Célestin NANTEUIL

First printing of the 25 magnificent engraved plates printed on China paper as well as the 300 vignettes by Tony Johannot, Baron, Français and Célestin Nanteuil. Original wrappers preserved. Complete with the placement sheet for the engravings.
Publisher's binding in full dark blue percaline cloth boards. Smooth spine decorated with special tools, an angel holding a lance and an oriflamme. Upper board decorated with a large plaque, a baroque portico with central title, blind geometric frame. On the second board a knight, blind frame. Percaline of the headcap slightly worn. Corners somewhat rubbed. Scattered foxing. Some gatherings yellowed. Fine copy.
Bookplate of Paul Gavault.
One of Johannot's best productions who seems to excel in the horrific and fantastic register, like his achievements in the Voyage où il vous plaira. Philippon de la Madeleine's prose translation draws the originally verse epic towards the novelistic. Orlando Furioso, completed in 1532, was one of the great successes of baroque literature, which influenced all the fine arts.

Illustrated edition with 21 black and white figures printed on China paper by Célestin Nanteuil and Henri Baron as well as numerous in-text engravings.
Text augmented with a description of Jerusalem by Alphonse de Lamartine.
Half red morocco binding with corners, spine with five raised bands set with black fillets and decorated with double black compartments ornamented at their centers with gilt floral motifs, marbled paper boards, combed paper endpapers and pastedowns, combed edges.
Some foxing.
Handsome copy attractively bound.

Very rare and sought-after first edition, according to Clouzot, printed in only 300 copies.
Full red morocco binding, spine with five raised bands decorated with black fillets, gilt date at foot, gilt roulettes on headcaps, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, frame of gilt dentelle on pastedowns, double gilt fillets on edges, top edge gilt, original wrappers preserved, full marbled paper slipcase with marbled paper lining, perfect binding signed by Thivet, a binder who worked during the last quarter of the 19th century.
Bookplate pasted on one pastedown, bibliophilic notes in pencil on an endpaper by a previous owner of the work.
Handsome copy of one of the rarest "Romantics," complete with the frontispiece on China paper, drawn and engraved by Célestin Nanteuil.

Very rare and sought-after first edition, according to Clouzot, printed in only 300 copies.

Half red morocco binding with corners, smooth spine decorated with gilt romantic arabesques, gilt date at foot, gilt fillet frame on marbled paper boards, pebbled paper endpapers and pastedowns, original wrappers preserved and lined, elegant pastiche romantic binding signed by Devauchelle.

Fine copy of one of the rarest "Romantics", complete with the frontispiece on China paper, drawn and engraved by Célestin Nanteuil.

First edition illustrated with a frontispiece drawn by Schmit and engraved by Hilaire Guesnu, with 37 color plates hors-texte (instead of 38) and vignettes by Schmit, Gavarni, Nanteuil and Schlesinger.
Half green shagreen binding, faded spine with four raised bands set with gilt cartouches and gilt compartments decorated with typographical corner motifs, double gilt fillets framing the green boards, yellow paper endpapers and pastedowns, edges gilt.
Some occasional foxing, one gathering entirely yellowed (pages 26 to 35), one color plate and one gathering foxed, one color hors-texte engraving is missing.
Handsomely illustrated first edition.

First edition illustrated with a frontispiece drawn by Schmit and engraved by Hilaire Guesnu, 38 plates and vignettes by Schmit, Gavarni, Nanteuil and Schlesinger.
Full green shagreen binding, spine with four raised bands set with gilt dentelle, compartments decorated with quadruple gilt framing fillets and cold-stamped fillets, double fillets and dotted gilt rolls at head and foot, fine hatchings on headcaps, cold-stamped fillets and multiple gilt fillets framing the boards, gilt rolls framing the pastedowns, gilt fillet on leading edges.
Some foxing.
Handsomely illustrated first edition.

First edition illustrated with a frontispiece, 37 lithographed plates and numerous vignettes by C. Nanteuil, Gavarni, Français, J.P. Schmit, De Beaumont, Bertand...
Half havana brown morocco binding with corners, spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt compartments, gilt date and monogram at foot, red morocco title label, gilt fillet frame on marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, one corner slightly bumped, top edge gilt, elegant binding signed by Petit.
Foxing.

