Seven Deadly Sins

First edition, one of 75 numbered copies on pure rag laid paper, the only deluxe-paper copies offered for sale.
Rare and attractive untrimmed copy with full margins of the author’s masterpiece.

First edition of the French translation, by Raymond Queneau, of Nigerian author Amos Tutuola’s first novel. One of 86 copies on Lafuma-Navarre pur fil wove paper, the only deluxe issue.

A fine copy.

Long autograph letter signed by Claude Farrère, approximately 160 lines in blue ink (8 pages on two double leaves), to his friend Pierre Louÿs thanking him notably for his thoughtfulness.
Traces of folds inherent to being placed in an envelope, envelope included.
Claude Farrère praises his friend's thoughtfulness towards him: "Thank you for your letter... not only because it is exquisite, - six times more than you can believe, - but much more because I know very well that you told it to me so as 'not to worry me...' as you say." and is amazed by the problems raised by these recent articles: "Said in parentheses, I am quite stunned by the one...

First edition, taken from the Mémoires de la Société royale et centrale d'agriculture, for the year 1824.

Illustrated with a folding plate inserted out of text.

Our copy is preserved in its original state, sewn and issued in a plain blue provisional wrapper.

Scattered light foxing.

A grandson of the founder and first director of the Académie royale de marine, Pierre-Marie-Sébastien Bigot de Morogues (1776-1840) devoted himself principally to agricultural matters.

Very rare first edition illustrated with 14 plates, three of which are in colour, issued as a supplement to the "Guide pratique de la fabrication de la bière" and the "Guide raisonné de la fabrication de la bière" published in 1867 and 1868.

Not in Vicaire or Bitting. Oberlé, Fastes, 1125, does not record this supplement.

Spine restored with minor losses, small marginal defects to the boards, and a stain along the right margin of the upper cover.

The author was a hop dealer and purveyor of brewery equipment in Strasbourg and in Gray (Haute-Saône).

This volume reflects the advances achieved by the brewing industry, particularly in northern France and in...

Rare first edition.

Our copy is issued in its original state, unbound and preserved in wrappers.

Not recorded by Oberlé. Only two copies located in the CCFr (Cherbourg and Montpellier).

Alexandre Lesdos (1813-1865) was a member of the Société d'Agriculture and of the Société Académique de Cherbourg.

In this work, he devotes an entire chapter to the wines of Saint-Émilion, noted for their "bouquet as delicate as that of the violet." (our own translation)

First edition of this paean to intoxication, adorned with a charming engraved frontispiece depicting Bacchus seated on a barrel, holding a wine cup in one hand and a bunch of grapes in the other.

Cf. Vicaire 326. Bitting 415. Barbier II, 75 d. Oberlé, Une bibliothèque bachique, 523 (for the 1798 ed.).

Bound in contemporary fawn half-calf with corners, spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt fillets, marbled paper boards, corners slightly worn, edges speckled red.

This work abounds with anecdotes and quotations drawn from the history of many lands. It asserts "that wine gives wit," offers "a catalogue of some illustrious drinkers," and claims "that...

New edition.

Spine lightly toned.

Work illustrated with photomontages by Val Telberg.

Inscribed by Anaï Nin to her friend, the writer Christiane Baroche : "Christiane Baroche whose dreams are strong and have roots and bear fruit. Anaïs Nin."

First edition of this concise treatise on rural economy, attributed to the Duke of Sully, the famed minister of Henri IV, born at Rosny and who bore the name of that estate.

His well-known commitment to the development of agriculture has passed into national lore. However, it cannot be excluded that another author, sharing the same territorial designation, may be responsible for the text.

Contemporary full mottled fawn sheep, spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt compartments and gilt tools, gilt fillets, Havana morocco lettering-piece, gilt rolls to the headcaps, gilt fillets to board edges, red sprinkled edges.

Some repairs to the binding. Manuscript...

This work is in fact the reissue of the original edition, published under a new title: the 1772 edition was entitled "Dissertation sur les vins".

One hundred blank leaves have been bound at the end of the text.

The work saw an expanded edition in 1782, which was subsequently reprinted. (Cf. Simon BG: 510. Not recorded by Vicaire, Oberlé, or Bitting. Lacking from the Kilian Fritsch Collection.)

