The Collection of Antiquities is a French novel published by Honoré de Balzac in 1838 under the title les Rivalités en province (Rivalries in the provinces) in le Constitutionnel, then published as a work in its own right in 1838 by the Souverain publishing house.With la Vieille Fille, the work fits into les Rivalités, an isolated group in the Scènes de la vie de province collection of la Comédie humaine. In it, Balzac portrays the old nobility in the French provinces, ruined by the French Revolution and forgotten by the restored Bourbons. The marquis d'Esgrignon, his sister and his friends represent this social group, which the author had already portrayed in la Vieille Fille. The younger generation within this class, represented by the marquis's son, causes his loss, sucked in by the whirlpool of Paris, where he lives merrily and ruins his fortunes.

法国作家巴尔扎克的小说《古物陈列室》以十九世纪的法国为背景，讲述了没落的贵族——德埃斯格里尼翁家最后的成员的生活。在动荡的政局下，中产阶级和自由党人的地位越来越高，而贵族身份已经不再是崇高的象征。但迂腐的德埃斯格里尼翁家族和他们的沙龙"古物陈列室"的成员们却还沉浸在过去的家族荣耀中，耽于享乐，不思进取。老德埃斯格里尼翁侯爵把儿子维克蒂尼安送到巴黎，希望他能谋取功名，谁知这个花花公子却经受不住享乐的诱惑，挥霍无度，甚至被敌人利用，将整个家族置于破产和名声扫地的险境。 《古物陈列室》以辛辣的讽刺和嘲笑剖析了迂腐无能却自以为高人一等的贵族阶级，无情地指出了他们注定灭亡的结局。