New edition.

Illustrated with 130 vignettes and a portrait of Perrault, by the greatest illustrators of the century: Tony Johannot, Achille Devéria, Jean Gigoux, Napoléon Thomas, Célestin Nanteuil, engraved by Jacoste Jeune.

Bound in half roan, smooth spine framed in gilt, marbled paper boards, endpapers and pastedowns in papier caillouté. 

This edition contains La Barbe Bleue, Le petit chaperon rouge, Les fées, La belle au bois dormant, Le Chat Botté, Cendrillon, Riquet a la houpe, Petit poucet, L'adroite princesse, Peau d'ane, Griselidis, followed by Lettre à M*** en lui envoyant Griselidis, and Les souhaits ridicules.
Dry stamp of Henry Bertrand's library on the title page.

Very rare, not in Brunet and Vicaire.
 

Œuvres complètes de Balzac [enriched with] handwritten letter signed by Balzac
First edition, one of the extremely rare copies all with the Furne address, including the last three volumes, complete with all its first print plates, set in an elegant, strictly contemporary, uniform binding. Our copy is also complete with the portrait of Balzac, on the frontispiece of the Comédie humaine and the biographical preface by George Sand which is most often missing.

“First collective edition under the title of Oeuvres, presenting a number of texts in first edition, at the same time as a new version of Comédie humaine, review, reworked by Balzac; the first edition to be illustrated also, and by the best artists of the time [Daumier, Nanteuil, Gavarni, Monnier, Johannot, etc.]. So many reasons to insist on the interest of this edition, one of the most important in French literature. Having had a restless, confused existence, republished several times with a large number of copies, this work is very rare in its first form, even rarer still in contemporary uniform binding, than in modern bindings with covers.” (Clouzot, Guide du bibliophile français)

All of the volumes of our set are in first issue, with the exception, of course, of volume XVII, as Clouzot explains:
“It will be necessary to ensure, in a copy of the first edition, that all the titles [...] bear the dates indicated making exception only for volume XVII which is hardly encountered until the date 1849, that of 1848 being almost exceptional.”
Each character presents the titles of the novels in lower case and enclosed in brackets. The character of Séchard, in volume VIII, has no brackets, an extremely rare bibliographic feature, as Clouzot reveals: “By way of example, the characters Goupil (volume V) and Séchard (volume VIII), have never, it seems, been found exempt from these brackets.” Our copy is also complete with all the plates.

Contemporary binding in half red calf, spine decorated with gilt dentelles and blind tooling, paste paper boards, caillouté marbled endpapers (with some traces of glue from an earlier ex-libris).

The gilding of the last volume (Les Contes drôlatiques) is very subtly different from the other volumes. Scattered foxing a little more pronounced in places.
Our copy is enriched with a precious handwritten signed letter from Honoré de Balzac mounted on guards at the top of the first volume. This letter, written on 11 June 1846, is addressed to Charles Sédillot, his mother's cousin. The latter is then in charge of settling the accounts between Balzac and his mother: “My dear cousin, I returned only yesterday from many travels, and I found the letters that you did me the honor of writing relating to my mother's affairs, I am delighted that she took you as her representative as it will make things much simpler.”
Balzac returned from a trip to Switzerland and Italy with Madame Hanska and is unpleasantly surprised to learn that his mother declared him the debtor of 57,000 francs and not 18,000 as he thought.

An extremely rare copy, entirely addressed at Furne, in an elegant contemporary binding and enriched with a handwritten letter signed by the author.

The most desirable of conditions.
“The work was to originally consist of 17 volumes, but the publisher, Houssiaux, taking over from the previous publishers, completed them with the final three volumes” (Clouzot).


