Graph of Citroën car deliveries to the Commercial Department (1927-1933)

In this document

This is a statistical graph titled "Number of cars delivered to the Commercial Department", bearing the specification "Cars - Bare chassis - U.E. + Kégresse" p. 1-2.

The medium

Page 1 serves as a cover or flyleaf, with a handwritten inscription in pencil "1933" in the top right corner p. 1. The document shows binder perforations and aging stains, signs of storage in an administrative file p. 1.

The graph itself

Page 2 contains the graph itself, drawn on graph paper (likely supplied by P. BOLL Paris, according to a barely legible inscription in the header). The horizontal axis covers the years 1927 to 1938, subdivided into months; the vertical axis is graduated from 0 to 12,000 in increments of 1,500 p. 2.

Two curves are plotted, labeled "4 cyl. cars" and "6 cyl. cars" p. 2:

• a red curve (4-cylinder cars), which fluctuates between approximately 2,500 and 11,000 deliveries, with a peak around 1927 (9,500-10,000) and a more pronounced peak around 1929 (close to 11,000);
• a dark blue/black curve (6-cylinder cars), oscillating between 0 and approximately 3,000, with a peak at the beginning of the plot.

The two curves are only filled in from 1927 (or 1929 for the blue curve) to 1933; the columns for 1934 to 1938 remain blank p. 2. A handwritten legend in red and black ink accompanies the graph at the bottom of the page p. 2.

Context

The years 1927-1933 correspond, in the history of Citroën, to the period of 4 and 6-cylinder engine models preceding the front-wheel drive (launched in 1934). The cessation of statistical tracking in 1933 could be explained, from a general historical perspective, by the change in range and production that occurred at the manufacturer at that date — but this link is not established by the document itself.

This type of document does not directly concern the inventions of Paul Magès: in 1933, he had only been at Citroën for eight years (he joined in August 1925, at 17 and a half — Draft of a letter from Paul Magès to Mr. Sarre and maintenance plan of 11...), and his first known work on hydropneumatic suspension did not begin until 1939-1940, with plans dated 17 February 1944 (Plans for hydropneumatic suspension with differential interaction and c...). This graph therefore relates more to commercial and statistical tracking of Citroën production, kept in the archives of the engineer or his professional circle, at a time when he held positions as a technical writer and then as deputy head of the Super-Control.

Archivist's perspective

This graph appears to be an internal commercial tracking tool, intended to visualize month by month the delivery volumes of two vehicle ranges (4 and 6-cylinder) over several years p. 2.

The sharp stop of the curves in 1933, while the medium (the graph paper) provided for tracking until 1938, is the most striking point of the document: it suggests that the tracking was interrupted or that this document was never completed beyond that date p. 2. The handwritten inscription "1933" on the cover page reinforces this hypothesis p. 1.

Its presence in the Magès collection remains, as it stands, unexplained by the document itself; it could be an annex piece kept as industrial context, a witness to his administrative and technical functions at Citroën before his work on hydropneumatic suspension, rather than a document directly linked to his inventions.