First editions of historical works: chronicles, memoirs, political pamphlets, libels, founding texts in first edition

First edition of Aristide Bruant’s electoral manifesto, written in his signature chansonnier style, for the legislative elections of May 8, 1898, covering the Belleville–Saint-Fargeau district, the first constituency of the 20th arrondissement of Paris.

The fourth leaf of this fragile electoral document features a hagiography of Aristide Bruant, "poet of the outcasts and the wretched," by Michel Morphy.

The manifesto is illustrated with a drawing by Borgey.

First collective edition.

Not recorded in Chahine, nor in any bibliography consulted.

Contemporary full black sheep, spine richly gilt with decorative motifs, joints rubbed, sides elaborately blind-stamped with a wide central panel within a quadruple gilt fillet border, blue moiré silk endpapers and pastedowns, gilt dentelle border to the pastedowns, gilt rules to the edges, all edges gilt, contemporary binding.

Spine restored, dampstaining at the beginning and end of the volume, restored marginal tear to the title page.

This work comprises a collection of brief biographies of figures involved in the conflicts and negotiations surrounding the struggle for...

One of the very few copies bearing an autograph inscription—fewer than ten are recorded—of this first edition, containing the Marseillaise.
First edition illustrated with an engraved frontispiece by Charles-Étienne Gaucher after Jean-Jacques Le Barbier and four pages of engraved musical score at the end of the volume. La Marseillaise appears here in its true first edition, having first been pre-published in the Almanach des Muses in 1793 and circulated as separate leaves.
Contemporary half-sheepskin binding, smooth spine gilt-decorated with compartments, fleurons and fillets, red morocco title-piece, black pasteboard...

First edition (cf. Sabin 74178.)

Contemporary red half shagreen, spine with five raised bands ruled in gilt and decorated with gilt floral motifs, gilt initials and date at the foot of the spine, boards framed with blind fillets, minor rubbing to the spine, staining to the boards, marbled endpapers, speckled edges.

A few light foxing spots.

Provenance: from the library of A. Montluc, Consul General of Mexico in Paris, with his gilt initials at the foot of the spine.

Ink stamp of the Mexican Consulate General on the half-title page.

First edition illustrated with a portrait, 15 plates, and a large folding map printed in colours showing the routes.

Contemporary-style green half shagreen, spine with five raised bands lightly sunned, marbled paper boards, wrappers mounted on guards and preserved, skilfully restored at the corners, modern binding.

First edition illustrated with 6 folding tables printed hors texte (cf. Palau, 16641. Not in Sabin.)

 Contemporary half tan sheep, smooth spine decorated with black and gilt fillets, rubbing to the spine and joints, marbled paper boards, endleaves and pastedowns of decorated paper, wear to the edges, bumped corners, speckled edges.

Account of the political unrest of 1833 by a Mexican statesman [1802-1855] who would become President of the Republic in 1851. For the first time in modern Mexican history, a transfer of power took place without violence, and even in a cordial manner. Nevertheless, fierce opposition ultimately brought down his government, and Arista resigned on 4...

First edition (cf. Quérard I, 152, which incorrectly gives the date as 1824).

Our copy is preserved in its original beige printed wrappers, with the title label pasted to the spine.

Tears and corner losses to the wrappers, a few scattered foxing spots.

Born in Béthune (Pas-de-Calais) in 1777 and deceased in Margency (Val-d'Oise) in 1824, Chevalier Bail began a military career before turning his attention to the moral and political sciences.

This work was entered for the prize awarded by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres in 1823.

Offprint from the Revue archéologique, eleventh year, printed in a small number of copies.

Pamphlet illustrated with 2 plates on separate leaves.

Only three copies recorded in the CCF (Bibliothèque nationale de France, Lyon, and Annecy).

Traveller and amateur archaeologist, Jules de Bertou (1809–1881) had begun his career as an orientalist in conventional fashion, visiting Petra in 1837 and excavating the site of ancient Tyre from 1838 onwards, work that yielded a creditable memoir (Essai sur la topographie de Tyr, 1843), before turning to an ultimately fruitless attempt at concordism between archaeological discoveries and a literalist reading of the...

First edition, first printing (with the table in X7 and without the errata leaf, which only appears in the second printing copies).

Cf. Blackmer 863. Atabey 607.

Manuscript ex-libris at the head of an endpaper, a few minor foxing spots.

Contemporary half tan calf binding, smooth spine decorated with double gilt fillets, brick-red morocco title label, marbled paper boards, lemon edges speckled with blue.

Spine slightly rubbed and stained, minor loss to the upper joint.

The work reflects the observations and notes from a journey undertaken in 1790–1791.

A few years later, the Comte de Salaberry (1766–1847) would become, contrary to the Philhellene...

First bilingual edition, with the Spanish text and its French translation printed on facing pages.

Not recorded by Sabin; see no. 38614 for the "Memorandum".

Contemporary pink half cloth, smooth spine lettered in gilt, gilt date at foot with a small tear, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers, wrappers preserved, contemporary binding.

Spine slightly faded.

This work constitutes a supplement to the "Memorandum" published by Lafragua in 1857, which contained the correspondence exchanged between Mexican and Spanish diplomats during a particularly critical period in Mexican history, spanning the fall of the Santa Anna dictatorship and the Liberal victory under Juárez...

First edition, one of the scarce copies on Holland laid paper, not mentioned in the justification.

The seven volumes of text are in their original wrappers, with deckle edges preserved, showing small marginal tears and, at times, minor losses to certain spines and covers.

Our copy is complete with its in-folio atlas volume comprising 30 maps with outlines heightened in colour (cf. Vicaire VI, 397-398. F. Monaghan p. 74, no. 1157.)

