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  • Category = French
  • BEAUTIFUL ART-NOUVEAU INLAID FULL CRUSHED MOROCCO BY PETRUS RUBAN
    Dominique. by FROMENTIN, Eugene
    FROMENTIN, Eugene
    Dominique.

    Paris: Le Livre Contemporain, 1905. Full inlaid crushed morocco, 9.5 inches tall. A beautiful Art-Nouveau binding by Petrus Ruban with a wreath of roses inlaid in hues of soft pink, with leaves and buds in shades of green, raised bands and inlaid branches of roses climbing through the panels. Watered silk endpapers and doublures. With alternating large and small inlaid pink morocco daisies on the turn-ins. Original blue-gray wraps bound in. Housed in matching morocco backed chemise and morocco edged slipcase. With title page vignette and 58 engraved views by Gustave Leheutre. With morocco bookplate of the great French bibliophile George Wendling on verso of free end paper and his small stamp on second blank. No. 73 of 117 deluxe copies. A beautiful work in outstanding condition.

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  • SUPERB SIGNED SET IN SPLENDID FULL CALF
    Mémoires de Vidocq, Chef de la Police de Sureté, jusqu'en 1827. by VIDOCQ, Francois Eugene
    VIDOCQ, Francois Eugene
    Mémoires de Vidocq, Chef de la Police de Sureté, jusqu'en 1827.

    Paris: Tenon, 1828-29. 4 volume set, 8 1/4 inches tall. First Edition. A splendid full calf of the period, an ancient catalogue slip attributes it to the great C. Lewis, with dense gilt tooling and olive labels on smooth backs. The arms of the 3rd Earl of Clare are gilt blocked onto the boards. Signed by Vidocq in the first 3 volumes as called for. Eugene Vidocq was an adventurer and detective who helped create the 'secret police' in France and is considered the father of modern criminology. Dismissed in 1832 for a theft that he allegedly organised, Vidocq created a police agency 'Police de Sûreté", the prototype of modern detective agencies. Known all over France as a remarkably…

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    Paris: Tenon, 1828-29. 4 volume set, 8 1/4 inches tall. First Edition. A splendid full calf of the period, an ancient catalogue slip attributes it to the great C. Lewis, with dense gilt tooling and olive labels on smooth backs. The arms of the 3rd Earl of Clare are gilt blocked onto the boards. Signed by Vidocq in the first 3 volumes as called for. Eugene Vidocq was an adventurer and detective who helped create the 'secret police' in France and is considered the father of modern criminology. Dismissed in 1832 for a theft that he allegedly organised, Vidocq created a police agency 'Police de Sûreté", the prototype of modern detective agencies. Known all over France as a remarkably audacious man, Vidocq was a friend of such authors as Victor Hogo, Honoré de Balzac, Eugène Sue and Alexandre Dumas père and influenced Edgar Allen Poe. The figure of Vidocq is believed to have inspired Balzac's creation of the criminal genius Vautrin, one of the most vivid characters to appear in his novelistic series La Comédie Humaine. From the residual library of Charles Butler (1821-1910) of Warren Wood in Hatfield. The majority of his library was sold at Sotheby's on 5th April 1911. A wonderful set of this great work In the original French.

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  • STUNNING EXTRA ILLUSTRATED SET IN CRUSHED MOROCCO
    Oeuvres de Salomon Gessner by GESSNER, Salomon
    GESSNER, Salomon
    Oeuvres de Salomon Gessner

    Paris: L’auteur des Estampes, 1786-1793. 3 volume set, 12 inches tall. An old tipped in catalogue entry attributes this magnificent binding to Charles Lewis. With wide gilt raised bands, delicate and ornate gilt tooling to the panels, twin labels, dentelles and all edges gilt. Complete with 3 engraved title pages, portrait and 73 engraved plates after Le Barbier. There are an extra 18 stipple engraved plates and 70 highly decorative vignettes. Some speckling and scuffing to the boards. A super copy of this beautiful 18th century deluxe edition.

