Illustrated Books (16th - 18th Centuries)

First collected edition, bringing together Opuscules de physique animale et végétale and Expériences pour servir à l'histoire de la génération des animaux et des plantes; avec une ébauche de l'histoire des êtres organisés avant leur fécondation par Jean Sennebier. Translation by Jean Sennebier. The third volume: Expériences, etc, bears the imprint of Barthélémy Chirol in Geneva with the same date of 1787 (same imprint as for the original published in 1785). Edition illustrated with 9 folding plates at the end, 3 in the first volume and 6 in the third.

Contemporary full speckled calf bindings. Smooth spines decorated with several tools (wheat sheaf, stars) and Greek rolled borders. Red morocco title labels and green morocco volume labels (volume numbering at foot). Triple gilt fillet frame on boards. Extensive surface abrasions on boards. Slight defects to spines. Handsome copy, moreover perfectly fresh.

Collection of the most important works of this great biologist Spallanzani, remarkable not only for his hypotheses, but for his imagination in terms of experimental method. The opuscules contain the Expériences sur la digestion, which are not found in the original, in which Spallanzani demonstrates the importance of gastric juices in the digestive process. He will also demonstrate that the theory of spontaneous generation is false, discovers the secret of fertilization between a spermatozoid and an ovum, that of regeneration in certain animals; he will perform the first artificial insemination on a female dog. We thus owe him numerous advances in the sciences, whose effects would not be felt until much later, but above all he marks his era through his scientific rigor and demonstration protocols that reveal an inventiveness and clairvoyance that seem inexhaustible.

19th-century armorial bookplate of Dampierre

The finest edition of this work, augmented and enriched by the author, whose original appeared in 1706. The author explains the interest of this new revised edition in a foreword. One frontispiece, 3 fine title vignettes by Cochin and 13 folding plates (the 1741 edition contained only 8). Explanations of the plates and vignettes after the table of contents.

Full marbled and glazed blonde calf binding. Decorated spine with raised bands. Red morocco title label. Head worn, tail torn and largely missing from the last compartment. Paper of fine freshness, free from foxing. Despite the binding defects, fairly good copy.

Contemporary spotted sheep, spine with four tools and roulettes to head and foot, red morocco title- and black morocco volume- labels, roulette frame to covers. Spines uniformly and slightly faded, lack to first blind-ruled compartment of spine of volume one. A good copy.

The work, in the form of an alphabetical dictionary, provides an overview of contemporary knowledge of natural history (mineralogy, botany, zoology, entomology, astronomy, and so on). Each article includes a curious or remarkable aspect of its subject (medical uses, strange properties, characteristics, etc). Several useful tables at end. Handsome.

Eighth edition statement, illustrated with eight unsigned frontispieces. Les journées amusantes were originally published from 1722 to 1731. Title pages in red and black.

Contemporary full blonde sheep binding. Decorated spine with raised bands. Lacks to upper joints at head of volumes I and IV. Lack to headcap of volume III. Tail headcap of volume IV split. Some corners slightly bumped. Despite the noted defects, the set is in good condition overall.

A prolific author, Madame de Gomez achieved great favor in Europe with Les journées amusantes, which were undoubtedly one of the bestsellers of the period. These journées are similar in structure to Boccaccio's Decameron and to Marguerite de Navarre's Heptameron. Composed of 18 days within which six narrators tell stories. What characterizes the writing of the Journées amusantes is the encyclopedic and erudite richness, characteristic of the work, which ultimately worked against it over time; it aimed, with a certain deliberate archaism, to pay homage to 17th-century French gallant literature.

The rare first edition. Printed in two columns. Vignette of a sphere on the title page. 14 in-text figures and diagrams and numerous tables, notably a calendar of the position of the stars and zodiac figures, tables of latitudes and longitudes.

Contemporary limp vellum binding with flaps. Smooth spine unlettered. Traces of ties. Split to upper joint at head over two centimeters. Various stains. Lacking the first endleaf before the title. Lower right corner of title page missing. Brown stain to lower right corner from leaf 14 to leaf 32.