The atlas is bound in contemporary full dark blue cloth, smooth spine, printed title label laid down on the spine, gilt device on the upper cover, a few scratches to the boards, contemporary binding.

This remains the finest contemporary...

First edition (see Brunet V, 1041. Quérard X, 472. Gay 299. Hoefer, XLVI, 498, who specifies that the last four volumes were written by Eyries).

Contemporary half red Russia morocco bindings with corners, spines with five raised bands, covers framed with blind fillets; marbled paper sides, endpapers and pastedowns; a few light scuffs to some covers; gilt top edges, others untrimmed; bindings of the period.

Some spines slightly faded; occasional foxing.

This work, originally intended to comprise 60 volumes, was never completed; only the section devoted to Africa was published.

It is illustrated with three folding maps at the end of volumes XVI, XVII and XVIII...

First edition, illustrated with 11 plates printed outside the text and bound in at the end of the volume.

Some tears with small losses to the spine and to the margins of the covers, a dampstain to the right-hand margin (not affecting the text) on the text leaves.

A copy preserved in its original wrappers.

Fine hand-coloured manuscript plan depicting the area (now in the Var department) situated north of the village of La Valette (today La Valette-du-Var), extending to the lower slopes of Mont Coudon (702 m).

Creasing to the manuscript sheet.

Manuscript drawing consisting of a coloured sketch of one of the fort’s bastions, with scale in toises.

Construction of the Fort de Lamalgue, situated on the hill of the same name and intended to secure the landward approaches to Toulon while also protecting Fort Saint-Louis (Mourillon), which had been bombarded and abandoned during the siege of 1707, began in 1764 under the direction of Milet de Monville.

Works continued until 1792.

Traces of folding to the sheet.

Manuscript of unnumbered leaves comprising a digest of ordinances and regulations relating to the French naval troops, most promulgated between 1690 and 1751.

The manuscript is preserved in its original stitched wrappers, in contemporary paper covers with manuscript annotations; tears to the opening leaves affecting the text; housed in a cream card portfolio. 

It contains: Royal regulation of 1690 concerning the levy, pay and discipline of the naval troops. – Royal regulation of 1691 governing the billeting, conduct, march, policing and discipline of the naval troops. – Royal ordinances of 1695 and 1700 on the policing and discipline of the compagnies franches. – Ordinance of...

Rare first edition (the work was reissued at least once, in 1833) of this historical compendium arranged in detailed tabular form, increasingly precise in its treatment of contemporary events (Revolution, Empire, Restoration).

Our copy is preserved in its original wrappers.

Minor tears with small losses to the spines, a dampstain to the final free endpaper, light foxing, staining to the lower cover.

Rare first edition illustrated with 2 plates outside the text, including a frontispiece and a large folding facsimile of the inscription.

Contemporary green half sheep, spine faded and decorated with blind fillets and raised bands, a few scuffs to the spine, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers, speckled edges, corners bumped.

A few spots of foxing.

This inscription had been unearthed in Marseille in June 1845 and had already given rise to numerous attempts at interpretation.

It is now known as the “Carthage Tariff” and lay at the origin of the enduring myth of the city’s Phoenician origins: the religious regulations it records appeared to provide proof that...

First edition illustrated with 8 folding plates.

Half vellum binding, smooth spine with gilt initials at foot, black shagreen title label, red morocco label bearing the year of issue, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges, original wrappers preserved, contemporary binding.

Rare Saigon printing. This uncommon directory was published under this title until 1888; in 1889, it became the Annuaire de l'Indo-Chine française.

First edition, printed in a small number of copies, of this offprint from the Recueil des notices et mémoires de la Société archéologique de Constantine de l'année 1873.

Not in Tailliart.

Front wrapper detached then reattached, losses to the spine, small chips to the corners.

Scarce work illustrated with 14 plates printed hors texte and numbered I–XII (including plates VI bis and ter). Not in Tailliart.

A volunteer in the Corps of Engineers from 1841 onward, Baptiste-Charles Brunon (1821–1888) spent most of his military career in Algeria; after the 1871 war he returned to oversee the Engineering Corps in Constantine.

First edition illustrated with seven folding plates.

Contemporary half vellum binding, smooth spine with gilt initials at foot, brown morocco title label, red morocco date label, marbled paper boards with some rubbing, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, speckled edges.

Rare Saigon printing, and the last year to appear under this title.

This uncommon directory was published under this title until 1888; in 1889 it became the Annuaire de l'Indo-Chine française.

First edition describing the 388 items offered in the sale.

A few pencilled hammer prices in the margins, a loss to the upper right corner of the front wrapper and title-page, and small corner losses to the wrappers.

The introduction is by Fröhner, though the expert in charge of the sale was Hoffmann.

Of Baden origin, the numismatist Ludwig Wilhelm Fröhner (1834–1925) settled in Paris in 1859; he became a close friend of Napoleon III and assisted him in the preparation of his Histoire de Jules César (1865–1866), which helped him obtain both French naturalisation (1866) and an important post at the Louvre.

He later devoted himself to the cataloguing of...

Rare first edition (cf. Tailliart 1697, Playfair 554, Polak 5050).

Spine clumsily restored with small losses, slight marginal tears to the covers, a few scattered foxmarks.

The crew of the "Béarnaise," consisting of about thirty men, seized the citadel of Bone without firing a single shot.

First edition, completed at the end of the volume with a folding table printed off text (cf. Sabin 28336; Howes 318).

Bound in full flexible beige boards, the manuscript spine title clumsily restored with an adhesive strip and now largely faded; sprinkled red edges.

A dampstain affecting the upper right corner of the opening leaves; a few scattered foxmarks.

