The first phone call in French History
In 1877, Alfred Niaudet introduces Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone to France. Two letters capture the awe of the first voice heard over a wire in Paris, a scientific and human breakthrough that marked the beginning of a new era in communication.
Hearing a voice from afar? In 1877, it still sounded like magic. And yet, on November 2nd in Paris, inside a quiet room of the Société de Physique, the unthinkable happened. Around a small wooden device, scientists leaned in, ears tense… and suddenly heard someone singing Au clair de la lune. The man behind the demonstration was Alfred Niaudet, a French physicist and collaborator of the Breguet family, presenting the first two telephones ever introduced in France. The moment was so powerful that he wrote about it days later to his colleague Théodore Schneider.
It is a truly extraordinary invention [...] one cannot help but feel a certain emotion when hearing the voice of a friend through a telegraphic wire. [...] We heard many words, recognized our correspondent’s voice, heard Au Clair de la Lune sung. I was struck, as if I had never heard the telephone before.
The telephone came from England, entrusted to Niaudet by its young inventor, 30-year-old Alexander Graham Bell, whom he had met months earlier in Plymouth. Delighted by Niaudet’s interest, Bell had sent him two models to demonstrate in Paris. On November 9th, Bell wrote back:
I shall be in Paris in the course of six or eight days and hope to meet you there. [...] Sir William Thomson’s remarks were so excellent that they should certainly be translated into French.
These two autograph letters take us to the very heart of a turning point: the beginning of spoken words traveling through wires, the dawn of a new age in communication.
These letters were contributed by Julien Paganetti, a French expert in historical autographs and manuscripts based in Lyon, France. He is considered a leading authority in his field, both nationally and internationally. He has discovered and brought to light prestigious historical documents, and his clientele includes renowned collectors, institutions, and even former French presidents. Julien is truly passionate about his work and always eager to engage with fellow enthusiasts, particularly during international exhibitions.