    View basket More details Price: £2,800.00
  • SPECTACULAR FULL MOROCCO WITH THE COAT OF ARMS OF POPE PIUS IX
    La Légende de Sainte Ursule Princesse Britannique et de ses Onze Mille Vierges d’après les anciens tableaux de l’église de Sainte-Ursule à Cologne reproduits en chromolithographie. by DUTRON, J. B.
    DUTRON, J. B.
    La Légende de Sainte Ursule Princesse Britannique et de ses Onze Mille Vierges d’après les anciens tableaux de l’église de Sainte-Ursule à Cologne reproduits en chromolithographie.

    Paris: KELLERHOVEN Franz, 1860. Full morocco, 12 inches tall. A remarkable full morocco binding with gilt raised bands and sumptuous gilt tooling to the panels and to the boards framing the gilt coat of arms of Pope Pius IX. Gilt dentelles and all edges. Frontispiece and a further 21 splendid full page chromolithographs. The text is embellished with elaborate borders. Dedication page by Pius IX. With the bookplate of the Sienna Convent Drogheda and a presentation page to the Convent from Maria, Countess of Lavradio, Lisbon. Light foxing. A magnificent volume, internally and externally.

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  • EARL OF CLARE'S MAGNIFICENT FOLIO IN FULL MOROCCO
    Les Adventures de Télémaque, Fils d'Ulysse. by FÉNÉLON, François de Salignac de la Mothe-
    FÉNÉLON, François de Salignac de la Mothe-
    Les Adventures de Télémaque, Fils d'Ulysse.

    Paris: De L'Imprimerie de Franc. Ambr. Didot L'ainé, 1783. 2 volume set, 12 1/2 inches tall. A magnificently bound set in 18th century full straight grain morocco from the library of the Earl of Clare, John FitzGibbon, 1st Viscount FitzGibbon, the Lord Chancellor of Ireland. Bound by J. Rodwell of New Bond Street, and with their ticket, with twin gilt raised bands, gilt pallets and a splendid series of gilt fillets and rolls frame the boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges. One of just 200 copies, this is a beautifully printed edition in pristine condition of this highly influential work, notably on Rousseau, which was seen by contemporaries as a stinging rebuke to the autocratic reign of Louis XIV…

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    Paris: De L'Imprimerie de Franc. Ambr. Didot L'ainé, 1783. 2 volume set, 12 1/2 inches tall. A magnificently bound set in 18th century full straight grain morocco from the library of the Earl of Clare, John FitzGibbon, 1st Viscount FitzGibbon, the Lord Chancellor of Ireland. Bound by J. Rodwell of New Bond Street, and with their ticket, with twin gilt raised bands, gilt pallets and a splendid series of gilt fillets and rolls frame the boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges. One of just 200 copies, this is a beautifully printed edition in pristine condition of this highly influential work, notably on Rousseau, which was seen by contemporaries as a stinging rebuke to the autocratic reign of Louis XIV of France, whose wars and taxes on the peasantry had reduced the country to famine. In the original French.

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  • AN EXCEEDING RARE TITLE IN FABULOUS FULL MOROCCO WITH ROYAL PROVENANCE
    Coup d’oeil sur les finances de la Néerlande et de ses colonies, 1840-1860. by BRABANDERE, Romuald Wilfried Bonaventure Édouard de, Le chevalier de
    BRABANDERE, Romuald Wilfried Bonaventure Édouard de, Le chevalier de
    Coup d’oeil sur les finances de la Néerlande et de ses colonies, 1840-1860.

    Bruxelles: Van Buggenhoudt, 1861. Full morocco, 9.5 inches tall. A fabulous copy bound for 3rd Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale and 3rd Earl of Armagh. With gilt raised bands, dense gilt tooling to the panels and boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges with watered silk doublures and free endpapers. The spectacular wide gilt border and stars frame the coronated black letter initial on both boards. There is very minor rubbing and two small ink stains near the tail of the lower board. On the reverse of the title page there is the stamp of the Library of Ernst Augustus, the Crown Prince of Hanover, 3rd Duke of Cumberland and 3rd Duke of Armagh. Ernst August was the last Hanoverian…