The folding table bound at the end of the volume is not recorded by Sabin. It summarises the key geographical data for each state (natural resources, population in 1790 and 1810, universities and colleges, representation in Congress, etc.).

Father Giovanni Grassi of the Society of Jesus spent several years in...

First edition, illustrated at the end of the volume with three folding maps (cf. Tailliart 3080; Playfair 4334).

The original colour map, frequently lacking, has here been supplied in photomechanical reproduction, while the two others are later insertions.

Full brick-coloured sheep binding, unlettered spine with five raised bands showing traces of rubbing, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, original wrappers preserved; modern binding.

Minor foxing, pencil annotations on the initial endpapers and in the margins of several passages, with a handwritten note in blue ink "états de service" at the head of the front endpaper, followed by a brief pencilled biography...

An extremely rare first edition of this valuable statistical survey of Bolivia; absent from both Palau and Sabin. Only one copy recorded in the CCFr (BnF).

Chuquisaca, Imprenta de Sucre, 1851, octavo,

Contemporary half brown sheep, smooth spine decorated with double gilt fillets, marbled paper boards with losses, worn corners and edges, blue-speckled edges; a modest binding of the period.

Copy slightly trimmed.

José Maria Dalence (1782–1852), a jurist and prominent political figure of the independence period (1825), here provides one of the most precise demographic, ethnographic, and economic portraits of the young nation.

Rare first edition.

Only two copies recorded in the CCF (BnF and Marseille).

“…their change of residence, abandoning the old city to settle in the new districts? A memoir awarded by the Société académique de médecine de Marseille at its public session of 1 August 1819; (…). Enlarged with the plan of a medical topography of the city of Marseille, which the author proposes to publish.” Marseille, Joseph-François Achard, 1819, 8vo, disbound. Title, 40 pp. Only two copies recorded in the CCF (BnF and Marseille). Very rare. The author was a physician attached to the dispensaries and the maternity hospital of Marseille.

First edition.

A single copy recorded in the CCFr (Roanne).

Contemporary half green calf, smooth spine cracked and with losses, marbled paper boards, original printed wrappers preserved, binding of the period.

Lower board tending to detach.

The Venetian historian Ronaldo Fulin (1824–1884) produced numerous publications and original studies based on the exceptionally rich holdings of the Archivio di Stato of Venice.

The question addressed in this communication is linked to the presumed relations between Columbus and Venice (see the accompanying letters).

Copy from the library of the celebrated Americanist Henry Harrisse (1829–1910), a specialist...

First edition of the French translation.

Contemporary half vellum binding, smooth spine gilt with a small fleur-de-lis ornament at the foot, black shagreen title label, marbled paper sides.

The sole edition of this version (a portion had already been made available to the French public in 1837 under the title Histoire de la fondation de la Régence d'Alger). Alphonse Rousseau (1820–1870), first interpreter at the French General Consulate in Tunis, later served as Consul General.

Modern Pierre Libaude bookplate pasted to a free endpaper; a few minor spots.

Rare first edition (see Cordier, Japonica 583; Nipponalia I, 2073. Neither of these bibliographies mentions the map. Polak 8448).

Contemporary half cherry-red calf, spine slightly faded, with four raised bands gilt with dotted tools and fillets; light rubbing to the spine, red paper-covered boards, corners slightly bumped, speckled edges.

Occasional light foxing; a pale dampstain affecting the opening leaves and the folding double-page map showing the plan of the Strait of Shimonoseki.

This work relates the Anglo-French naval campaign of 1862–1863, by Alfred Roussin (1839–1919), a naval officer who commanded the frigate...

Rare first edition of this project, whose development was certainly collective (with contributions from several democrats, including Frédéric Charrassin, Charles Fauvety, Adolphe Louis Chouippe, and Alexandre Erdan), but which was authored by the neo-criticist philosopher Charles Renouvier (1815–1903).

Bound in contemporary half cherry-colored sheepskin, with a smooth spine adorned with gilt fillets; some rubbing to the spine and boards. Marbled paper over boards, handmade laid paper endpapers and pastedowns, modern bookplate affixed to the front pastedown, slightly bumped corners, minor tears to the joints, speckled edges. Original binding.

Minor, insignificant foxing.

First edition of this Latin work devoted to the history of the ancient Mediterranean: Sardinia and the influences of Greece, North Africa, the Syrtes and Numidian tribes, the history of the tyrant of Syracuse, the Balearic Islands, Corsica, the island of Rhodes, and more (cf. Adams, L-704. See Durling, 2796, which records only later editions).

Restored full brown calf binding, spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt tools now largely softened, blind fillets and gilt corner ornaments framing the boards, central gilt medallion enclosing a device in Greek characters, manuscript inscription on the fore-edge, early binding.

Ink numbering at the head of the verso of the...

First edition, illustrated at the close of the volume with six plates printed out of text.

Only three copies recorded in the CCF (BnF, Institut, Strasbourg).

Our copy is preserved in its original state, issued in a temporary paper wrapper.

Spine restored at head with small losses; marginal losses to the soiled covers; two small adhesive strips along the right margins of the final plate; author’s name and title pencilled on the upper cover.

The study of Phoenician languages was the speciality of Auguste-Célestin Judas (1805–1873).

First edition, printed in a small run, of this offprint from the Journal des savants.

Work illustrated with a finely engraved plate printed outside the text.

Some scattered foxing internally and to the wrappers.

Appointed in 1820 to the chair of archaeology at the Sorbonne, succeeding Quatremère de Quincy, Désiré Raoul-Rochette (1789–1854) was chiefly known for his expertise in Greek antiquity. He also served as curator of the Cabinet des médailles.