Commentary by Georg Henisch on the treatise of the sphere by Proclus, the celebrated Neo-Platonic philosopher of the 5^th century. The first part is a Latin translation, with the Greek text on the left, of the treatise of the sphere. This astronomical treatise follows Ptolemy's system and studies the theory of the five climatic zones, seeking to clearly explain astronomical phenomena.

First edition, illustrated with 2 folding plates on strong paper. The separately paginated section, Précis de journaux, bears the date 1786 in its colophon.

Full marbled and glazed brown calf binding. Decorated raised spine. Red morocco title label. 2 corners slightly bumped. From page 96 to the end, pale yellow dampstains to margins and on the first pages of the separately paginated section, affecting the entire page, but without real consequence. Good copy.

This surprising memoir traces all the curative applications of electricity on man: rheumatism, deafness, toothache, ophthalmia, paralysis, epilepsy. Case descriptions and practical applications. The author additionally provides a most interesting bibliography on the subject. The second part presents the journals of patients who were electrified during the year 1785.

This memoir was originally read to the Academy of Sciences in 1783 and published in the Academy's journal.

Second edition, revised and expanded after the sole edition of 1714 by Pierre Auguste Miger. This second edition was never reprinted. With a frontispiece by Leroy. Rare.
Later binding in half polished green sheep, circa 1820. Smooth spine decorated with 5 restoration tools. Boards rubbed. A good copy.

First collected edition of these two works, originally published at Oxford in 1701 (Physica) and 1718 (Astronomia) respectively, illustrated with a title vignette, 12 folding plates for physics (experiments, diagrams, geometry), 29 for astronomy, and 6 for trigonometry, numbered I to XLVII.

Contemporary marbled brown sheep binding. Spine with raised bands richly decorated. Red morocco title label. Worn binding. Headcaps torn away. Joints split at head and foot, along two compartments for the upper joint. Corners heavily bumped. Paper more or less browned.

Treatise and manual of astronomy and physics with various short treatises, including one on trigonometry. The physics treatise is based on the Newtonian physics lessons that Keill gave at Oxford. A Scottish mathematician and defender of Newton's work, this Oxford professor was one of the first to teach physics and astronomy according to mathematics. The cartographic plates of the Moon were made following the works of Hevelius, Riccioli, Langren who each in their own way catalogued and observed the lunar relief.

The rare first edition of the two volumes published respectively in 1724 and 1726. It is illustrated with 2 head-piece vignettes, 8 pages of musical scores, a cabalistic tree printed separately, the Samaritan Alphabet, 2 plates of coins and 2 figures also printed separately.

Copy with arms stamped on the covers and within each compartment from the library of the Abbey of Saint-Victor. The Abbey of Saint-Victor was one of the oldest abbeys in Paris (on the site of the University of Jussieu and the Jardin des Plantes) and one of the great intellectual centers of the medieval West; its rich library was opened to the public in the 18th century with the addition of new buildings. The abbey was destroyed during the Revolution and most of its collections joined the Bibliothèque nationale.

Contemporary bindings in full glazed blonde calf. Raised band spines decorated. Red morocco title labels, volume labels rubbed, as well as the library label at the foot. Headcap of volume I worn with upper joint cracked at head. A loss at the head of volume II; upper joint exposed with a loss at foot. Some corners slightly bumped. Despite the defects, a very handsome copy, with fine tooling and beautiful arms.

New edition, after the first published in Amsterdam. The work was constantly revised and expanded with each new release. A frontispiece by Scottin; two folding plates and numerous tables.
New edition, revised, corrected & expanded with the Tariff of Entry & Exit Duties, with Assessments of Goods, concerning the public revenues of the United Provinces of the Netherlands, And an Introduction on Double-Entry or Italian Bookkeeping... by Henri Desaguliers.

Contemporary full glazed brown sheep binding. Richly decorated spine with raised bands. Red morocco title label. One lack at head. Lower joint cracked at head. Small stains on boards. Good copy.

