Printed in small numbers, illicitly passed out, sought-after, forgotten, found again, major works or confidential texts... Some of these works are extremely rare today ; here are a few of them.
First edition, one of 35 numbered copies printed on vélin pur chiffon B.F.K. de Rives, the only limited deluxe issue.
A small tear at the top of the lower cover, barely noticeable.
Very handsome copy.
First edition, no grands papiers (deluxe) copies printed.
Half brown sheepskin, spine with four raised bands framed in blind and decorated with gilt floral motifs, some rubbing to the spine, marbled paper boards, marbled paper endpapers and flyleaves, modest contemporary binding.
Rare signed and inscribed copy by Guy de Maupassant to the Baron de Vaux who inspired the character of Bel-Ami: “To Baron de Vaux / his friend / Guy de Maupassant”.
First edition, one of 35 copies on pure rag paper, this one not numbered but specified as a copy printed for Pierre Jean Jouve under the colophon, the only deluxe paper copies issued.
Three small spots on the lower cover.
A very good copy.
First edition illustrated with 10 plates, including 9 folding ones.
Spine cracked and with losses despite some adhesive repairs; corner losses to the covers.
Section solely devoted to Cochinchina (the second volume, focused on Annam and Tonkin, was published in Hanoi). This series, issued since 1889, replaced the Annuaire de la Cochinchine (1865–1888). It was not until 1899 that the two separate parts of this colonial directory were merged into the Annuaire général de l'Indo-Chine française (1899–1925), later renamed Annuaire administratif de l'Indochine (1926–1943).
Scarce, though in a worn condition.
First edition, illustrated with 10 large folding plates hors texte.
First part: Cochinchina; section covering exclusively Cochinchina (the second part, devoted to Annam and Tonkin, bears the Hanoi imprint), published since 1889 as a continuation of the Annuaire de la Cochinchine (1865–1888).
It was only in 1899 that the two separate parts of this colonial directory were merged to form the Annuaire général de l'Indo-chine française (1899–1925), which later became the Annuaire administratif de l'Indochine (1926–1943).
Spine ends repaired with adhesive reinforcements; a scratch to the upper cover with minor marginal tears.
Rare.
First edition (cf. Barbier IV, cols. 211-212).
Contemporary full red morocco Jansenist binding, spine with five raised bands framed by black fillets, gilt roll tooling on the caps, blind-stamped fillet border on covers, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, gilt dentelle border on the pastedowns, gilt fillets on the edges somewhat faded, all edges gilt, bookplate mounted on pastedown.
Some minor internal defects (dampstains and a small loss at the foot of a few leaves).
Barbier devotes an extensive entry to the condemnation of this work on the mystical movement of Quietism, for which Fénelon long contended with Bossuet before both he and Madame Guyon were condemned by Pope...
First edition of the most significant contribution by Pinson de Ménerville (1808–1876) to the understanding of the legal framework specific to Algeria under French rule.
It was soon followed by several supplements, later integrated into the definitive 1872 edition (in three volumes). Having arrived in the colony as early as 1831, Ménerville held successive posts as lawyer, examining magistrate, and prosecutor, before concluding his career as the esteemed First President of the Court of Algiers (1874).
Illustrated with a folding table at the end of the volume.
Contemporary binding in cherry red half shagreen, spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt dotted fillets...
Very rare original edition printed in a very limited number of copies of this excerpt from the Annales des Sciences naturelles of April 1825 (cf. Ronsil, Bibliogr. ornithologique française, 2476.)
Missing at the Bn.
Copy presented under a plain blue waiting cover.
A stain on several leaves, a word corrected in ink on page 7.
Quoy and Gaimard were naturalists of the expedition of discoveries around the world commanded by Captain Freycinet.
Handsome Greek printing of the Psalter according to the Septuagint, followed by traditional Biblical hymnology and a weekly recitation guide.
Illustrated with a charming woodcut depicting David.
Contemporary black cloth-backed marbled boards, spine unlettered and slightly faded, blue endpapers and pastedowns.
Occasional foxing, otherwise clean and well-preserved throughout.
First edition (see Cordier, "Indosinica", 2690).
Spine cracked with small losses, internally well preserved.
Rare.
First edition, illustrated with drawings by the author.
Minor foxing to the upper cover, slight creasing to the upper outer corners of the final leaves.
A survey of various aerial navigation devices, their construction, the history of aviation, microlights, gliders, flying bicycles, and toy airplanes.
A rare work by Henry de Graffigny, who inspired the character of Roger-Marin Courtial des Pereires—an eccentric genius inventor—in *Mort à Crédit* by Louis-Ferdinand Céline.
First edition of the French translation by Dominique Aubier, printed in 150 numbered copies on Rives wove paper, ours being one of 30 copies including the original print, numbered and signed by Louis Chavignier.
Our copy is one of only 10 exceptionally enriched with an additional suite on chine appliqué of the etching by Alberto Giacometti and the 14 burin engravings by Louis Chavignier.
The work is illustrated with an original etching as frontispiece by Alberto Giacometti, and 14 full-page original burin engravings by sculptor Louis Chavignier.
A handsome and rare copy.
Enclosed is the printed report, on Rives paper, of the...
Unpublished French manuscript translation of the Giurisprudenza marittima-commerciale antica e moderna, Luigi Piantanida's monumental four-volume treatise on maritime and commercial law, published in Milan between 1806 and 1808 and dedicated to Napoleon. The translation was prepared by a certain J. Brunet, whose identity has not been established. Folio (25.5 × 39.3 cm), 680 unnumbered manuscript pages.