On the upper cover, authorial presentation inscription from Désiré Raoul-Rochette to the physician and botanist Henri Dutrochet (1776–1847), the discoverer of the phenomena of exosmosis and...

First edition, illustrated with a large folding colour map printed out of text (cf. Tailliart 2645).

Bradel binding in half blue percaline, the smooth spine slightly sunned, the brown skiver lettering-piece lightly rubbed, marbled-paper boards, blue endpapers and pastedowns showing a few small spots, corners softened, top edge sprinkled.

A few light spots.

The only edition of this comprehensive survey of the state of Algeria, published after the death of Jules Ferry (17 March 1893), the driving force behind the senatorial commission that had commissioned the work. It serves as a reminder that Ferry was a staunch advocate of France’s colonial expansion and of the mission...

First edition, illustrated with a frontispiece and four plates after drawings from life by Voutier, engraved on copper by Normand fils (cf. Loukia Droulia, 429; Blackmer, 1750; not in Atabey).

Half black shagreen binding, spine restored, with four raised bands ruled in triple gilt fillets, aubergine paper boards, boards faded, gilt armorial device stamped to the upper cover, modern bookplate pasted at the head of a pastedown, contemporary binding.

Scattered foxing.

"Voutier went to Greece in 1821 and acted as ADC to Mavrocordatos on the Peta campaign" (Leonora Navari).

Distinguished provenance: copy bearing...

First edition, illustrated with four tinted plates, including a frontispiece (cf. O'Reilly & Reitman, Tahiti, 6452).

Contemporary half plum sheep, the spine faded and decorated with gilt garlands and floral tools, some rubbing to the spine, marbled-paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, a few worn spots along the edges.

Scattered foxing, the plates evenly toned.

The work offers a history of the island, written in the aftermath of its annexation following the cession of his domains by King Pomare V. It provides an overview of the voyages of Quirós, Wallis, Bougainville and Cook, a portrait of Tahitian life a century earlier, and a sketch of the island’s...

First edition of these observations and proposed reforms concerning the Navy. Pierre-Alexandre Forfait (1752–1807) served as Minister of the Navy from November 1799 to October 1801.

Contemporary full fawn calf, mottled and polished, smooth spine tooled with gilt decorative compartments and false bands, red shagreen lettering-piece, joints lightly rubbed, boards framed with delicate gilt rolls, a few abrasions and small losses to the leather at the lower edges, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, corners softened, all edges gilt, a period binding.

Pierre-Alexandre Forfait (1752–1807) served as Minister of the Navy from November 1799 to October 1801.

Forfait and Bonaparte...

First separate edition, the text having previously appeared in the series Philipp's new voyages and travels (London, 1820–1823) (cf. Cordier, Sinica, 308).

Bradel-style binding in full grey boards, smooth spine, title label, sprinkled edges; a modern binding.

An exceptionally early account of the coastal region between Macao and Canton, published anonymously despite the initials J.R. at the end of the preface (this J.R. served as supercargo on the ship The Friendship).

Unique ensemble of works devoted to the philanthropic achievements of the Marquise d'Aligre (1776–1843).

Full olive-green calf, the spine slightly darkened, with five raised bands framed by triple gilt fillets and decorated with double gilt panels; gilt roll tools on the partially worn headcaps, rubbing to joints, gilt scrolling borders on the covers, gilt armorial device stamped at the centre of the upper cover, large blind-stamped fleuron at the centre of the lower cover; marbled endpapers and pastedowns, gilt dentelle border on the pastedowns, gilt edges somewhat dulled on the board edges, all edges gilt; lower corners softened; contemporary binding.

A few scattered...

Rare first edition, illustrated with two vignettes: one on the title page and another at the head of the opening text leaf (cf. Backer & Sommervogel VII, 185, no. 58.)

See Brunet, "Recherches sur les imprimeries imaginaires, clandestines et particulières", p. 19.

Printed on the private presses of the Turin Court of Appeal, the work offers a detailed account of the miraculous phenomena reported in Rome between July 1796 and January 1797. The author rebuts, in particular, the sceptical reactions of the "fiers à bras du philosophisme".

Our copy is preserved in its original drab paper wrappers, the spine cracked, the covers soiled, a few spots, a pale dampstain at...

Exceptional album comprising 54 original caricatures, some captioned, executed in India ink, pencil, and watercolour (including three small pencil sketches on loose leaves), together with several blank leaves.

This entertaining and highly personal album, evidently compiled by an amateur artist, appears to chronicle the various adventures and misadventures of a small cast of recurring characters, all seemingly connected in one way or another with the French Embassy to the Ottoman Porte, as suggested by a piece of official letterhead inserted between two leaves.

Contemporary full ivory vellum with yapped edges, smooth spine ruled in red, a restored split at the head of the...

First issue of the fifty large hors-texte lithographs drawn from life by Henry John Terry (cf. Vicaire, VII, 1164).

Publisher’s binding in full red cloth, smooth spine decorated with blind-ruled compartments and fillets, light rubbing to the head- and tailcaps, gilt-lettered title on the front board, yellow endpapers, trace of a removed bookplate on one pastedown, one lower corner softened, slight discoloration to the lower left corner of the rear board, occasional marginal foxing, a small loss to the foot of page 119, and minor wormholes at the foot of the last three leaves, not affecting the text.

The fifty striking black lithographs depict the most...

Very rare first edition.

This printing does not include the two maps later added by the publisher in the second issue, intended to illustrate the itinerary for readers who had not acquired the atlas (corresponding to plates XVIII and XXIV of the atlas), cf. Hage Chahine 3995. Röhricht 480-481. Chadenat 1712.