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    Bruxelles: Van Buggenhoudt, 1861. Full morocco, 9.5 inches tall. A fabulous copy bound for 3rd Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale and 3rd Earl of Armagh. With gilt raised bands, dense gilt tooling to the panels and boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges with watered silk doublures and free endpapers. The spectacular wide gilt border and stars frame the coronated black letter initial on both boards. There is very minor rubbing and two small ink stains near the tail of the lower board. On the reverse of the title page there is the stamp of the Library of Ernst Augustus, the Crown Prince of Hanover, 3rd Duke of Cumberland and 3rd Duke of Armagh. Ernst August was the last Hanoverian monarch to hold a British Royal title and the Order of the Garter. The work itself is very scarce with only 1 copy listed on Library Hub Discover and consists, in French, of a careful analysis of the finances of the Netherlands and her colonies in the middle of the 19th century.

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  • A MAGNIFICENT SET OF THIS LARGE PAPER DELUXE EDITION
    Histoire de Gil Blas de Santillane. by LESAGE, Alain-René
    LESAGE, Alain-René
    Histoire de Gil Blas de Santillane.

    London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, et Orme, 1809. 4 volume set, 11 inches tall. A magnificent crushed and straight grain morocco with triple gilt and blind tooled raised bands and dense gilt tooling to the panels. The boards have a central straight grain panel framed by very fine and elaborate gilt and blind tooling. Gilt dentelles and all edges. Large Paper deluxe edition with india proof impressions of the plates by Smirke. Offsetting from the plates, otherwise clean. The armorial bookplate of William Strahan. Some rubbing and scuffing to the edges but with no splitting or loss. An exceptionally impressive example of this celebrated edition. In the original French.

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  • ONE OF 50 COPIES IN OBSCENELY GILT TOOLED FULL MOROCCO
    Lettre à la Présidente. by GAUTIER Théophile
    GAUTIER Théophile
    Lettre à la Présidente.

    Paris: Privately Printed, 1850 (1890). Full morocco, 6 3/4 inches tall. An extraordinary and most attractive binding by Pétrus Ruban with gilt raised bands and gilt genitalia tooling to the panels, boards and dentelles, befitting the "indecent prose" of the text. All edges gilt. Limited to 50 copies on Japanese Paper. 'The President', was the honorary nickname attributed to Apollonie Sabatier, (pseudonym of Aglaé Savatier), who was 'one of the most bewitching Salon mistresses of the 19th century', and hosted nearly all of the French artists of her time. She was said to have astonishing wit, sensuality and beauty, and was the muse of sculptors, painters and authors alike. "In October 1850, Gautier addressed a letter to her "buffoonish and…

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    Paris: Privately Printed, 1850 (1890). Full morocco, 6 3/4 inches tall. An extraordinary and most attractive binding by Pétrus Ruban with gilt raised bands and gilt genitalia tooling to the panels, boards and dentelles, befitting the "indecent prose" of the text. All edges gilt. Limited to 50 copies on Japanese Paper. 'The President', was the honorary nickname attributed to Apollonie Sabatier, (pseudonym of Aglaé Savatier), who was 'one of the most bewitching Salon mistresses of the 19th century', and hosted nearly all of the French artists of her time. She was said to have astonishing wit, sensuality and beauty, and was the muse of sculptors, painters and authors alike. "In October 1850, Gautier addressed a letter to her "buffoonish and obscene, commenting with a Rabelaisian earthiness on what his friend and himself had learned in matters of sexuality during the journey they were making".......Madame Sabatier distributed copies to all her guests and the reading of Gautier's "indecent prose" became a popular event at Parisian evenings." It would not however be published until the death of its addressee in 1890, rather than the 1850 printed on the title page. "Tire a Tres Petit Nombre Pour quelques curieux Sur papier Imperial du Japon" The obscene frontispiece is lacking and clearly was never bound in. With the bookplate of Daniel Henry Holmes Ingalls.

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  • FINE EDITION IN WONDERFUL FULL CRUSHED MOROCCO
    Oeuvres de Jean Racine. by RACINE, Jean-Baptiste
    RACINE, Jean-Baptiste
    Oeuvres de Jean Racine.