Modern period-style binding in half mottled tan calf with vellum corners...
First and only edition, illustrated with 12 plates including 8 lithographed views and 4 folding tables.
Contemporary half calf binding with corners, spine decorated with triple gilt fillets and large blind-stamped fleurons, minor losses at foot of joints, marbled paper boards scuffed with some surface loss, corners worn, edges sprinkled blue.
Scattered light foxing, mostly at the beginning and end of the volume.
This text constitutes the first draft of what would become, in 1835, the major work Description de Moscou.
The folding map that complements this work was only published in 1825 and is not, strictly speaking, part of this edition.
Lecointe de...
Very rare first edition.
Two small losses to the head and foot of the spine, printed wrappers slightly soiled.
The presentation of the report is signed by the Marquis de Lafressange, Antony Androuët, the Viscount de Mazenod, and Louis Lapierre.
Rare (possibly complete) collection of this popular Chilean weekly printed in Valparaíso, not listed in the catalogue of the National Library’s periodicals.
Contemporary binding in red half sheep, smooth spine decorated with double gilt and black fillets, black morocco title label, marbled paper-covered boards, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns.
Although primarily concerned with historical and political matters—featuring frequent polemics against Spain and Peru—this provincial paper also aspires to literary status, including numerous poems, occasionally illustrated with small wood engravings. The "classified ads," of particular interest, along with the theatre listings...
Second edition, illustrated with two large folding maps mounted on tabs (cf. Polak 1755).
Bradel binding in full marbled pink paper-covered boards, spine sunned with losses. Title and shelving labels affixed at head and foot of spine. Some scratches and paper losses to the boards, minor abrasions and small chips to the edges. Contemporary binding.
In addition to his significant maritime and political activity since the Seven Years’ War, Charles-Pierre Claret de Fleurieu (1738–1810) was the inventor of the first marine chronometer.
Printed stamp of the Imprimerie de la République at the foot of the title page.
Very rare first edition printed in Algiers at Charles Zamith & Cie (Not listed in Tailliart. No copy recorded in the CCFr).
Minor, unavoidable rust marks around the staples, otherwise a handsome copy.
This perpetual Muslim calendar through to the end of time, with the exact concordance of the Julian and Gregorian calendars, and a simple and easy method for converting dates for every day of the week, from the Hijri year to the year 2660, composed and calculated in accordance with the rules of Muslim astronomers was written by Bernard-Marius Cazeneuve (1838–1913).
A fascinating character: an internationally renowned illusionist, art collector, and scientist...
First edition, one of the 300 numbered copies printed on red “bouffant” paper, the only deluxe issue alongside 5 copies on hollande. Covers slightly and marginally soiled, two initials in red ink in the upper left corner of the front cover.
Illustrated with a “portrait de crotte de bique et couillandouille par eux-mêmes” [portrait of goat-dropping and dick-and-drumstick by themselves.]
Very famous work from the Dadaist canon, written by Pansaers one year before his untimely death — the...
Rare first edition including a general map of Africa, compiled from the most reliable observations and the latest discoveries, as well as 8 finely engraved plates (cf. Clozel 505; Gay 2897).
The 8 illustrations comprise: one folding view, three folding maps and plans, a key chart for the plan of Gorée, and three portraits of indigenous figures.
Some restorations and water stains affecting a few leaves.
Contemporary half calf binding, smooth spine decorated with gilt garlands, floral tools, and urns; red morocco title and volume labels, marbled edges.
Born in Colmar, Sylvain-Meinrad-Xavier de Golbéry (1742–1822) spent his entire military career in the Corps of...
First edition of the French translation by Victor Largeau, presented in 1844 to the Geneva archaeologist Gustave-Philippe Revilliod (1817–1890) by Moors with whom he had become close.
Contemporary binding in brown half sheep with corners, spine with five raised bands and no lettering, marbled paper sides, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, soiled original wrappers preserved, modern binding.
Some occasional foxing.
An explorer—he attempted twice to cross the Sahara, the first time in this same year, 1875—Victor Largeau (1842–1897) later became a colonial administrator. He was the father of General Victor-Emmanuel Largeau (1867–1916), one of the founders of Chad.
First edition, illustrated with a folding map bound at the end (cf. Quérard I 529).
Copy preserved in its original plain green wrappers,
uncut, some foxing to the map.
"Tableau des stations géodésiques et astronomiques choisies pour déterminer la mesure de l'arc du parallèle terrestre compris entre les tours de Cordouan et de Fiume, et qui doit s'étendre jusqu'à Orsowa en Transilvanie".
Inscribed and signed by Joseph-François Nicollet on the title-page, addressed to a Monsieur Pouillet.
First edition, printed in a small number of copies on laid paper, extracted from the Journal asiatique; a single copy recorded in the CCF (Strasbourg).
Rare copy preserved in its original blue paper wrappers, as issued.
Traces of a label on the left margin of the front cover, a pleasing copy overall.
Inscribed by Giovanni Antonio Arri on the upper cover to archaeologist Désiré Raoul-Rochette (1789–1854), then a member of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres.
Very rare first edition, privately printed in a very small number of copies, of this offprint from the Nouvelles annales des voyages, June 1857. (cf. Gay, 418).
Some foxing.
Complete in its original state with the large folding map inserted at the end.
Jacques-Auguste Cherbonneau (1813–1882), founder of the Archaeological Society of Constantine, provides here an account of the exploratory mission to the southern region of the Regency of Tripoli, culminating in the city of Ghadamès.
