Charlemagne ou la Caroleide, poëme épique en vingt quatre chants

First edition illustrated with two frontispieces by Horace Vernet and 5 original unsigned ink and wash drawings. A folding map heightened with colors at the end of the work showing the locations where the poem takes place.
Contemporary full calf bindings. Smooth spines decorated with two Grotesque compartments, multiple fillets and rolls. Green morocco title and volume labels. Boards with blind cross-hatching, wide border roll with foliage, Greek key and vase motifs. Rubbing to joints and boards, edges. All edges gilt.
Handsome copy, despite some flaws. Charles-Victor Prévost d'Arlincourt (1788-1856) was, before falling into oblivion, one of the figures of Romanticism, and his popularity rivaled that of Hugo. But, acclaimed by a female audience, he was harpooned by critics who judged his productions implausible. He published his poem on Charlemagne with great publicity fanfare.