    Paris: D'Heran, 1807. 5 volume set, 8 1/2 inches tall. A pristine and beautiful Georgian full crushed morocco bound set by A. Tarrant with gilt raised bands, delicate gilt tooled floral designs to the panels and contrasting twin green labels. Twin gilt fillets and pomegranate corner tools frame the boards. Gilt dentelles and top edges. With the morocco bookplate of Charles Rugge Price, the bookplate of Sir David Salomons and an ink inscription on the first blank. Portrait and plates after Moreau and another series by Giradet on india paper added. A splendid set of the works of one of the greatest French dramatists of of 17th-century France and a great figure of Western literature.

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  • GAVARNI'S PARIS AND THE PARISIENS IN STUNNING CAT'S PAW CALF
    Le Diable à Paris. Paris et les Parisiens. Moeurs et coutumes, caractères et portraits des habitants de Paris, tableau complet de leur vie privée, publique, politique, artistique, littéraire, industrielle, etc, etc. Précédé d’une Histoire de Paris par Théophile Lavallée. Illustrations les gens de Paris – Séries de gravures avec légendes par GAVARNI. Paris comique – Vignettes par Bertall. by SAND, George – STAHL, P.J. – GOZLAN, Léon – PASCAL, P. – SOULIE, Frédéric – NODIER, Charles – BRIFFAUT, Eugène – LAVALETTE, S. – BALZAC, Honoré de – DELORD, Taxile – KARR, Alphonse – MERY – JUNGETIS, A. – NERVAL, Gérard de – HOUSSAYE, Arsène – AUBERT, Albert – GAUTIER Théophile, FEUILLET, Octave – MUSSET, Alfred de – BERAT, Frédéric.
    SAND, George – STAHL, P.J. – GOZLAN, Léon – PASCAL, P. – SOULIE, Frédéric – NODIER, Charles – BRIFFAUT, Eugène – LAVALETTE, S. – BALZAC, Honoré de – DELORD, Taxile – KARR, Alphonse – MERY – JUNGETIS, A. – NERVAL, Gérard de – HOUSSAYE, Arsène – AUBERT, Albert – GAUTIER Théophile, FEUILLET, Octave – MUSSET, Alfred de – BERAT, Frédéric.
    Le Diable à Paris. Paris et les Parisiens. Moeurs et coutumes, caractères et portraits des habitants de Paris, tableau complet de leur vie privée, publique, politique, artistique, littéraire, industrielle, etc, etc. Précédé d’une Histoire de Paris par Théophile Lavallée. Illustrations les gens de Paris – Séries de gravures avec légendes par GAVARNI. Paris comique – Vignettes par Bertall.

    Paris: Hetzel, 1845 - 1846. 2 volume set, 10.5 inches tall. A stunning full cat's paw calf by Clarke & Bedford, one of the finest London binders of the period in pristine condition. With gilt raised bands, delightful labels and superb gilt tooling to the panels. With gilt dentelles and all edges. Armorial bookplate. Does not include the Plan of Paris reserved for subscriber's copies only. Embellished with superb engravings and vignettes throughout.

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  • ILLUSTRATED BY GAVARNI IN STUNNING CAT'S PAW CALF
    Le Juif Errant. by SUE, Eugène
    SUE, Eugène
    Le Juif Errant.

    Paris: Paulin, 1845. 4 volumes bound in 2, 10.5 inches tall. A stunning full cat's paw calf by Clarke & Bedford, one of the finest London binders of the period in pristine condition. With gilt raised bands, delightful labels and superb gilt tooling to the panels. With gilt dentelles and all edges. Armorial bookplate. 83 wood-engraved plates, all but 13 by Gavarni, 1 folding map and around 600 engraved vignettes. A celebrated edition in a stunning binding. In the original French.