List of volumes with their print date, the first editions and the characters that they contain:
- Volume I: 1842. First edition of Albert Savarus and the Fausse maîtresse. 8 characters (and a frontispiece portrait of Balzac in our volume, delivered with volume XVII)
- Volume II: 1842. First edition of Autre étude de femme. 8 characters
- Volume III: 1842. 8 characters
- Volume IV: 1845. 8 characters
- Volume V: 1843. 8 characters
- Volume VI: 1843. 8 characters
- Volume VII: 1844. 8 characters
- Volume VIII: 1843. First edition of the first part of Illusions perdues. 8 characters
- Volume IX: 1843. 8 characters
- Volume X: 1844. 8 characters
- Volume XI: 1844. 8 characters
- Volume XII: 1846. First edition of the last part of Splendeurs et misères des courtisanes, Une esquisse d'homme d'affaires, Envers de l'histoire contemporaine (1^st part), Gaudissart II, Comédiens sans le savoir. 6 characters
- Volume XIII: 1845. 6 characters, which are nearly always missing, because they had only been delivered with volume XX.
- Volume XIV: 1845. 10 characters
- Volume XV: 1845. 6 characters
- Volume XVI: 1845. 6 characters
- Volume XVII: 1849 (second print, the first had been published the year before). 5 characters which are very often missing, having only been delivered earlier.
“L'ouvrage ne devait primitivement comporter que 17 volumes, mais l'éditeur Houssiaux, prenant la suite des éditeurs précédents, les compléta par trois derniers volumes” “The work was to originally consist of 17 volumes, but the publisher, Houssiaux, taking over from the previous publishers, completed them with the final three volumes” (Clouzot):
- Volume XVIII: 1855. 16 characters (our copy finely presents the frontispiece of the Comédie humaine, delivered with volume XX)
- Volume XIX: 1855. 4 characters
- Volume XX: 1855. 5 characters
See this very interesting article published by the Maison de Balzac by Robert Tranchida for more on the Furne edition: Historique de l'édition Furne

Honoré de BALZAC & Honoré DAUMIER & Charles Constant Albert Nicolas d'Arnoux de Limoges Saint-Saëns dit BERTALL & Paul GAVARNI & Tony JOHANNOT & Célestin NANTEUIL
œuvres complètes de H. de Balzac
[Complete Works]

First collective edition sold as the Works, comprising – as well as numerous texts published for the first time – a new version of the Human Comedy, reviewed and revised by Balzac.
This is also the first illustrated edition.
Contemporary half blue shagreen over marbled paper boards, spines slightly sunned, in five compartments with thin raised bands decorated with gilt dots and compartments with triple blind-ruled frames, gilt fleurons to centre, marbled endpapers and pastedowns.
A little foxing in some volumes, a very small stain to page 119 of volume 4, another to page 321 of volume 8, a tear to half-title of volume 9, a small damp stain to corner of pages 449 and following of volume 10, stain to pp. 173-74 of volume 14, stains to pages 303 to 307 of vol. 16.
The full set of 152 hors-texte plates by the best artists of the age, including Bertall, Daumier, Gavarni, Johannot, Nanteuil, as well as illustrations to text.
Four rejected plates have been added, bringing the number of plates in this copy to 156.
There are so many reasons for emphasising the interest of this edition, one of the most important in French literature. Having had a turbulent existence, and confused, and having been several times republished in a great number of copies, it is very rare in its first form and – in this first version – even rarer in a contemporary uniform binding than with a modern binding and the wrappers preserved (cf Clouzot).
A very good and rare copy in a contemporary uniform binding (ca 1855) with all the plates called for by Clouzot and four additional ones.