Very rare original edition illustrated with 2 folding maps out of text.
Two small losses at the head and foot of the spine, otherwise an agreeable interior condition.
The work was composed with the collaboration of Dr. Mougeot.
Rare first edition of this doctoral thesis in medicine, presented and defended on Thursday, April 7, 1892. (Copies held in the BnF, BIUM, Bulac, and Strasbourg libraries according to the CCF.)
Spine restored and reinforced, lacking the rear cover, front cover partially detached. The work addresses various public health issues related to the legal departures of pilgrims from Tunisia and Algeria to Mecca for the annual Hajj.
Very rare, but as is.
Contemporary ownership inscription in the upper right corner of the first page.
Rare first edition, privately printed in small numbers, of this offprint from the Recueil des notices et mémoires de la Société archéologique de Constantine, vol. XXIV.
Only two copies recorded in the French collective catalogue (BnF and Lyon).
Vertical crease visible throughout the booklet.
Preserved in its original grey paper wrappers, without lettering, with the title and author's name handwritten in pencil.
A member of the Congregation of the White Fathers, particularly active in North Africa, Alfred-Louis Delattre (1850–1932) was first sent as a missionary to Algeria, later becoming chaplain of the Saint-Louis Church in Carthage, and eventually...
First edition, printed in a small number of copies.
The work primarily discusses the potential for exporting French goods to Tonkin and China, as well as public works in Annam and the railway along the southern borders of China.
Georges Fillion served as a correspondent for Agence Havas with the French expeditionary corps in Tonkin.
A rare and appealing copy.
First edition of this occasional text, illustrated with 4 plates outside the text.
Spine faintly faded, a rare and attractive copy.
Archbishop of Algiers from 1867, Charles Lavigerie (1825–1892) would become in 1884 Primate of Africa through his exceptional accumulation of titles, including the restored See of Carthage.
He took an early interest in the excavations of the Carthage site.
Very rare first edition printed by the Bureaux de l'armée nationale (only two copies recorded in the CCF: ASOM and Nanterre).
A pleasant copy.
The pamphlet brings together the texts of two lectures: the first delivered on 19 June 1924 in Hanoi, the second on 10 December 1924 in Paris; both advocate for a systematic effort to provide indigenous populations with access to education.
A former captain in the colonial artillery, Paul Monet (1884–1941) was then head of the Annamite Students' Residence in Hanoi. He would soon gain attention for echoing Roland Dorgelès' stance on the exploitation of indigenous labour by French companies (Les Jauniers...
Very rare first edition of this short treatise advocating the cultivation of jute in Indochina, at a time when British India held an almost total monopoly over its production.
Single copy recorded in the CCF (ASOM).
Upper cover detached, with minor marginal tears and soiling.
Second illustrated edition, with 68 wood engravings within the text.
The first leaf bears, on its verso, a few lines of music (the recto is blank). On the final leaf, the same score reveals, when folded, lines of writing: "Les notes musicales qui servent de Frontispice à cet Ouvrage, ressemblent parfaitement au Discours & à la Musique ci-dessus. C'est la manière de plier le papier qui fait paraître l'un & disparaître l'autre" (cf. Fechner, p. 152).
Paris: Chez l'Auteur, Granger, Bailly, Lesclapart, Hardouin & Gattey, Varin, Lagrange [Printed by Veuve Hérissant], 1786. Octavo (in-8), 2 ff. n. ch., pp. [v] to xix, 328 pp., 1 folding unnumbered leaf in accordion format, 68...
Second edition with the text printed in two columns (see Cordier, Indosinica, 2288).
The first edition was published in 1868.
Contemporary quarter fawn mirabelle sheep binding, flat spine decorated with triple gilt fillets, some rubbing to spine, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, bumped corners.
Théophile Marie Legrand de La Liraÿe (1819–1873), a priest of the Paris Foreign Missions Society, was sent to Western Tonkin in 1843.
During the French intervention in Annam, he acted as interpreter to Admiral Rigault de Genouilly. After leaving the Missions, he continued in this role for the Governor of Cochinchina.
He died on 7 August 1873 at...
First edition of the French translation, illustrated with a frontispiece portrait of Iwakura Tomomi.
Contemporary binding in navy blue long-grain half morocco, flat spine decorated with gilt fillets and blind-stamped fleurons, red morocco lettering-piece running lengthwise, green cloth boards, minor fading and rubbing to covers, original blank wrappers preserved; modern binding.
Iwakura Tomomi (1825–1883) was a prominent figure of the Meiji era, whose influence played a key role in Japan's transformation.
Some handwritten annotations in ink and pencil on a pastedown, and an inscription in ink reading "Trautz (?) Kyoto. Jan 1935" on the endpaper.
Inscribed...
First edition of the French translation, revised under the author's supervision, by Joseph Lavallée, of this highly regarded travel account.
The atlas includes 16 plates depicting views and natural history subjects, 12 pages of engraved music, and 1 folding map (cf. Monglond VI 729–730).
Contemporary bindings in half blond calf over green vellum-tipped boards, smooth spines decorated with gilt tooling, yellow edges, for the three text volumes.
Contemporary binding for the atlas in half green sheep with vellum tips, smooth spine decorated with triple gilt fillets, soft green paper-covered boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns.
Wormholes on title pages, scuffed...
