Italian porphyry, as well as Old Master, modern and contemporary paintings. The library features volumes ranging in date from the 18th to the 20th century, many with exquisite bindings and royal provenances. Some of the great artisans and authors of 18th-century France are represented in the collection, including Georges Jacob, Bernard II Van Risamburgh, Voltaire and La Fontaine.

On 17 June 2026, Christie’s in Paris will present Collections du Château de Tournay: Les Arts Décoratifs, which comprises 215 lots ranging from furniture, tapestries and paintings to antiquities, rugs and decorative arts. The sale will be followed on 18 June by Collections du Château de Tournay; La Bibliothèque, which brings together about 200 volumes by some of the greatest names in literary history.

‘It is quite rare to find a collection of classical decorative arts paired with a bibliophile’s library,’ says de la Féronnière. ‘The collection of art and objects reflects the owner’s personal taste for the grand French style and stands as a tribute to the craftsmanship of master artisans and to the excellence of the royal manufactories of the 18th century.’

The richly endowed library, meanwhile, is the product of the owner’s keen interest in 18th-century French literary history, as well as in the history of the books themselves. ‘He was drawn to important works with prestigious provenances, such as Madame de Pompadour and Marie Antoinette,’ says Vincent Belloy, a specialist in the Books and Manuscripts department at Christie’s in Paris. ‘Many of the books are also beautifully bound and in excellent condition, an important criterion for bibliophiles.’

Set in landscaped gardens with panoramic views of the Alps and Mont Blanc, the Château de Tournay is typical of 18th-century Swiss architecture. The interiors, which are light and spacious, are decorated for the most part in the grand French style. The most resplendent room was the grand salon, with high ceilings, a large marble fireplace and marquetry floor. On the walls, covered in a crimson damask, hung late-17th-century Flemish tapestries and a majestic painting from 1670 depicting a view of Paris from the Pont-Neuf. It shows the Collège des Quatre-Nations on the Left Bank and the Louvre on the Right Bank. At its heart is the bronze equestrian statue of Henri IV — based on a model by Giambologna — that was destroyed in 1614.

The furniture included a Louis XIV style ormolu-mounted tortoiseshell, brass-inlaid and ebony Boulle marquetry bookcase, after a model by André-Charles Boulle; and a pair of Louis XVI armchairs with the stamp of Georges Jacob, which once graced the Château de Fontainebleau. ‘They were commissioned by Jean-Baptiste Boulard, then head of the royal household, for the private study of King Louis XIV,’ says de la Féronnière. ‘They are among the few surviving pieces from that room still known to exist.’

Central to the display were works of art crafted from porcelain, porphyry and richly coloured marbles and granites, among them a pair of ormolu-mounted Egyptian porphyry pot-pourris vases (circa 1830); and a Louis XVI ormolu-mounted green Sèvres porcelain mantel clock signed by Jean-Baptiste Lepaute. ‘The collector had an eye for exceptional materials that were highly prized across 18th-century Europe,’ says de la Féronnière, who explains that Grand Tour souvenirs crafted from precious hardstones such as porphyry were symbols of wealth and refinement at the time. ‘His collection of decorative arts pays homage to this tradition.’

The dining room was smaller and more intimate, with cream wood-panelled walls and marble skirting. A 19th-century ormolu-mounted cut-crystal 12-light chandelier hung from the ceiling, while an assorted collection of landscapes and maritime pictures adorned the walls. Among the notable pieces of furniture was a Louis XV giltwood console table (circa 1735) and a pair of ormolu-mounted corner cabinets (circa 1750) by Bernard II Van Risamburgh, the most celebrated cabinetmaker of the Louis XV period. ‘This pair of floral marquetry cabinets, with striking tonal contrasts, is emblematic of BVRB’s distinctive style at the height of his career,’ says de la Féronnière. ‘They are thought to have been delivered by BVRB to the Château de Bellevue, the private residence of Madame de Pompadour, in the late 1750s.’

There was also a Louis XV three-leaf screen by the Savonnerie factory, after a model by François Desportes, which was formerly in the collection of James de Rothschild. Among the notable antiquities was a Roman marble torso of Hercules from the 2nd century A.D. and a Roman marble Venus dating from the 1st-2nd century A.D.

The library, a light and airy room, was imbued with a scholarly aesthetic. The calm, neutral tones of the walls and soft furnishings paired harmoniously with the plush yellow-gold silk curtains, marquetry floor and bespoke wooden bookcases. The bookshelves, covered in a dark green fabric that complemented the red and gold bindings of the antiquarian books, were adorned with personal photographs and bronze busts of literary figures, including Voltaire and Rousseau.