First collective edition under the title of Works as well as first illustrated edition (Clouzot), including several texts in first edition. The work was originally intended to contain only 17 volumes, but the publisher Houssiaux, following on from the previous editors, completed them with the last three volumes which here constitute volumes 18, 19 and 20.
Binding in half brown heartache, back with four nerves adorned with three golden florets, guards and counterplates of pebbled paper in the tank. The table is missing at the end of volume 11.
The series is illustrated with a set of 151 engravings by Daumier, Gavarni, Nanteuil, Monnier, Johannot etc. of the 152 listed by Clouzot. Our copy is complete with the 6 figures from Volume 13 which are almost always missing and the 5 figures from Volume 17 which are very often absent, having only been delivered later. In addition, Volume 17 is indeed dated 1848 and not 1849 an element which, like the Clouzot signal, is particularly remarkable for its rarity.
The whole is broken down as follows:
- Scenes from private life (Tomes 1, 2, 3, 4), containing: La Maison du chat-qui-pelote, Le Bal de Sceaux, La Bourse, La Vendetta, Madame Firmiani, A Double Family, The Peace of Household , The False Mistress (first edition), Etude de femme, Albert Savarus (first edition) (Tome 1) ; Memoirs of two newlyweds, A daughter of Eve, The Abandoned Woman, La Grenadière, Le Message, Gobseck, Other study of a woman (first edition) (Tome 2) ; The Woman of Thirty Years, The Marriage Contract, Béatrix (first part) (Tome 3) ; Béatrix (second and last part), La Grande Bretèche (end of another Woman's study), Modeste Mignon, Honorine, A Beginning in Life (Tome 4) .
- Scenes from provincial life (Tomes 5, 6, 7 and 8), containing: Ursule Mirouet, Eugénie Grandet, Les Célibataire: (first story) Pierrette (Tome 5) ; The Singles: (second story) The Curé of Tours, The Singles: (third story) A Boy's Marriage, The Parisians in the Province: (first story) L'Illustre Gaudissart, The Parisians in the Province: (second story) La Muse du department (Volume 6) ; Les Rivalités (first story): La Vieille Fille - (Second story: Cabinet des Antiques, Le Lys dans la Vallée (Tome 7) ; Lost Illusions (first edition of the last part) (Tome 8) .
- Scenes from Parisian life (Tomes 9, 10, 11 and 12), containing: Histoire des Treize , composed of Ferragus, La Duchesse de Langeais and The Girl with the Golden Eyes then Le Père Goriot (Tome 9) ; Colonnel Chabert, Facino Cane, La Messe de l'Athée, Saracen, L'Interdiction, History of the greatness and the decadence of César Birotteau (Tome 10) ; La Maison Nucingen, Pierre Grassou, The Secrets of the Princess of Cadignan, Les Employés, Splendeurs et Misères des courtesisanes (first and second parts) (Tome 11) ; Splendours and Miseries of the courtesans (third part), A Prince of Bohemia, Sketch of a businessman from nature (first edition) , Gaudissart II (first edition) , The Comedians without knowing it (first edition) [followed de] Scenes from political life , containing: An Episode under the Terror, A Dark Affair, Z. Marcas , The Underside of Contemporary History (first episode) (first edition).
- Scenes from military life (Volume 13), containing: The Chouans and A Passion in the Desert
- Scenes from country life (Volume 13), containing: The Country Doctor and The Village Priest
- Philosophical Studies (Volumes 14, 15 and 16), containing: The Skin of shagreen, Jesus Christ in Flanders, Reconciled Melmoth, The Unknown Masterpiece, The Search for the Absolute (Vol. 14) ; Massimilla Doni, Gambara, The Cursed Child, The Marana, Farewell, The Requisitionaire, El Verdugo, A Drama by the Sea, The Red Inn, The Elixir of Long Life, Master Cornelius, About Catherine de Medici: Introduction and Part One - Le Martyr calviniste (Tome 15) ; Catherine de Médicis (second part), Les Proscrits, Louis Lambert, Séraphita [followed by] Analytical studies , containing: Physiologie du Mariage (Tome 16) .
- Scenes from Parisian life, continuation (Volumes 17 and 18), containing: La cousine Bette, Le cousin Pons (Tome 17); Splendours and Miseries of the courtesans (part four) [followed by] Scenes from political life , containing: The reverse side of contemporary history (second episode) [followed by] Scenes from country life , containing: The Peasants [Followed de] Analytical studies , containing: Small miseries of the Conjugal life (Tome 18).
- Theater (Tome 19), containing: Vautrin, Les Ressources de Quinola, Paméla Giraud, La Maratre .
- Contes drolatiques (Tome 20): First ten, Second ten, Third ten .

Very beautiful set of complete works, in the famous first edition Furne which has the great interest of publishing in first edition several texts by Balzac.