First edition of the French translation, illustrated with 105 plates out of text (including 2 folding tables, 21 plans and maps, and 82 views and reproductions of documents). A remarkable record of one of the most significant instances of international opinion manipulation carried out by China and North Korea in the early stages of the Korean War: as early as 1952, North Korean and Chinese officials (including Zhou Enlai) accused the American army of using "insect vectors" on a large scale to spread various diseases among the populations of Korea and Manchuria (plague, cholera, etc.).
The entire operation had been meticulously staged, as definitively revealed by Soviet documents...
First edition of both these rare fascicules; the first is illustrated with three folding plates at the end of the volume, the second with in-text illustrations.
Contemporary half bottle-green calf binding, smooth spine gilt with fillets and dotted rolls, as well as black fillets, some minor rubbing to joints, headcap worn, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, speckled edges.
One of only three known contributions to the nascent field of Assyriology by the Austrian numismatist and traveller Isidore Löwenstern (1810–1858), who served as Danish consul in Constantinople.
Bound with, by the same author: Exposé des éléments constitutifs du système de la...
First edition, printed in very limited numbers, of this offprint from the Revue archéologique, illustrated with 12 textual figures and 3 plates; only two copies listed in the CCF (Quai d'Orsay and Strasbourg).
Contemporary Bradel binding in olive green cloth-backed marbled boards, smooth spine with red morocco title label, original wrappers bound in.
Christophe-Edouard Mauss (1829–1914), architect to the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was entrusted with several archaeological missions in the East (Thessaloniki, Smyrna, Alexandria), and was later sent by the French government to Jerusalem (1862–1874) to oversee the restoration of the Church of Saint Anne. He also...
First edition, one of the review copies.
Spine and covers faded, small chips to the corners of the covers and margins of some leaves, brittle and yellowed paper, front free endpaper detached, a delicate copy.
Exceptional and moving signed autograph inscription by Raymond Guérin: "Pour vous mon cher Calet ces Poulpes où vous savez tout ce que j'ai mis de foi et de désespoir. avec l'admiration et l'amitié du grand Dab. R. Guérin 11.5.53. P.S. Nous sommes au Madison jusqu'au 15 mai, puis, du 29 mai au 5 juin. R.G."
First collected edition. No deluxe paper copies issued.
Publisher’s binding in full green cloth, flat spines, with their dust jackets designed by Adam Rusak, showing only minor and insignificant marginal tears.
Rare presentation copy dated May 1, 1992 and signed by Solzhenitsyn to USSR émigré journalist and writer Sam Yossman, on the title page of the first volume.
First edition, only one other copy recorded (BnF).
Full dark purple morocco binding, spine with five raised bands with gilt floral motifs, gilt date at foot, spine slightly faded, covers numerously framed in gilt, gilt-tooled corners each adorned with a blue onlaid morocco medallion stamped with a central gilt fleuron, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, pastedown bookplate of Ernest Stroehlin, inner gilt dentelle, spine-ends ruled in gilt, very light rubbing to corners, all edges gilt. A tiny restored lack of paper to the upper part of the title page, not affecting the text.
Very rare anti-Protestant satire in the form of a dialogue between the...
First edition of these extremely scarce memoirs (cf. Bourquelot V, 374. Tulard 1007. Bertier de Sauvigny 720).
Contemporary bindings in brown half sheep, flat spines decorated with gilt Romantic rolls and black floral tools, red morocco labels for volume numbers and titles, marbled paper-covered boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, some corners worn, marbled edges.
Spine of volume four damaged, restorations to the spines, two lower caps rubbed, occasional foxing.
The Countess Merlin was born Maria de las Mercedes de Santa Cruz y Montalvo (1789–1852) in Havana.
Her memoirs offer valuable anecdotal insight into society life in Cuba, the Peninsular War, and...
Second edition, illustrated with 13 full-page plates printed on various tinted backgrounds. The first edition was published in 1924.
This edition includes a map that was not reissued in the second printing.
The Miao people (known as Méo in Vietnam and Hmong in Laos) are an ethnic group found in southern China and northern Indochina. They speak various loosely related dialects, but without mutual intelligibility.
Today, they are generally regarded not as a single ethnic group but as a broader grouping of distinct peoples. A missionary of the Paris Foreign Missions Society, François-Marie Savina (1876–1941) worked in Upper Tonkin, Hainan (China), and Laos from 1901 to...
Rare first edition of this essential supplement to the Flore forestière (1881–1897) by Jean-Baptiste-Louis Pierre (1833–1905), director of the Saigon Botanical Garden.
OCLC locates copies only at the BnF and the Natural History Museum.
Publisher's binding in brown cloth-backed boards, plain flat spine, paper-covered boards slightly sunned and soiled, title printed on upper board, bumped corners, minor wear to edges.
Text in two columns.
Clean and fresh interior.
First edition, exceptionally rare, of this magnificent album of views of Guadeloupe, illustrated with twelve lithographs executed by Émile Vernier after drawings by Armand Budan: an engraved title-frontispiece and eleven plates, including a large folding panoramic view of Pointe-à-Pitre.
Large folio (39.6 × 54 cm). Collation: 3 unnumbered leaves comprising the title, preface and half-title Karukera, pp. [3]-44, one blank leaf, the lithographic title-frontispiece and eleven lithographic plates.
First edition (cf. Loukia Droulia 1817, Contominas 595, Blackmer 1372. Not in Atabey.)
Contemporary half blond calf, spine with five false raised bands adorned with gilt garlands, gilt tooling in compartments and blind fillets, gilt rolls at head and foot, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, marbled edges.
Scattered foxing.
