Barthélemy FAUJAS DE SAINT-FOND

First edition, illustrated with twenty plates, including one folding plate. Three vignettes and several ornamental initials.

Full basane binding, triple gilt fillet framing the boards, spine with six raised bands decorated with gilt compartments, fleurons and rolls, green morocco title-piece, gilt fillet on the board edges, gilt inner dentelle, stone paper boards. Binding rubbed and scuffed, with abrasions and losses, upper joint split and lower joint partially split at the foot, old traces of mould staining in the margins of several leaves at the beginning of the volume.

Manuscript inscription "Sansac" on the title page.

Very rare first edition, illustrated with an inserted copper-engraved plate by Plée after Turpin (cf. Pritzel 2823).

The CCFr records copies only at the Institut, Rouen, and Montpellier.

Our copy is preserved in its original sewn state with temporary pink paper covers.

Faujas de Saint-Fond (1741–1819) is of course best known as a geologist and vulcanologist, yet his work extended to every other branch of natural history.

Second edition statement, rare, published after the original of 1783, and illustrated with 9 plates in fine, of the aerostatic machine and the flying boat.

Bound in full limp vellum binding, reused. Smooth spine with author's name in pen and date at foot. Stains and soiling. Trace of dampstain to lower margin of frontispiece. Leaves browned at beginning of work, and several others scattered throughout bearing browning.

First and important work on aerostation. It brings together several memoirs relating the first balloon flights (On inflammable gas, Observations made by M. Jeaurat, On rubber, Accounts of the first flights at Annonay...

In part first edition, the two parts of the second volume being published in 1809, illustrated with 31 insert plates.
Bound in full marbled sheep, spines richly decorated with gilt typographic motifs, red morocco title and volume labels, gilt roll tooling on the spine-ends, fine gilt lace frame on the boards, gilt leading edges, marbled end papers, contemporary binding.
First volume: Fossil animals and plants with 18 insert plates (instead of the 17 indicated on the title page); Second volume: Minerals with 5 colour plates at the end of the volume; Third volume: Volcanoes with 8 plates, including 6 folded, at the end of the volume.
Slight minor rubbing on the edges...