First bilingual French-German edition, illustrated with 71 plates and a fortification table.
Contemporary full ivory vellum binding. Smooth spine decorated with triple blind fillets, title and author in pen. Boards framed with triple blind fillets; traces of clasps. All edges blue. Six small contemporary leather bookmarks. Bavarian bookplate of the period.
Spine split with a small loss along its entire length. One joint slightly cracked (1.5cm). A small ink stain on the second board. Pages uniformly and lightly browned. Front pastedown affected by bookworm damage.

First French edition, illustrated with 3 folding plates containing numerous figures.

Contemporary marbled blonde calf binding. Spine with raised bands, decorated. Red morocco title label. Two small restorations to upper cover. Handsome copy.

Fundamental work on the theory of generation. The conclusions reached by Spallanzani precede those of Pasteur by nearly a century. He notably refutes the theory of spontaneous generation; it is while working on the refutation of this famous concept that Spallanzani discovers the role of spermatozoa and ovaries in mammals, through his observations on external reproduction in frogs; he will moreover be the first to perform artificial insemination in a female dog. The author also demonstrates regeneration in lizards. Senebier translated most of Spallanzani's works into French; he was also a scientist.

New edition adorned with seven frontispieces by Scotin the elder. The journal first appeared in volume form in 1712.

Contemporary full speckled brown sheep binding. Spine with five raised bands, red morocco title and volume labels, gilt compartments and floral fleurons. All edges red. Head caps of volumes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8 and foot caps of volumes 2, 3, 4 and 9 abraded (some damaged). Corners slightly bumped. Four joints cracked. Pale marginal dampstains to the second volume.

First edition, richly illustrated, of the abridged version of the famous commentaries by the Chevalier de Folard, established by the Count of Chabot. 113 copperplate engravings - sometimes folding (Volume I: 51, volume 2: 22 and volume 3: 40) - representing techniques, battle scenes and war machines of Antiquity; including 4 maps and a plan of Cremona.

Full speckled blonde calf binding. Spine with five raised bands decorated with red morocco title and volume labels and gilt compartments and fleurons; gilt dentelles at foot. All edges red. Two head caps worn, the third slightly rubbed. Some wormholes on the spine of the second volume. Two corners slightly bumped. Numerous scuffing.

Reissue of the 1775 edition, illustrated with 20 beautiful figures by Moreau le Jeune and Marillier, engraved by De Longueil, Née...

Contemporary full speckled calf binding. Smooth spine handsomely decorated. Pink morocco title label and black morocco volume label. Lacking at headcap of volume IV. 4 corners slightly bumped.

First edition, illustrated with 20 figures (battle scenes) at the end of the work. Gothic round typeface.
Contemporary full brown sheep binding. Jansenist spine with raised bands. Tawny morocco title label. Blind title. German binding.
History of the war between Prussia and its allied states and Austria and its allied states. It was Frederick II who triggered the hostilities between the two nations by attempting to seize Silesia, this war took place within the conflict of the Austrian succession.

First edition, magnificently illustrated with a frontispiece by Cochin, engraved by Saint-Aubin, a title vignette by the same, 59 large tailpieces and headpieces (designed and engraved by Saint-Aubin) explained and deciphered at the beginning of the work, and 179 figures hors-texte each presenting an engraved stone (engraved by Saint-Aubin). Fine printing on deluxe Holland paper.

Full black morocco-grained shagreen binding ca 1850. Smooth spine with flat raised bands decorated with fillets and roulettes on the bands. Triple-ruled frames on boards with corner fleurons. Marbled edges. Light rubbing to headcaps, corners. Paper lacking to margin of one leaf in volume I. Some leaves browned. Pale angular dampstain on 3 leaves of volume I. Handsome copy, with wide margins. 

First edition of this French translation, illustrated with a frontispiece containing 3 figures and a title vignette by Quinau. A first translation had appeared under the title Hipparchus in 1645; one could not say however that this new translation carried out by a Protestant is literal, it is rather a free translation to which a pamphleteering charge has been added.
Contemporary full blonde sheep binding. Richly decorated raised spine. Beige morocco title-label. Wormholes on spine with a lack to title-label. Handsome copy nevertheless.
There would be according to the author, both a reprehensible commerce and one that would not be so.