The text volume is largely unopened and includes one full-page plate.

The atlas volume, housed in a red full-cloth box and slipcase, is complete with all 27 plates (numbered I to XXVI, XVIII [bis]; plates XIX-XX are printed on a single sheet).

A very fine and rare copy in its original condition.

First edition of the French translation (cf. Atabey, 557 (text) and 569 (atlas). Blackmer, 788 (atlas). Hage Chahine, 2105.)

Contemporary half brown shagreen, spines uniformly sunned and faded, raised bands framed with black fillets, marbled paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers, gilt edges; a few lightly rubbed corners, one small defect to the foot of the edges of the fifteenth volume.

Some light foxing in the text volumes.

The atlas volume, folio, is issued in parts under ten beige paper wrappers with printed blue labels; the wrapper of part 6 is lacking; the general map of the Ottoman Empire has been restored in the final part; light foxing to the covers.

The...

A substantially posthumous publication, prepared by Ayres de Sá from the notes and papers of the second Viscount of Santarém (1791–1856), who, in addition to his diplomatic and political roles amid the turbulent struggle between Marianist and Miguelist factions in Portugal, was the first historian to develop the study of cartography in a methodical manner.

The work is illustrated with 97 plates in the first volume and 40 plates in the second.

Cherry half-shagreen bindings with corners, spines with five raised bands framed by black fillets and showing some rubbing, marbled paper sides, a scratch to the left margin of the upper cover of the first volume, endpapers and pastedowns...

New edition, partly original, revised, corrected and enlarged.

Bound in full red morocco, spines with five raised bands decorated with gilt garlands and compartments adorned with crowned “LL” monograms, gilt rolls on the caps, triple gilt fillets framing the covers, gilt armorial stamps of Louis XV at the centre of each board, gilt dentelle border on the turn-ins, gilt fillets along the edges, marbled edges. Slightly rubbed corners. Contemporary bindings.

Some leaves slightly yellowed, minor paper flaw on page 101 of the second volume.

Extensive and highly useful table of contents at the end of the second volume. Jean-Antoine Soulatges, lawyer at the Parliament of...

First edition, illustrated with a single folding plate bearing two figures: a plan of Algiers and its surroundings (cf. Quérard IV, 343 : does not record the plate and gives xlviii pp. for the "pièces à l'appui" indeed, p. xlviii carries, like the final leaf, the printer's address. Tailliart 2420 : does not record the plate).

Minor marginal losses to the spine and boards, a few light spots.

"Causes de la rupture avec Alger. Historique des rapports de la France avec Alger. Les torts des représentants d'Alger dans la Régence pendant ces dernières années. Ultimatum. Blocus. Nécessité d'une enquête ou au moins d'une information spéciale avant d'entreprendre une expédition...

Very rare first edition of the new laws enacted in 1775 by Catherine II, Empress of Russia, here translated into Turkish for the recently annexed Turkic-speaking provinces taken from the Ottoman Empire.

The work is divided into two parts: the first, dated 12 November 1775, comprises the first 28 chapters (pp. 1–190); the second contains chapters 29 to 31 (pp. 191–248).

Contemporary-style half mottled sheep with small corners, unlettered spine with five raised bands decorated with double gilt fillets and gilt thistle tools, marbled paper boards, red edges, modern binding.

Pale marginal dampstaining to the upper right corner of the initial leaves.

First edition of this splendid lithographed album by A. Bayot, Eugène Cicéri, and Morel Fatio, comprising a lithographed title on a tinted background, a line-engraved map by Avril, and 15 color lithographs on tinted grounds.

Contemporary black half shagreen binding with corners, spine with five raised bands and blind-stamped double fillets, cherry-red shagreen title label (with minor losses) mounted on the upper cover, black paper-covered boards, white moiré silk endpapers and pastedowns, endpapers slightly foxed and creased, all edges gilt, the binding recently restored.

Scattered foxing, a few faint marginal dampstains, one stain at the head of the final plate.

...

First edition.

Contemporary half calf in a bronze tone, the spine with four raised bands framed by double gilt rules and gilt pointillé work, together with broad black fillets; joints rubbed, marbled paper sides, marbled endpapers, edges sprinkled; a period binding.

Scattered foxing.

Second edition, partly original as it was revised and enlarged, and the most complete form of this celebrated manual of local law for the island of Réunion (cf. Ryckebusch 2407; Toussaint & Adolphe D439).

The work is illustrated with three folding tables inserted out of text (two in the fifth volume, one in the last).

Contemporary half-sheep bindings in dark green, smooth spines gilt-tooled with dotted ornaments, fillets and garlands, gilt rolls at head and foot, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges.

Some rubbing to a few headcaps and spines, the upper headcap of the sixth volume torn, restorations to several spines.

Very rare first edition of this splendid photographic album, produced in Cairo in 1871, representing the first illustrated catalogue of the earliest museum devoted to Egyptology.

The photographs by Hippolyte Delié and Émile Béchard depict the rooms and antiquities of the Boulaq Museum, founded in Cairo in 1863 by the eminent Egyptologist Auguste Mariette (1821–1881).

The album comprises forty albumen prints (approx. 24.5 × 18 cm), mounted on thick card leaves set on guards, each accompanied by a letterpress commentary leaf (except plates 4 and 11, which each have two). The prints are mounted on the versos of the plates, the rectos bearing the printed captions.

New edition, embellished at the close of the first volume with a folding plate printed out of text (cf. Palau 17346).

Cherry half-shagreen bindings, spines with four raised false bands decorated with gilt fillets and double gilt panels, gilt lettering at the foot of the spines, slight rubbing to the headcaps, blind-tooled frames on the textured cloth boards, pebble-paper endpapers and pastedowns, a few bumped corners, period bindings.