Contemporary half mottled tawny sheep with vellum-tipped corners, the spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt compartments, marbled paper sides, red edges.

An important treatise on vinification by a former wine merchant’s employee who had worked in France...

Original linen-backed lithograph, featuring a large portrait of Liane de Pougy by A. Gallice after a photograph by Léopold-Émile Reutlinger (“cliché Reutlinger” stated on the plate). Printed by G. Bataille. Horizontal and vertical fold marks, discreet traces of rolling at the hem of the dress, four pasted and stamped tax stamps, and a shadow in the left margin.

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Exceptionally rare original poster advertising a performance by the dancer and courtesan Liane de Pougy, renowned...

Autograph manuscript poem in Russian, entitled “Ананасы в шампанском,” signed by Igor Severyanin, twelve lines in three quatrains on a single leaf, with minor punctuation variations from the text originally published under the title Ouverture (Увертюра

Autograph manuscript by Louis Pasteur. One page in black ink on a single leaf, with numerous erased words and crossed-out passages.

Unpublished note by pasteur on his rabies vaccine.

Pasteur was under the scrutiny of...

Fourth edition, partly original, revised and considerably enlarged from these lectures given at the Paris School of Pharmacy. The work is illustrated with 600 figures within the text. 

Slight losses or small corner tears to the spines and boards, minor scattered foxing.

A pleasant copy.

First edition, illustrated with in-text vignettes (cf. Vicaire 733; Bitting 391; Cagle 273; NUC: only 2 copies listed. Not in Oberlé, "Fastes").

At the CCF, copies only at the BnF and Sainte-Geneviève.

Contemporary half green sheep binding, spine darkened and faded, decorated with triple blind fillets, marbled paper boards, endpapers and pastedowns, speckled edges.

"Une des particularités de ce traité culinaire, c'est qu'il est 'dédié à la Sainte Vierge, mère de Dieu'" [Vicaire].

Another distinctive feature is that the work, divided into 1,187 paragraphs, exemplifies a scientific method and clarity worthy of a publication by Baillière.

First edition.

Only one copy listed in the CCF (BnF).

Bradel binding in full marbled paper boards, smooth spine, green shagreen title label with a small loss, modern binding.

Very rare report of the administration of the "Argenterie, Menus-Plaisirs et affaires de la chambre", which under the Ancien Régime formed part of the King's Household, in charge of the "King’s pleasures"—that is, the organization of court ceremonies and entertainments.

Compiled from 393 records (and 21,000 invoices).

By drastically reducing the expenses of his household, Louis XVI retained only a single “Maître des Menus-Plaisirs”, endowed with a budget infinitely smaller than that of...

Autograph letter signed from Georges Bataille to Denise Rollin, 40 lines in black ink, two pages on one leaf.

George Bataille and Denise Rollin's relationship lasted from the autumn of 1939 to the autumn of 1943 and left behind it a short but passionate correspondence. This letter dates from the early days of their connection, but already reveals Bataille's agonies: “Perhaps I was too happy with you for some months, even though suffering did not wait long to interrupt, at least for a time, a happiness that was almost a challenge.”
A passionate lover, Bataille moved from exultation to the deepest doubt and even offered his lover a potential way out of...

First appearance of the 18 poems by Charles Baudelaire published on pages 1079–1093 of the Revue des Deux Mondes, showing numerous variations from the text of the first edition issued in 1857 by Poulet-Malassis & De Broise.

Full black shagreen binding, smooth spine, double blind-ruled borders on covers, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, slightly later binding.

A rare and attractive copy.

New edition.

A handsome copy.

Signed presentation inscription from Albert Cossery to a friend: "Pour Jean-Pierre à qui je souhaite une vie de miel. Albert Cossery."

First edition, one of 150 numbered copies on offset, only print after 20 numbered copies.
Title vignette glued on the first board.

Text in French, English and German.
Illustrated with 14 photographs of the author performing different kinds of suicides.

First edition, an advance (service de presse) copy.
Some lacks to foot of spine, clear stains and scratches to head and foot of upper cover, tiny foxing to the endpapers, the last endpaper is covered with notes in pencil made by the dedicatee.

Autograph inscription from Irène Némirovsky to Michel Corday.