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  • SUPERB COPY WITH ORIGINAL WATERCOLOUR INSCRIBED
    Le Train de 8 h. 47 by COURTELINE, GEORGES
    COURTELINE, GEORGES
    Le Train de 8 h. 47

    Paris: Chez Sylvian Sauvage, 1927. Half morocco, 9.5 inches tall. with raised bands and fine gilt tooling with onlays, gilt top edge. This is example V of XX lettered 'examplaires de collaboration'. With splendid illustrations by Andre Dignimont including an original watercolour signed and inscribed to Pierre Macorlan, the celebrated french novelist and songwriter.

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  • FIRST EDITION IN A MOST ATTRACTIVE AND UNUSUAL FULL CALF
    Répertoire du Théâtre François, ou Recueil des Tragédies et Comédies, Restées au Théâtre depuis Rotrou, pour faire suite aux éditions in-octavo de Corneille, Molière, Racine, Regnard, Crébillon, et au théâtre de Voltaire. Avec des Notices sur chaque auteur, et l'examen de chaque pièce. by PETITOT, Claude Bernard
    PETITOT, Claude Bernard
    Répertoire du Théâtre François, ou Recueil des Tragédies et Comédies, Restées au Théâtre depuis Rotrou, pour faire suite aux éditions in-octavo de Corneille, Molière, Racine, Regnard, Crébillon, et au théâtre de Voltaire. Avec des Notices sur chaque auteur, et l'examen de chaque pièce.

    Paris: Perlet, 1803. 23 volume set, 8 1/4 inches tall. A most attractive and unusual full calf from the period of publication. The very elegant spines have gilt bands, twin labels and ornate and delicate centre tooling, typical of the period. A fine gilt roll frames the boards which blend tree calf with speckled lozenges in a superb fashion. Minor rubbing. With the armorial bookplates of Lord Kinnaird. A lovely set of Petitot's greatest work.

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  • DELIGHTFUL LITTLE VOLUME IN SUPERB FULL MOROCCO
    Les Plaisirs de l’Amour. (The Pleasures of Love).
    Les Plaisirs de l’Amour. (The Pleasures of Love).

    Paris: Chez Apollon, au Mont-Parnasse, 1782. Full morocco, 5.5 inches tall. A superb binding by Zaehnsdorf, one of the greatest London bookbinders. with gilt raised bands and splendid rococo gilt tooling to the panels and boards. Dentelles and all edges gilt. An engraved frontispiece and 17 further full page engravings. A charming 18th century anthology of French tales and poems.

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  • FINE EDITION IN SUPERB HALF MOROCCO BY DAVID
    Lettres de Marie de Rabutin-Chantal Marquise de Sévigné a sa Fille et a ses Amis. by SEVIGNE, Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, Marquise de
    SEVIGNE, Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, Marquise de
    Lettres de Marie de Rabutin-Chantal Marquise de Sévigné a sa Fille et a ses Amis.

    Paris: J. Techener, 1861. 11 volume set, 8 inches tall. A superb half crushed morocco by David with gilt raised bands and exquisite gilt tooling to the panels. Gilt top edges. From the Library of the Late Christopher Foyle of Beeleigh Abbey. With 2 splendid portraits of mother and daughter as frontispieces to volume I. A fine edition printed on hand made paper. Madame de Sevigné was incomparably the most influential woman writer of French literature. Her letters are frequently found to be the most reliable source for important events of the Ancien Régime.
    A beautiful set in the original French.

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  • EXTRAORDINARY DELUXE EDITION IN WONDERFUL BINDING BY AFFOLTER
    Sainte Euphrosine. by FRANCE, Anatole
    FRANCE, Anatole
    Sainte Euphrosine.