Rear board of the first volume partially soiled.

New edition prepared under the supervision of the physician Rafael Ángel Cowley Valdés-Machado (1837–1908) and Andrés Pego, gathering three major sources for Cuban historiography: José...

Rare first edition (cf. Tailliart 2391).

Backstrip skewed and untitled, with a few losses and small tears to the board corners; light dampstaining at the head of the opening leaves, otherwise a clean and pleasing copy.

The author served as a military intendant and published several concise monographs on fortification and military administration.

Second edition, partly original as it was revised and substantially expanded (cf. Ferguson 7152a; Lacassagne 47).

Half black shagreen bindings, spines with four raised bands decorated with gilt rules and double gilt panels, boards framed with a single blind rule over marbled paper, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges, period bindings.

A few minor spots.

This second edition was issued simultaneously either in a single volume with continuous pagination or in two volumes with separate pagination (our copy, see Ferguson 7152).

Bénigne-Ernest Poret, Marquis de Blosseville (1799–1886), was a legitimist politician and man of letters. He was active in...

First edition (cf. O'Reilly, 2192.)

Modern Bradel binding in brown half-cloth, forest-green morocco lettering-piece, marbled paper boards, beige endpapers and pastedowns, original wrappers retained albeit lightly soiled; binding signed by Boichot.

Illustrated with 49 photographic plates hors texte.

"Minutieuse histoire analytico-chronologique des trente premières années de la Calédonie européenne. Il annonçait une suite qui n'a jamais vu le jour" (O'Reilly).

First edition of this rare work, offering the very first description in French of this small canton, still nominally under Ottoman rule—though in fact largely autonomous—and which appeared as exotic to early 19th-century Westerners as the most remote corners of China.

Illustrated with 13 hand-coloured plates, including a large folding map, two botanical plates, two depicting celebrations, three views of churches, and five costume plates. (cf. Atabey 1286. Lipperheide 1443. Not in Blackmer or Colas.)

Contemporary half calf binding, smooth spines decorated with gilt fillets, garlands, and floral tools, red morocco lettering-piece, black morocco...

First edition of the earliest of the four works devoted by the deputy Amédée Desjobert (1796–1853) to the situation in Algeria (the second concerns the year 1838 – see below –, the third 1844, and the last 1846) (cf. Tailliart 2333).

Contemporary full tree-calf bindings, smooth spines gilt with garlands, fillets and floral tools, the gilt sometimes a touch dulled, red morocco lettering-pieces, green morocco volume labels slightly faded at the margins, marbled endpapers, gilt fillets to the board edges, marbled edges, modern bookplates mounted to the endpapers, contemporary bindings.

A few small losses to the leather on the boards, the half-title to the first work wanting, a...

First edition, illustrated at the end of the volume with four hors-texte plates printed on chamois paper.

Not recorded by Brunet, who lists the author’s principal works.

Scattered foxing, including to the boards.

The orientalist Michelangelo Lanci (1779–1867) produced a fascinating blend of genuine erudition and improbable conjectures, shaped by the pre-critical and broadly concordist mindset then prevailing without challenge in the learned circles of pontifical Rome (Lanci being a subject of the Pope).

This largely accounts for the profound neglect into which most of his works have since fallen.

Prisse d’Avennes (1807–1879), who had worked with Champollion...

First edition published anonymously, the work of the Bayonne man of letters Coste d'Arnobat (1732–1808), probably based on accounts provided by English merchants (cf. Barbier IV 1060).

Contemporary half sheep in dark brown, smooth spine tooled with gilt floral motifs, gilt initial “V” at the foot, some rubbing to spine and joints, a small marginal loss at the head of the spine, marbled paper boards, yellow sprinkled edges.

A dampstain affecting the folds of the final ten leaves.

An account of Bambouc, a region of Upper Senegal particularly noted for its gold mines and inhabited by the Mandinka people.

This narrative, later translated into German, offers highly...

First edition, illustrated at the end of the volume with tables printed on two large folding plates included in the pagination (cf. Ferguson 2165a.)

Contemporary half bordeaux shagreen, the spine very lightly faded, with five raised bands framed by black fillets, marbled-paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, original wrappers marginally soiled and showing small preserved restorations, edges untrimmed, modern binding signed Laurenchet.

Botany Bay, on the eastern coast of Australia, had been chosen in 1787 by the British government as a place of deportation. This study seeks to demonstrate the ineffectiveness of penal colonies at a time when the proposal to...

Second edition, partly original as it is considerably expanded (cf. Sabin 59254, Howes 7805, F. Monaghan 1171).

Half black shagreen binding, smooth spine decorated with gilt double fillets and a gilt pastoral motif, a restored tear to the headcap, black paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, contemporary binding.

Scattered foxing.

Provenance: Copy from the library of Marquis Claude-Emmanuel-Joseph-Pierre de Pastoret (1755–1840), with his heraldic device gilt-stamped at the foot of the spine.

First edition (cf. Tailliart 2540).

Quarter shagreen in a dark bottle-green hue with corner pieces, the smooth spine slightly toned and decorated with blind fillets, marbled paper sides, cat’s-eye patterned endpapers and pastedowns, modern binding signed Honnelaître.

A light marginal dampmark at the foot of the half-title and title pages; scattered, unobtrusive foxing.

The author (1781–1852) was a colonial administrator: "Une introduction de trente pages sur les erreurs de la politique suivie à l’égard des Arabes : trop de faiblesse chez nous ; de glorieuses expéditions, mais pas de résultat positif durable. Il attaque Bresson qui a préconisé la formation d’un empire...

