For many years now, the multinational research team of Philip Hoffman, Gilles Postel-Vinay, and Jean-Laurent Rosenthal (HPR) have been presenting tantalizing bits of their research into the notarial archives of Paris, while diligently collecting further data from the overwhelming mass of material stored in the Archives Nationales. At long last, this volume brings together the initial results of their collective labors in a provocative and well-written book. The material and the interpretations given it are important both for French history and for financial history. It will generate not only controversy, but also further research, in which the authors are already engaged.