A substantially cropped print bearing the same penciled number on the back of our photograph (11214), is in the Reutlinger archives at the Bibliothèque nationale de France (Album Reutlinger de portraits divers vol. 53, p.3). We have been unable to find any other examples of this photograph in other public collections. A similar photograph belatedly dedicated to Maurice Chevalier went on sale in 2008.

A beautiful, sultry shot of...

First edition, one of 25 copies on handmade laid paper, numbered and justified by the publisher, the only deluxe issue.
 
Bradel binding in half chocolate-brown morocco with corners, smooth spine, gilt date at foot, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, illustrated wrappers by Manuel Orazi and backstrip preserved.
Work illustrated with 136 black and colour drawings, in- and out-of-text, by Georges Bottini.
 
Bookplate mounted.
 
Our copy is enriched with a full-page original drawing, signed by Georges Bottini and heightened in black ink, depicting Jacques Beaudarmon wearing a bowler hat and conversing with the « môme...

First edition following the unobtainable mimeographed version produced by the author.
Inevitable minor wear along the edges of the covers and spine, restoration to the upper left corner of the front cover, newspaper clipping laid in. Barnes & Noble price sticker affixed to the front cover.
Commentary by Paul Krassner.
 
This incendiary pamphlet, issued by the marginal and modest Olympia Press, newly re-established in New York, was printed in only a small number of copies.
Gender discrimination, hate speech and incitement to genocide, a violent and unrepentant attempted murder of one of the most celebrated artists of the twentieth century, the advocacy of...

New edition.
Contemporary binding in half green shagreen, spine in four compartments set with gilt stippling, gilt fillets and gilt fleurons in the corner pieces, multiple blind tooled frames on the boards, white iridescent paper endpapers, all edges gilt.
Some leaves shorter in the bottom margin.

Handwritten inscription signed by George Sand on the first endpaper: “à mon bon ami Edmond Plauchut. G. Sand".

Today the only outsider to the family buried in the cemetery of the Nohant house, is Lucien-Joseph-Edmond Plau
chut (1824-1909) who began an epistolary relationship with George Sand in the autumn of 1848 when he was a voluntary expatriate after...

First edition on ordinary paper.

Work illustrated with wood engravings by Henri Jadoux.

A pleasing copy.

Autograph inscription signed by Sacha Guitry in pencil to Henry Sorensen.

Autograph letter signed by Paul Verlaine to Anatole Baju, one page in ink on a watermarked leaf. Two small discreet adhesive reinforcements to verso. Published in Correspondance Verlaine, vol. III, CDLIII, p. 26–27.

An important letter by Verlaine, the most Decadent of poets, to the editor-in-chief of the journal Le Décadent, which published many of his poems. The poet announces the forthcoming release of a collection entitled Amis, a provocative allusion to the scandalous sapphic poems he had privately printed in 1867 under the title Amies.

First edition, one of 300 numbered copies signed and justified by Frans de Geetere, reserved for the friends of La Marie-Jeanne, the only copies printed on deluxe paper.
As stated in the limitation, our copy is complete with a manuscript leaf from the work and an original drawing by the author depicting two reclining nude women, signed by him.
A desirable copy, complete with its rare promotional wraparound band: "le livre qu'aucun éditeur n'a osé publier".

First edition.

Contemporary Bradel binding in grey cloth-backed marbled boards, smooth spine decorated with a gilt floral motif, gilt date and double fillet at foot, brown shagreen label, original wrappers preserved; a contemporary binding executed for Léon Vanier with the binder's ticket pasted ton front pastedown "Reliures Léon Vanier 19 quai Saint-Michel Paris" .

Our copy exceptionally contains a faded original photograph by Otto Wegener depicting Paul Verlaine standing with a cane and wearing a top hat; exceptional signed autograph inscription by Paul Verlaine in the lower right margin of the print: "A Léon Vanier son édité et ami. P. Verlaine." (To Léon...

First edition of the French translation, of which no deluxe copies were issued.

A horizontal crease to the front cover, otherwise a well-preserved copy.

Rare signed presentation inscription from Tom Wolfe to the journalist and literary critic Bernard Pivot: "To Bernard Pivot with a deep bow and profound thanks for such a marvelous evening. Tom Wolfe September, 9, 1988."

Tom Wolfe's masterpiece was splendidly adapted for the screen by Brian De Palma, starring Tom Hanks, Bruce Willis, Melanie Griffith, and Morgan Freeman.