First edition, illustrated with 12 in-text reproductions of coins.

Contemporary half Russian-cherry morocco over marbled boards, smooth spine gilt with a floral tool, date gilt at foot, marbled paste-paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, gilt edges at head.

Sole edition, uncommon.

Henri Lavoix (1820–1892) served as curator of the Department of Medals and Antiquities at the Bibliothèque nationale.

At the head of the half-title, which shows heavy foxing, signed presentation inscription from Henri Michel Lavoix to the archaeologist Alban-Emmanuel Guillaume-Rey (1837–1916), a specialist in medieval Syria and in particular the Frankish settlements...

Rare collection, in first edition, of political texts relating to the affairs of Belgium (shaken by the Brabant Revolution since 1787) and the Netherlands (whose opponents of the Stadtholder had often taken refuge in France).

As indicated by the handwritten table bound at the beginning of the volume, this copy constitutes only the first of a series of collections compiled by Roederer (see below) from the memoirs and pamphlets he received while serving as a member of the Constituent Assembly.

Contemporary full mottled fawn calf, smooth spine gilt-decorated with garlands and urns (partly faded), rubbed head- and tailpieces, green morocco title-piece, gilt dentelle and garland...

Rare first edition comprising a fine series of 40 two-tone lithographs by Yuko Watanabe depicting Japanese types, scenes of traditional life, costumes, and more: Ronin, hara-kiri, samurai, the attack on Shogun Nobunaga, a geisha’s visit, young women paying a call, a game of go...

Not in Colas, nor Hiler & Hiler; lacking from the Bn; not in Nipponalia or Cordier. Wenckstern, I, p. 228 (gives the Yokohama address, undated, and mentions two volumes, the second—of which no trace could be found—containing 25 plates).

Bound in full beige cloth, smooth spine without lettering, lithograph mounted on the upper cover; twentieth-century binding.

Minor tears affecting three...

First edition of the French translation by Jean Mourier.

Only one copy listed in the CCF (BULAC).

Full burgundy cloth binding, smooth spine with gilt lettering running lengthwise, pink paper pastedowns and endpapers, a modest modern binding.

Some light, insignificant foxing.

Very rare work tracing the origins of the Kingdom of Georgia up to the introduction of Christianity.

First edition.

Copies recorded in the Catalogue collectif de France only at the BnF, Versailles, and Bar-le-Duc libraries.

Half bottle-green shagreen binding, spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt dotted rules and floral tools, blind-stamped frame on bottle-green grained cloth boards, gilt initials stamped at the centre of the upper board, white moiré silk endpapers and pastedowns, all edges gilt. Slight rubbing to the corners, a handsome contemporary binding.

The Courrier de Lyon case dates back to the period of the Directoire (April–October 1796). The execution of Joseph Lesurques was soon regarded as a major miscarriage of justice, and his family spent more...

Rare first edition illustrated with 31 figures in the text.

Contemporary half blond calf, the spine slightly sunned, with five raised bands decorated with gilt and black fillets, fawn morocco lettering-piece, marbled paper sides, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled comb-marbled edges.

Christophe-Edouard Mauss (1829–1914), architect to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, undertook several archaeological missions in the Levant (Salonika, Smyrna, Alexandria) before being sent by the French government to Jerusalem (1862–1874) to restore the Church of Saint Anne.

He was also deeply interested in ancient metrology, on which he wrote several monographs (the final...

Very rare first edition.

Only three copies recorded in the CCF (BnF, Sainte-Geneviève, CNAM).

Half blond calf, spine lightly sunned, with five raised bands decorated with gilt and black fillets, tan morocco lettering-piece, marbled paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, mottled comb-marbled edges, original front wrapper preserved; contemporary binding.

The architect of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Christophe-Edouard Mauss (1829–1914), undertook several archaeological missions in the Levant (Salonika, Smyrna, Alexandria) before being sent by the French government to Jerusalem (1862–1874) to restore the Church of Saint Anne. He also developed a...

Very rare first edition of this address delivered on the seventy-eighth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

No copy listed in the CCF. Not in Sabin.

Rear wrapper missing, a few minor marginal foxings.

Born in Pennsylvania, David Lawrence Gregg (1819–1868) was appointed by President Franklin Pierce to negotiate the annexation of the Kingdom of Hawaii with King Kamehameha III, a mission that ultimately failed. The king died on December 15, 1854, and the attempts to integrate Hawaii into the United States were abandoned by his successor, Kamehameha IV.

First and only edition of the author's sole work.

Adorned with a fine engraved portrait of Jacques-Nicolas Colbert (1655–1707), youngest son of the minister and Archbishop of Carthage, to whom the book is dedicated.

Bound in full red morocco, spine with five raised bands, richly gilt compartments decorated with gilt fleurs-de-lys, gilt fillets, and Du Seuil-style panels on the covers; gilt tooling to headcaps and board edges, all edges gilt. Contemporary binding.

Some foxing, small wormholes at head and foot of spine, three black spots at the head of the upper cover.

Provenance: from the library of Alfred Massé (1911–1951), Radical-Socialist deputy for Nièvre under...

First edition illustrated with 24 plates, including 18 views and cross-sections, and 6 folding maps and plans (cf. Tailliart, 1229).

Half brown shagreen binding, spine faded with five raised bands, gilt date at foot, marbled paper boards, brown endpapers and pastedowns, modern binding signed Honnelaître.

First and last leaves lightly and partially soiled.

This volume gathers the official reports of the exploration mission led by Mircher (1820–1878), Vatonne, and Polignac, which departed from Tripoli in 1862 and returned via El-Oued after signing a trade treaty with the people of Ghadamès and the Tuareg. This agreement enabled the inclusion of the locality within Algeria...