Before becoming the well-known historian and committed republican, Edgar Quinet (1803–1875) was part of the short-lived scientific commission of the Morea in 1829.
This volume records his impressions, with the second part titled De la Nature et de l'Histoire dans leurs rapports avec les Traditions Religieuses et...
First edition, printed in a small number of copies, of this excerpt from the Magasin de zoologie, d'anatomie comparée et de paléontologie, published by M. Guérin-Méneville in October 1845.
Contemporary bottle green full shagreen binding, flat spine with gilt fillets and no lettering, single gilt fillet frame on covers, title gilt-stamped in the center of the upper cover.
Illustrated with 3 hand-colored plates numbered 59–61 at the end of the volume.
This is the last text published during the lifetime of the great naturalist Jean-Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent (who died on 22 December 1846); L'Exploration scientifique de l'Algérie appeared largely...
First edition, illustrated with 5 lithographed plates outside the text, each featuring multiple figures (Not listed in Sabin).
Bound in modern half beige calf, smooth spine decorated with gilt and black fillets, black morocco title label, marbled paper boards, restored and preserved original printed wrappers bound in. Binding signed by the Laurenchet workshop.
Some occasional spotting.
All published: the renowned anthropologist had planned a work in two or perhaps three volumes gathering his observations made during travels in Alaska.
The plates depict fossils, bones of sea otters and American brockets, mollusks, and more. Contributions include studies and...
First edition of the French translation, one of 50 numbered copies on pur fil, the only deluxe copies.
Tiny marginal chips of no consequence on the wrappers, a crease to the upper right corner of the front cover, final page slightly darkened due to the presence of a folding facsimile.
This volume comprises three previously unpublished chapters from the novel "Les possédés".
First edition of the French translation, illustrated with one frontispiece plate in the first volume: "Infantrymen of Sindh in their battle dress", and a large folding map in the second volume: "Map of Beluchistan and Sindh, including parts of Cutch, Seistan, Khorasan, Persia, &c., drawn by Henry Pottinger, Lieutenant of the 7th Regiment of Bombay Native Infantry, in 1814" (cf. Quérard VII, 300).
Contemporary full green calf bindings, faded smooth spines gilt with fillets and small ship motifs, gilt rolls on slightly rubbed caps, gilt dentelle frames on covers, marbled endpapers lightly soiled at the edges, bookplates pasted on the front pastedowns, corners bumped...
First edition, 15 issues in 15 separate instalments, abundantly illustrated with black and white photographs. Complete with the special issue “Hommage à Picasso” (#3, 1930) and the index for the year 1929, published as a separate 8-page stapled booklet. Some spines slightly faded not affecting the text, occasional minor foxing along the margins of certain covers
Presented in a custom slipcase with a flat spine in blue morocco, title stamped in palladium and spine framed in palladium, decorative blue paper boards, sky-blue suede doublures; a handsome ensemble signed...
Rare first edition, complete with its 17 plates, including 2 maps, 2 colored facsimiles of Japanese view and plan (view of Yedo, plan of Nagasaki), and 13 colored facsimiles of natural history drawings. (See Cordier, Japonica, 549 and Sinica, 2128. Numa Broc, Asie, 89-90.)
Some minor foxing, a faint dampstain on the final leaves, small restorations to the verso of the facsimiles.
Contemporary half green shagreen, spine slightly faded, with raised bands framed by gilt fillets, double gilt compartments with decorative tools, boards framed with a blind-stamped fillet, marbled paper boards slightly soiled, combed endpapers and pastedowns, painted edges.
A career diplomat...
Second edition of the French translation, complete with its folding map at the beginning of the volume.
Scattered light foxing, otherwise a well-preserved copy.
Preface by Édouard René Lefebvre de Laboulaye.
Bound in contemporary chocolate-brown half morocco, spine with five raised bands ruled in black, double blind fillets framing the marbled paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, red top edge, slightly rubbed corners, bookplate affixed to a pastedown.
French translation of The Lost Continent: or, Slavery and the Slave Trade in Africa by the Quaker abolitionist Joseph Cooper (1800–1881).
The work is of particular interest for its early...
Rare first edition of this elementary Arabic grammar, the author's first publication, composed at the beginning of his teaching career in Oriental languages at Jena by the pastor and theologian Heinrich Eberhard Gottlob Paulus (1761–1851), who would later become known primarily for his systematically rationalist interpretation of the Scriptures.
Illustrated with 5 folding tables.
We have identified only three copies in the CCF (Bulac, Strasbourg, and Chambéry).
Some occasional foxing, small loss of leather to the lower left corner of the upper board.
Contemporary full tree calf binding, spine with gilt fillets, garlands and floral tools, cherry-red morocco label...
Rare first edition of this grammar written in collaboration with Louis Cheikho (Théodore Rizqallah), later revised in a 1912 edition.
Contemporary half blue sheep binding, flat spine decorated with double gilt fillets, joints restored, green vellum tips, some rubbing to the marbled paper boards.
Stamped marks and pencil annotations to the endpapers and title page.
Louis Cheikho (Théodore Rizqallah) was a Jesuit of the Chaldean rite, a renowned Arabist and Orientalist, and founder of the Bibliothèque orientale in Beirut.
First edition, printed in a small number of copies, of this offprint from the Journal asiatique.
Minor foxing, light discoloration spots to the margins, at the beginning and end of the volume.
Bradel binding in blue cloth-backed marbled boards with corners, smooth spine slightly darkened, cherry red shagreen title label, gilt initials at foot, marbled paper-covered boards.