First edition, one of 105 numbered copies on vélin neige, the only deluxe copies issued after 12 on pur fil.
Handsome copy.

"On June 28, 1970, I attended the first New York Gay Pride March. The date marks the first anniversary of the Stonewall riots, which launched the LGBTQ+ liberation movement in the U.S. We left from Christopher Street, a gay cultural mecca in Greenwich Village, and walked up 6th Avenue to Central Park. To end the day, a kissing contest was held in the middle of the park! It was a great moment of joy, love and freedom. This couple, who kissed for hours under an umbrella, obviously didn't care about photographers" (Interview with Clément Thierry, 2021)

First edition on ordinary paper.
A handsome copy despite a few tiny spots on the front cover, with the promotional band preserved.
Inscribed by Jean d'Ormesson to the Belgian literary critic Pol Vandromme : "... les baisers les plus affectueux de Casimir et l'amitié reconnaissante de J.O."



 

First French edition translated by Abdelmalek Faraj.
Spine and boards marginally discolored and sunned, handsome interior condition.
Very fine autograph inscription signed by Pierre Dermenghem, on two pages, to Henry de Montherlant enriched with an autograph inscription signed by Abdelmalek Faraj.
Manuscript annotations by Henry de Montherlant, in blue ink, on the back board.
 

First edition, one of 120 numbered copies on Lafuma pure wove paper, the only large-paper issue.

Endpapers very slightly and marginally toned, two small tears at foot of spine.

A rare and much sought-after copy in original state.

Autograph letter most probably unpublished signed addressed by Juliette Drouet to her lover Victor Hugo, four pages written in black ink on a bifolium. 
Transverse folds inherent to mailing, fold joining the two leaves reinforced with a fine strip of pasted paper barely perceptible.
Absent from the very complete online edition of Juliette Drouet's letters to Hugo by the Centre d'Études et de Recherche Éditer/Interpréter (University of Rouen-Normandy).
Very beautiful declaration of love and admiration by Juliette Drouet, the day after Hugo's plea defending his son. Charles Hugo had been brought before the assizes, and condemned despite his father's...

First edition, one of 20 numbered cop­ies on hollande, the only deluxe issue (grand papier) after 10 copies on japon.

Bound in gray half morocco in panels, smooth spine, gilt date at foot, abstract decorative paper boards, black onion­skin pastedowns and flyleaves, original wrappers preserved, pastedown book­plate, top deckled edge gilt, binding signed Boichot.
Small tears with small lacks of paper to the margin of an endpaper and on the front cover.
The work is dedicated to Paul Verlaine who wrote the preface "which was a way of advertising to gay readers" (Gra­ham Robb, Homosexual Love in the Nineteenth Century, p. 210).

Precious signed and inscribed...

Accordion-fold album (orihon) containing twelve large paintings on silk, each measuring 24 x 34.5 cm, depicting couples entwined in carnal intimacy. Each scene is skilfully framed by elements of domestic architecture - screens, sliding partitions, windows - which make the interior itself the theatre of the gaze, in a staging of voyeuristic revelation characteristic of Japanese erotic art. The silks are loosely mounted within movable paper frames.

Boards covered in patterned green silk; label on the upper board no longer present. Fabric faded, a few perforations, traces of dampstaining to the lower part of the upper board, small losses at the edges, splitting at the joint...

Original autograph letter by the Marquis de Sade, consists of 27 lines of relatively tight handwriting. Most likely written to his wife, as evidenced by the letter's origin from Sade's family. The letter is physically composed of two glued pieces of paper. On the verso the Marquis wrote 19 lines and scrupulously crossed them out - a few words and letters are still quite visible.
Cited in Maurice Lever's biography, 'Donatien Alphonse François, marquis de Sade', Paris, Fayard, 1991, p. 631.

Edition illustrated with 12 original colour watercolours by Gerda Wegener, printed hors texte, one of 400 numbered copies on Arches laid paper.

Spine and boards faintly sunned at the margins, otherwise a pleasing copy.

First public edition of this text written under the pseudonym François la Colère, one of 50 numbered copies on Madagascar paper, the deluxe issue.

Rare and fine copy.

First edition of the Petits poëmes en prose, later entitled Le Spleen de Paris – Petits poëmes en prose. Second edition of Les Paradis artificiels.