‘The bookcases were conceived to accommodate all volume types, from small travel books to large-format plate books,’ says Belloy. ‘The owner took great pride and joy in curating the display. Like many great book collectors, he felt a great responsibility to take exceptional care of his books, so that when the time came for the torch to be passed on, they were in the best possible condition.’

One of the most anticipated lots from the library is an edition of La Fontaine’s Fables, illustrated by Jean-Baptiste Oudry. This copy, on heavy, large-format paper, is one of the few in contemporary bindings: the first two volumes were bound by Bonnet, the remaining two by Padeloup. ‘It represents one of the greatest achievements of French book manufacture and engraving,’ says Belloy, who adds that as well as being in excellent condition, this copy also has royal provenance. ‘The gilt bindings bear the arms of Mademoiselle de Condé, Princess of Conti, granddaughter of Louis XIV, one of the great bibliophiles of the time.’

Other notable highlights include the two complete volumes of Voltaire’s Oeuvres: the illustrated edition (1768-77) features morocco bindings stamped with the arms of Maria Feodorovna, Empress of Russia, while the Correspondence volumes, issued 20 years later, feature a slightly later binding bearing the Russian imperial arms. The luxurious Kehl edition, in fine contemporary morocco bindings, was formerly in the collections of Baron Franchetti and Louis Cartier. Also offered is a 19th-century copy of the complete works of Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon. Formerly in the collection of Empress Marie-Louise of Austria, it features 776 plates, more than half of which are printed both in black and with contemporary hand-colouring.

Of the 20th century books offered for sale, Belloy highlights Miroir de la tauromachie from 1990. ‘It’s the only book by Michel Leiris illustrated by Francis Bacon,’ says Belloy, adding that it contains four original lithographs, including a self-portrait, signed by Bacon. ‘It’s a magnificent testimony to their friendship.’ Another notable lot is Picasso’s illustrated edition of Balzac’s Le Chef-d’oeuvre inconnu from 1931, one of only 65 deluxe copies signed by both the artist and the art dealer Ambroise Vollard.

In addition to the collector’s extensive collection of books, the library was home to a notable group of bronze sculptures, marble objects and decorative arts, including a Neoclassical porphyry obelisk clock and a desk veneered in porphyry in the Louis XIV style. A pair of 18th-century cipollino marble columns flanked the door.

The grand reception rooms contrasted with the less formal style of the petit salon, which was primarily furnished with 20th-century paintings, furniture and works of art, including Albert Marquet’s vibrant seascape Bateaux dans la Rade, painted in 1921, and François Rouan’s Queequeg, a wax painting on braided canvas from 1997. There was also a pair of Empire gilt and patinated bronze six-light candelabra attributed to Gérard-Jean Galle (circa 1815).

In the master bedroom on the first floor, classical works were juxtaposed with 19th- and 20th-century furnishings from around the world. Hanging above a commode attributed to Jean-François or Simon Oeben (circa 1760) was a pastoral scene from 1887 titled Le Pré à Saint-Briac by Emile Bernard. A large Mughal style floral carpet from Agra, north India (circa 1880), completed the look. Among the notable pieces of furniture was an early Louis XV ormolu-mounted desk attributed to François Lieutaud, from around 1730, which was formerly in the collection of James de Rothschild.

The Indian bedroom, meanwhile, was filled with furniture and decorative objects that complemented the floral woven-cotton wallpaper, among them two Louis XVI armchairs upholstered in fabric of the same design. ‘It was very fashionable in the 18th century for the elite to incorporate brightly coloured, block-printed Indian cottons, also known as indiennes, into their Rococo or Neoclassical room designs,’ says de la Féronnière of the eye-catching decorative scheme.

Elsewhere, there were a pair of red Languedoc marble columns and a pair of 17th-century marble profiles of Roman emperors. The sale also features several important Sèvres dinner services, including one acquired in 1839 by the Duke of Nemours. Among the notable pieces of silver offered for sale is a large silver-gilt bowl with stand and cover from 1789, with the mark of the celebrated Strasbourg silversmith François-Daniel Imlin.

Collections du Château de Tournay: Les Arts Décoratifs is on view 13-16 June 2026 at Christie’s in Paris alongside Collections du Château de Tournay: La Bibliothèque (13-16 June)