This anonymous manuscript is kept in Monsieur de Soleinne’s Bibliothèque dramatique (Bibliothèque nationale de France, Manuscipts Department, FF 9312). The play is sometimes dated 1695, but this dating is due to a confusion with the summary of a ballet entitled L’Enlèvement de Proserpine, found in the same volume as this play. Charles Magnin (Histoire des marionettes en Europe, 1852, p.1036) suggests that L’Enlèvement de Proserpine par Pluton roi des Enfers might be the play mentioned by Antoine Hamilton in an epistle to the English Princess, which was presumably written in 1705. The epistle mentioned a puppet show performed during a patronal feast in Saint-Germain-en-Laye.

L’Enlèvement de Proserpine par Pluton roi des Enfers is the first of four handwritten plays transcribed on the same folio, entitled “Répertoire des petites pièces de Polichinelle” (Repertory of short Polichinelle plays). The other three plays are Polichinelle colin-maillard, Polichinelle Grand-Turc and Le Marchand Ridicule. They were edited by Françoise Rubellin, who observes that the Polichinelle in these plays is largely different from the Polichinelle staged in the “théâtres de la Foire”, who was probably more well-known.

Gaston Baty made a handwritten copy of the play which is kept in the Institut International de la Marionnette (don Temporal).

The Compère character was played by an actor facing the stage and serving as a mediator between the performers and the audience.

Polichinelle tells the Compère the story how he became Pluton (Pluto)’s coachman. He helps the latter capture Proserpine. Her mother – Cérès (Ceres) – protests, but Jupiter declares that Proserpine will be handed back to Ceres on condition that she does not eat or drink anything in the Underworld. Polichinelle testifies that he has seen Proserpine eat “way more than just a pear”. Jupiter therefore rules that Pluton can keep her.