Some foxing, mainly at the beginning and end of the volume.
Contemporary half black shagreen binding, spine with five raised bands ruled in gilt and decorated with gilt tools, marbled paper sides, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, speckled edges, corners slightly rubbed.
The half-title bears the designation: "Oeuvres complètes". The work was issued separately, either on its own or as the fourth volume of the complete works, the publication of which extended over several...

Postcard after an original photograph by David Hamilton depicting a young girl walking through a flower-filled meadow.

A fine copy.

Signed by David Hamilton in black felt-tip pen at the foot of the card.

Provenance: from the collection of the noted autograph collector Claude Armand.

Postcard-format reproduction of a photograph by David Hamilton depicting a nude woman seen from behind, gazing at herself in a mirror.

Signed by David Hamilton in black felt-tip pen at the lower right corner of the card.

A handsome copy.

Provenance: from the collection of the noted autograph collector Claude Armand.

First edition printed in 300 numbered copies on pure rag vellum from the marais, ours being one of the 246 containing illustrations in the text.
Work illustrated with 18 unsigned drypoints in the text by Fernand Hertenberger.
Boards uniformly and lightly sunned.
Rare and handsome copy.

Original autograph manuscript of a short story by Boris Vian, written in 1945 and published posthumously in the collection Le Loup-Garou in 1970.
Highly dense manuscript of 17 pages on 9 sheets, written in black ink with deletions and corrections, on perforated graph paper, dated “25.10.45” at the end of the text. One of the very rare manuscripts dated by the author.

Exceptional manuscript of Boris Vian’s first short story, written at the age of 25, just a few months after the Liberation.

“Yes I have sarcasm in my words, yes I do not know how to flatter and bend my back, how to beg in official salons […] I am nothing but a braying schemer, but if I had submitted - yes I would be comfortable."

Long autograph letter dated August 1896 and signed by Paul Gauguin to painter Daniel de Monfreid. Four pages in black ink on two lined sheets.
Small tears to margins not affecting the text, traces of folds inherent to sending.
In the midst of his descent into hell, abandoned in his Tahitian artificial paradise, Gauguin feels cursed : “Definitely, I was born under a bad...

Painted handscroll, or makimono, comprising twelve paintings on silk with a transparent ground, mounted end to end to form a long continuous strip measuring 840 cm - that is, twelve panels of 70 x 14 cm - laid down on paper and edged with gold along its slips. When fully unrolled, the supporting paper strip measures 869 cm. Scroll mounted on a wooden rod and preserved in its original green silk wrapper. Some foxing and localised staining affect certain panels, without impairing the harmony of the whole, which remains in satisfactory condition.

Unsigned, this scroll is stylistically related to the circle of Miyagawa Shuntei (1873-1914), a painter and illustrator trained...

Autograph letter dated and signed by André Frénaud addressed to art critic Georges Raillard (12 lines in blue ballpoint pen) regarding the publication of his latest work L'étape dans la clairière.
Fold marks inherent to the letter's envelope placement, envelope included.
André Frénaud expresses his discontent at being so poorly perceived in the literary world and, in an effort to be better regarded, he appeals to Georges Raillard regarding his latest work L'étape dans la clairière: "... je vous l'adresse comme une approche par l'auteur, très subjective donc et unilatérale, pas du tout une interprétation officielle et complète !!! mais...

2 frontispieces and 12 numbered engravings bound at rear of the second volume.
Small lack of paper to upper right corner and marginal restoration to the first volume's title page. Minor foxing, a light halo to the right margin of each of the 12 engravings at rear of the second volume.
Red half morocco binding, smooth spines with arabesques motifs in gilt, marbled paper boards, snags and rubbing to boards and edges, corners bent.
The book was first published as The Universal Cook in London in 1792; its fourth edition was translated into French...

First edition, one of 20 copies on Arches paper, most limited deluxe issue (tirage de tête).
Like all copies on Arches, it is wrapped in a double dust jacket in yellow and white, and bears the rare sanguine vignette drawn and engraved by Hans Bellmer.
Preface by Jean Paulhan.

Our copy is housed in a custom clamshell box featuring an original design signed by Julie Nadot.

Beautiful first edition copy of this masterpiece of erotic literature, in its most limited deluxe issue.