A pupil of Silvestre de Sacy like so many others, Joseph-Toussaint Reinaud (1795–1867) succeeded him in 1838 at the chair of living Oriental languages; his primary scholarly interest was directed toward the Arab world. Copy from the library of agronomist Adrien de Gasparin (1783–1862), father...
Rare first edition of the French translation, with no copies printed on deluxe paper.
Spine slightly sunned, a vertical shadow on the lower cover, internally clean and attractive.
First edition, one of 80 numbered copies on alfa paper, the only copies printed on deluxe paper.
A handsome and rare copy.
Uncommon first edition illustrated with a double-page plan: "Plan du Saint-Sépulcre, à Jérusalem" (see Röhricht p. 587. Not in Blackmer or Atabey.)
The text is divided as follows: Letters on Italy and Egypt (pp. 5–64), Palestine (pp. 65–604), the Levant and Constantinople (pp. 605–685).
Minor tears to the spine and boards, with some light foxing.
First edition, printed in small numbers as an offprint of the preface only: the full catalogue was later published between 1887 and 1896 in three large volumes.
Henri Michel Lavoix (1820–1892) was curator in the Department of Medals and Antiquities at the Bibliothèque Nationale.
A rare and appealing copy.
Inscribed and signed by Henri Michel Lavoix to the archaeologist Melchior de Vogüé (1829–1916).
Rare first edition illustrated with three folding plates outside the text.
Spine repaired along the right margin with adhesive strip, minor tears to spine, internally clean and appealing.
In the manner of departmental compendia of customary law published in mainland France, the author records the unofficial legal “usages” adopted in practice within the colony, though lacking legal force. Born in Saint-Denis, Réunion, Georges Garros (1860 – after 1919) moved to Cochinchina in 1892 to open a law practice in Saigon, primarily serving the commercial interests of his Vietnamese merchant friends. He was also the father of the famed aviator Roland Garros...
First edition, one of 15 copies printed on japon impérial, most limited deluxe issue.
Bradel binding with grey box spine, front board in plexiglass revealing the original cover, back board in grey box, original wrappers and spine preserved, housed in a soft grey paper chemise lined with light grey felt; unsigned binding by Mercher.
Illustrated with three original lithographs, including the original colour illustration on the cover.
Discreet repairs to...
Edition not recorded by Leclerc, Rodriquez or Borba de Moraes (cf. Sabin 43770; Cordier, Bibl. Japonica 62-63, and Bibl. Sinica 782).
Some occasional light foxing; minor worming affecting the index leaves at the end of the volume.
Modern Bradel binding in half vellum, smooth spine with red morocco label, marbled paper-covered boards.
A work of major significance for the history of Jesuit missions in the Americas, India, China, and Japan.
Rare first edition illustrated with 10 splendid full-page colour plates by John Gerrard Keulemans, lithographed, hand-coloured and gum-finished (cf. Not in Gay. Nissen, Illustrierten Vogelbücher, 74. Anker, Bird Books, p. 69. Unrecorded by Ronsil, Bibliographie ornithologique française. Zimmer, p. 39).
Contemporary half brown morocco over marbled boards, spine with five raised bands, slightly faded, gilt lettering with date and place at foot, corners in morocco, orange endpapers and pastedowns. Minor rubbing to spine.
"Portugal too, has contibuted to the knowledge of african avifauna, for instance in the work 'Ornithologie d'Angola' […] an important monograph on the birds...
First edition, illustrated with 7 plates: a plan of Fort William and a large folding view of Calcutta in the first volume; 5 folding plates in the second volume (including 3 views of Mocha and its surroundings), see Gay 3317bis.
Contemporary full tree calf bindings, smooth spines decorated with gilt fillets, floral tools and geometric patterns, now largely faded, red morocco title-pieces, green bottle-morocco volume labels, some wear to joints, marbled endpapers, red-speckled yellow edges.
Rubbing to the spines, split to one joint.
Rare sole edition of one of the author's two travel accounts. A naval officer and son of a slave trader from Saint-Malo, Louis Ohier de...
Rare first edition of this highly practical manual intended for sanitary inspection, each of the 90 plates featuring detailed explanatory text alongside corresponding illustrations.
The foreword is missing from our copy.
Publisher's binding in grey cloth-backed boards, plain spine showing some rubbing, illustrated upper cover, light dampstain to lower right corner of the upper board, minor rubbing to the lower cover.
Eugène Aureggio (1844–1924), a military veterinarian trained at Alfort, was then in charge of inspecting butcher’s meat.
Very rare edition comprising the independent pre-publication of the first part of the major geological expedition to the Antilles and the islands of Tenerife and Fogo, a seven-volume quarto work also covering Guadeloupe, Martinique, and others.
Illustrated with 9 lithographed plates, including a folding map of the Cape Verde Islands and 6 tinted views.
Not recorded by Sabin in his entry on the Voyage.
Bound after, by the same author: Recherches sur les principaux phénomènes de météorologie et de physique générale aux Antilles, printed in Paris by Gide and J. Baudry in 1849.
Bradel binding in full black textured cloth, smooth spine decorated with blind...
Rare original edition of this work, not listed by Renouard.
Disbound copy, internally well preserved.
Partly first edition, revised and corrected, of which no deluxe copies were issued; one of the review copies.
Spine and covers slightly and marginally sunned, as usual.
Rare and valuable signed presentation inscription from Robert Antelme to Geneviève Hirsch.