    Paris: F. Ferroud, 1906. Full crushed morocco, 10 1/2 inches tall. A remarkable binding by Affolter with gilt raised bands and delicate gilt floral tooling framed within gilt pallets and a cream morocco onlay. The boards likewise are framed within a cream morocco between gilt fillets, An array of exquisite gilt floral tooling highlighted by blue, yellow and orange onlays. All edges gilt and doublures and free end paper of heavy silk. The secondary endpapers are of specially designed heavy paper. The text is framed with original designs by Louis Edouard-Fournier who also is the illustrator. The illustrations are in a total of 3 states. There is an extra suite of the borders. This is number 27 of 80…

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    Paris: F. Ferroud, 1906. Full crushed morocco, 10 1/2 inches tall. A remarkable binding by Affolter with gilt raised bands and delicate gilt floral tooling framed within gilt pallets and a cream morocco onlay. The boards likewise are framed within a cream morocco between gilt fillets, An array of exquisite gilt floral tooling highlighted by blue, yellow and orange onlays. All edges gilt and doublures and free end paper of heavy silk. The secondary endpapers are of specially designed heavy paper. The text is framed with original designs by Louis Edouard-Fournier who also is the illustrator. The illustrations are in a total of 3 states. There is an extra suite of the borders. This is number 27 of 80 examples 'in -4 carré réimpossés sur papierdu Japon ou grand vélin du Marais'. Light foxing. With its original, slightly worn, leather trimmed, felt lined case. A superb example of the work of this great binder.

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  • FINE LIMITED EDITION IN BEAUTIFUL FULL CRUSHED MOROCCO, GILT
    Mémoires de Madame De Staal. (Mademoiselle Delaunay) by STAAL, Madame de. (Marguerite Jeanne Cordier de Launay).
    STAAL, Madame de. (Marguerite Jeanne Cordier de Launay).
    Mémoires de Madame De Staal. (Mademoiselle Delaunay)

    Paris: Librairie L. Conquet, 1891. Full Morocco, 9 inches tall. A beautiful full crushed morocco for Hatchards with raised bands and remarkable floral gilt tooling to the panels and boards. Wide gilt dentelles, watered silk doublures and all edges gilt. Armorial bookplate. There is some rubbing, a very faint mark on the upper board and some cockling on the reverse of the free watered silk endpapers. One of 400 copies (out of a total of 600) on 'papier vélin de Marais'. With a portrait by Delort and engravings by Boisson. In the original French. Madame de Staal's remarkable Memoirs, including two years incarcerated in the Bastille, have not been out of print since first being published.

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  • GRAVELOT ENGRAVINGS AND AN ELEGANT 18TH CENTURY FULL CALF
    Oeuvres de Jean Racine, avec des Commentaires, par M. Luneau de Boisjermain. by RACINE, Jean
    RACINE, Jean
    Oeuvres de Jean Racine, avec des Commentaires, par M. Luneau de Boisjermain.

    Paris: Cellot, 1768. 7 volume set, 8 inches tall. A fine 18th century full mottled calf with gilt raised bands, twin labels and floral gilt tooling. Pink Edges. Decorated with a portrait of Racine, 12 plates designed by Gravelot. A splendid set, in the original French, of the works of one of the great French dramatists.

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  • FULL 18TH CENTURY CALF FROM THE CHATEAU DE CIREY
    Nouvelles Exemplaires. by CERVANTES, Miguel de
    CERVANTES, Miguel de
    Nouvelles Exemplaires.

    Lausanne: Chez Marc-Mic. Bousquet & Comp, 1759. 2 volume set, 6.5 inches tall. Fine full speckled calf in pristine condition. With gilt raised bands, twin labels and floral gilt tooling to the panels. Woodcut ornaments. 13 full page engraved plates. A superb copy of a scarce edition.

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  • COMPLETE WITH 65 PLATES IN SUPERB FULL CALF
    Les Augustes Répresentations de tous les Roys de France depuis Pharamond, jusqu’à Louys XIIII, dit le Grand. by L’ARMESSIN NICOLAS, de
    L’ARMESSIN NICOLAS, de
    Les Augustes Répresentations de tous les Roys de France depuis Pharamond, jusqu’à Louys XIIII, dit le Grand.

    Paris: chez la Veuve P. Bertrand, 1714. Full calf, 11 inches tall. Splendid full later cat's paw calf with gilt raised bands, twin labels and fine floral gilt tooled panels. Gilt dentelles and pink edges. With 65 portraits of the French kings. Some foxing to the preliminaries. Expert repair to the title page. With the bookplates of the Marquis de Biencourt of the Château de Masfaure.

    View basket More details Price: £850.00