Rare first edition with bilingual text (French with facing Italian translation).

Our copy is preserved in its original state, uncut and unbound in temporary dominoté paper wrappers (with pen and black ink accounts and trials on the verso of the second cover). Minor foxing.

Only one copy recorded in the CCF (Avignon). Not listed in Starace.

A very rare collection documenting a little-known aspect of the famous "Miot decrees", which have given rise to much commentary, though only concerning their fiscal and customs provisions.

The regulatory activity of this unflinching State official extended into many other areas. When he disembarked from the Hirondelle on 25 March...

First edition of this collection of political speeches.

Full red percaline binding, smooth spine without lettering showing slight rubbing, gilt inscription stamped to the upper cover: "République de Guinée R.D.A. à S.E. Jean Paul Sartre. N°30"; endpapers partly toned, a contemporary presentation binding offered to Jean-Paul Sartre.

Frontispiece photographic portrait bearing the autograph signature of President Ahmed Sékou Touré: Secretary General of the Parti Démocratique de Guinée, Supreme Leader of the Revolution.

First edition of the French translation.

Full flexible bottle-green cloth binding, smooth spine with rubbing, author's name and title gilt-stamped on the upper cover, some surface wear to the boards, wrappers preserved.

First edition illustrated with three folding plates.

Half vellum binding, smooth spine, gilt initials at foot, black sheep title label with some rubbing, red sheep year label, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, restored original wrappers preserved, contemporary binding.

Rare Saigon printing. This uncommon directory was published under this title until 1888; in 1889 it became the Annuaire de l'Indo-Chine française.

Rare and sought-after first edition, first issue.

Includes the subscribers' list and the foreword, later removed when the remainder of this edition passed into the hands of another publisher, Dion-Lambert. It also features the pagination error in volume two: page 164 instead of 364. 

Black half-morocco bindings, smooth spines with double gilt fillets and double blind-stamped compartments, black paper boards...

Very rare complete set of this economic and commercial publication, issued from 1879 to 1938, providing the most detailed information on all aspects of trade and production in Cochinchina.

The set includes 78 folding tables (one folding table from the second volume is detached).

According to the CCF, only the BnF holds a series comprising several volumes, and even that collection is incomplete.

Contemporary bindings in half Havana sheep, smooth spines decorated with triple gilt fillets, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns.

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...

First edition of these significant memoirs by a close companion and comrade-in-arms of Napoleon Bonaparte.

Half aubergine sheep bindings, smooth spines slightly faded and decorated with gilt romantic arabesques, some rubbing with small losses to a few spines and joints, embossed aubergine paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, marbled edges; romantic bindings of the period.

Some foxing, a light marginal dampstain on the final leaves of volume 8.

A pleasant set, attractively bound in contemporary romantic bindings.

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

Crease to the upper left corner of the lower cover and the last leaves.

Illustrations.

Precious inscribed copy to Bernard Kouchner: "To my dear friend Bernard always true to his beliefs and a great partner. With deep admiration and affection. Madeleine 15/11/03."

First illustrated edition, with four folding plates bound at the end of the volume (cf. Tailliart 1979).

Contemporary half green calf binding, flat spine faded and yellowed, decorated with a gilt cartouche and ornamental tooling at head and tail, caps trimmed, joints fragile, marbled paper boards, hand-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges, period binding.

Some foxing.

In fact, this pamphlet was intended as the first of a series, hence the general title; however, only this installment was ever published. The secondary title specifies the subject of the volume: "Relation d'une excursion de Bône à Guelma et à Constantine, par sir Grenville Temple et le...

First edition illustrated with six folding lithographed plates (cf. Tailliart 1862).

Contemporary full tan sheepskin binding, smooth spine decorated with gilt fillets and floral motifs, partially faded, brown morocco title label, some rubbing to the spine, surface abrasions to the boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, marbled edges, contemporary binding.

Two library ink stamps on the endpaper, a few small spots of foxing inside.

A work serving both as a firsthand account and a collection of documents (from page 109 onward) on the events surrounding the conquest of Algiers.

Pierre-Paul Denniée (1781–1848) was Chief Intendant of the Army of Africa.

First edition, no deluxe copies printed.

A pleasant copy.

Inscribed and signed by Yves Coppens to Emile Noël.

First edition, with no copies printed on deluxe paper.

Minor spots to the covers, not affecting the condition.

Inscribed and signed by Georges Didi-Huberman to a friend named Annick.

A collection of 59 manuscript letters sent to his family representing approximately 180 pages, mostly octavo, most written on mourning paper, sometimes on letterheads notably from the Ministry of the Navy.

The collection is contained in a modern red cloth box with a black title label.

A Polytechnique graduate and marine artillery officer, Gustave Borgnis-Desbordes (1839-1900) is known for having led, from 1880 to 1883, three expeditionary columns across Upper Senegal and Upper Niger, these operations having enabled the construction of several military forts, a railway and a telegraph line of more than seven hundred kilometers linking Bakel (on the Senegal) to Bamako. He then...

First edition illustrated with a large folding map at the end of the volume (cf. Cordier, Indosinica, 1628 and 2533).

Half sheep binding in burgundy, flat spine decorated with two double gilt fillets, gilt title running lengthwise, marbled paper boards marginally faded with a loss at the foot of the upper cover, minor rubbing to the boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, contemporary binding.

A restored loss in the blank margin of the title-page.

Our copy is complete with its large map drawn and lithographed by R. Hausermann, folded, together with 5 full-page figures.

Rare issue consisting of an extract from l'Exploration, revue géographique.

A...