"Il n'y a pas d'espèces humaines, il y a une espèce humaine. C'est parce que nous sommes des hommes comme eux que les SS seront en définitive impuissants devant nous."
["There are no human races; there is only one human race. It is precisely because we are men like them that the SS will ultimately be powerless against us."]
This seminal work on the Nazi concentration...
First edition (a reprint was issued in 1963) of one of the two major works by Marcel Sarrazin, known as Vassal, now considered one of the leading French-speaking 'mentalists'—a modern term borrowed from English (cf. Fechner, p. 554). Only 2 copies listed in the CCF (BnF and Sainte-Geneviève).
Small stains to the lower right corner of the title page, otherwise a well-preserved copy.
Contemporary half tawny sheep binding, spine with four raised bands and gilt fleurons, minor rubbing to spine, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, original front wrapper preserved, sprinkled edges, very slight rubbing to corners.
Illustrated with in-text figures after...
First edition, illustrated with a frontispiece portrait of the Emperor of Annam.
Modern binding in full flexible boards, covers in cat's-eye patterned paper, smooth black cloth spine without title, original wrappers preserved in poor condition and laid down.
Désiré Lacroix was a naval artillery captain.
Pleasant and scarce copy, lacking the atlas containing 40 plates.
First edition illustrated with 39 aquatint engravings, 37 of which are hand-colored (cf Atabey, 624. Hage-Chahine, 2388.)
Finely engraved and colored, the illustrations evoke the design of Persian miniatures: portraits (Fath Ali Shah, Abbas I, Nadir Shah), figures in costumes (Persian women, slave and eunuch from the harem, Persian rider…), views and ancient monuments (Tehran, ruins of Persepolis), scenes of daily life (Persian meal, village entertainments, writing master and his pupil, Persians in prayer…), musical instruments, etc.
Half dark green shagreen bindings, smooth spine decorated with double gilt fillets, gilt friezes on the head and tail, cat’s-eye paper boards...
First edition of the French translation, one of 30 copies numbered on pure white Lana wove paper, the deluxe issue.
Handsome illustrated cover.
A pleasing copy, untrimmed.
Sinclair Lewis was the first American novelist to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature.
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 of the French translation, illustrated with a portrait of the author and 29 engraved plates depicting objects, ornaments, coins, plants, and animals (cf. Cordier, Bibl. Japonica, 447. Gay, 3151. Brunet, V, 850).
Contemporary full marbled calf bindings, flat spines richly decorated with gilt typographic tools, gilt roll tooling at head and tail, brown morocco title-pieces, dark green morocco volume labels, gilt roll-tooled borders on boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, gilt fillets on board edges, yellow edges.
A Swedish botanist and naturalist, Carl Peter Thunberg (1743–1828) studied medicine and natural history at Uppsala and became one of Linnaeus’s most...
Rare first edition (cf. Gay 367; Leclerc 638).
The work is illustrated with a map of the port and harbor of Brest and five plates: How the beds of the Negroes are made [and] The house of the Negroes – How the Moors ride their Camels, Horses and Oxen with their merchandise – How the Negroes collect palm wine [sic] [and] How they climb the palm trees [and] How the Negroes make incisions to extract the palm wine [and] how they are dressed – Dress of lords and notable persons – How the women are dressed and how they carry their children on their backs [and] How the Negroes dance in a circle.
This account is considered a valuable narrative, offering noteworthy details on the trade...
First edition of the French translation by Marie Bonaparte, one of 70 numbered copies on pur fil, the only deluxe paper copies.
Covers slightly and marginally toned, otherwise a handsome and rare copy.
The text is preceded by a translation of the short story Gradiva by Wilhelm Jensen, rendered by E. Zak and G. Sadoul.
It is followed by a psychoanalytic study of the dream and the fascination experienced by the young archaeologist Norbert Hanold for the image of a young woman sculpted in a bas-relief from the collections of the Museum of Rome.
Illustrated edition featuring 6 charming lithographs, including 5 costume plates, executed by Madame Veuve Jobard in Dijon.
No copy listed in the CCF; not recorded by Vicaire or Colas.
Contemporary half brown sheepskin binding, spine slightly faded, gilt double fillets and decorative gilt rolls at head and foot, marbled paper boards, sprinkled edges.
Scattered foxing, small paper flaw on half-title.
A rare, wide-margined copy in period binding.
First edition, illustrated with a frontispiece, a portrait of the author, and 14 copper-engraved vignettes within the text, mostly depicting inhabitants of the North (cf Sabin, 38711.)
Restored binding in full grained morocco, spine with five false raised bands adorned with gilt fillets and double compartments, gilded roulettes on the partially faded caps, small repairs to the joints, gilt fillets on the edges, slightly worn corners, binding of the period.
Ink annotations on the white endpaper and at the top of the false-title page.
Born in Rouen in 1634, La Martinière embarked around 1670 as a surgeon on a ship of the Northern Company bound for Norway, and visited...
First edition, very difficult to find complete, as the third volume was published eight years after the first two.
Bound in full mottled bronze-green calf, smooth spines richly decorated with gilt floral compartments, red morocco labels for title and volume number, gilt rolls on the caps, joints slightly rubbed, gilt roll-tooled borders on the covers entirely adorned with oblong geometric patterns in blind, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, gilt Greek-key borders framing the pastedowns, bookplate mounted on the pastedown of the first volume, gilt fillets on the edges, all edges gilt, contemporary bindings.
Contains anecdotes about Rousseau, Poivre, Turgot, Helvétius, Benjamin...
Complete set of the first quarter issues (11 April-12-19 July 1886) of the symbolist journal La Vogue, the most important literary review of the late nineteenth century, containing the first appearance in print of Rimbaud’s Illuminations. Issues 1-12, published weekly, were gathered under a quarterly wrapper and offered for sale in September 1886. No deluxe copies were issued for this first quarter of the journal, which had a very limited print run. Copy as published, spine restored, upper corner of the second cover lacking.
Rare and highly sought-after first edition.
Contemporary binding in black half shagreen, flat spines richly decorated with gilt ornamental rolls, discreet and skilful restoration to the foot of one joint, black paper-covered boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges. Discreet restoration to the lower hinge of the first volume.
Exceptionally clean copy, virtually free of foxing (a rarity according to Clouzot, who notes that most copies are usually heavily spotted).
Provenance: from the libraries of Saint-Germain (with printed crowned bookplate beneath the titles on the half-titles); Count de Bonvouloir (with his printed bookplate, Château de Magny in Calvados...
First edition printed in small numbers at the author's expense. This book exists only in proof state with blank wrappers and was never commercially sold. There were no deluxe copies printed.
The author distributed to his friends this set of printed proofs, with blank wrappers. The first cover, also blank, bears a printed stamp "proofs".
Foxing to covers, joints lightly rubbed.
Exceptional presentation copy: "to Monsieur Mauge this clandestine book most cordially Jacques Chardonne."
Rare first edition of this curious travel account, originally written entirely in verse (7,500 lines), though the author—on the advice of friends—agreed to intersperse it with prose narrative (retaining 2,500 lines of verse); see Sabin 20128, Gagnon 1134 (1710 edition), and Dionne II.
Contemporary full brown calf binding, spine with five raised bands, gilt compartments decorated with gilt floral tools, cherry red morocco label, gilt roll tooling at head and foot, double black fillet border on covers, gilt fillets on board edges, sprinkled yellow edges with red mottling.
Lower right corner of upper cover restored; some spots and minor scuffs to the boards; occasional light...
Paris, Knapen & Fils, 1782. Octavo, viii, 244 pages and 2 unnumbered leaves of approbation and privilege.
First edition, illustrated with a large folding map entitled "Terres Australes ou partie septentrionale de l'Isle de Kerguelen", surrounded by eight coastal views and profiles. The volume contains the accounts of Kerguelen's two expeditions to the southern seas between 1771 and 1774, a memoir on Madagascar on pages 154-169, and "Observations on the War in America" on pages 121-133. Cf. Sabin, 37618.
Contemporary full mottled tan calf, smooth...
First edition, illustrated with four plates including a map of the Sudan.
The plates depict human types and a map of Sudan, drawn "according to the Negro slaves in Bahia".
Modern Bradel binding in black half shagreen, smooth spine decorated with two gilt floral tools, gilt date at foot, marbled paper boards, original wrappers preserved (small hole on rear board).
A naturalist and explorer, Francis de Castelnau undertook, between 1843 and 1847, a major expedition across South America, notably visiting Peru and Brazil.
In 1848, he was appointed French consul in Bahia. Upon his arrival, he observed that several African-born slaves could read and write Arabic and...
Original edition printed in a limited number of copies of this excerpt from Bulletin of the Société de géographie (1882-1883).
This text was re-edited in 1885 by Hachette.
Work illustrated with figures in the text and a large folding map at the end (Route from Médine to Nango by the Gallieni mission).
Binding in black half-shagreen, spine with five raised bands decorated with cold fillets, boards of handmade paper, preserved original covers, modern binding signed by Boichot.
Covers restored with some stains, pleasant interior condition.
Work illustrated with figures in the text and a large folding map at the end (Route from Médine to Nango by the...
First edition of this rare and sought-after work compiling, in a single volume, the main legislative and regulatory provisions from Year XIV to 1857, forming the specific legal code of the island (cf. Ryckebusch 6126).
Some light foxing, mostly at the beginning and end of the volume.
Contemporary full aubergine calf, spine with four raised bands decorated with gilt double fillets, slight rubbing to spine and boards, gilt roll-tooled head- and tailbands, boards framed with gilt triple and double fillets, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, gilt dotted edges, marbled edges, contemporary binding.
Very rare first edition, illustrated with a large folding lithographed map (cf. Sabin, 21 178 – Only two copies listed in the CCF: at the BnF and the Médiathèque du Quai Branly).
Contemporary full marbled yellow paper boards, flat spine with a cherry-red shagreen label, library shelf label pasted at the foot of the spine, red edges.
A small discoloured spot on the title page, a few light foxmarks.
The Federal Republic of Central America (Republica federal de Centroamérica) was short-lived: established in 1824 from the United Provinces of Central America, it was dissolved in November 1839 following the secession of its main constituent states. It comprised Guatemala...
Very rare first edition (cf Dunmore, p. 16. Ferguson, 225. Forbes, Hawaiian National Bibliography, 285. Gove, The Imaginary Voyage in Prose Fiction, pp. 397-8. Kroepelien, 283. McLaren, 269. Sabin, 38958. Missing from Negley, Utopian literature, and the Dictionary of literary utopias.)
Binding in full marbled calf, smooth spine adorned with compartments and floral gilt motifs, red morocco title label, gilt roulettes on the headbands (partially faded) and on the edges, binding of the period.
A tear with loss on the spine, small crack at the foot of one joint, rubbing on the joints, some foxing, a moisture stain on the first endpaper fading on the following pages, light halos at...
