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Renaissance & Modern Times

16th-18th centuries: humanism, religious wars, Renaissance to Enlightenment society, history, letters and arts of the Ancien Régime

715 results
  1. Encyclopediana, ou dictionnaire encyclopédique des Ana
    Jacques LACOMBE

    Encyclopediana, ou dictionnaire encyclopédique des Ana

    Chez Panckoucke|à Paris 1791|20 x 26 cm|relié
    First edition. According to the preface, it was intended to complement L'Encyclopédie méthodique published by Panckoucke.
    Contemporary full brown sheep binding. Raised band spine decorated with fillets. Red morocco title-label. Small lacks to head and tail. Rubbing. Traces of old restorations to corners and tail. First three leaves (including endpaper) creased.
    The Anas, which were particularly popular in the 17th century, are collections of various thoughts, anecdotes and witticisms, arranged in the greatest disorder and intended for the public as intellectual entertainment. The originality of this work lies in having assembled them in dictionary form, though without citing the authors. The whole forms a monumental ana which can thus be browsed from beginning to end, with pleasure, surprise and instruction: it should be noted that history and historical figures are given pride of place.
    €500
  2. Histoire de la Maison de Montmorenci.
    Joseph-Louis Ripault DESORMEAUX

    Histoire de la Maison de Montmorenci.

    Chez Desaint • Saillant et Duchesne|à Paris 1764|10 x 17 cm|5 volumes reliés
    First edition.
    Contemporary full blonde calf binding. Spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt compartments and fleurons, with blonde and citron morocco title and volume labels. All edges speckled red. Headcap of second volume worn. Spines of third and fifth volumes showing worm damage. Worming not affecting text in second, third and final volumes. The house of Montmorency was one of the most prestigious families of the French nobility and provided France with several constables, the most illustrious being the Renaissance prince: Anne de Montmorency. The five volumes are divided as follows: The first volume is devoted to a genealogy and chronology of the Montmorency from 960 until 1531, shortly before Anne became Constable, that is to say the highest function after the king. The second volume contains the life of Anne and that of François, marshal of France, from 1494 until 1579. The third volume is occupied by several biographies: Henri, Constable of France; Charles Duke of Amville, grand Admiral of France; & that of Henri II, Duke of Montmorenci, from 1547 until 1632. The fourth and fifth volumes contain the life of François-Henri de Montmorenci, Marshal Duke of Luxembourg, from 1628 until 1695. It is in the first volume that one will find the general history of the Montmorency, notably on the Middle Ages where the Montmorency worked with brilliance, but Desormeaux's work does not claim to be exhaustive, having made choices, notably biographical ones; however the work, of great quality, is undoubtedly the best that has been devoted to this illustrious family which merges so well with that of France; thus this anecdote is told that when in 1764 the duchess of Montmorency presented Désormeaux's work to Louis XV, asking: "Does His Majesty know the history of the house of Montmorency?" the King replied: "Madame, I know the history of France."
    €700
  3. Nouvelle fortification françoise, espagnole, italienne & hollandoise
    PFEFFINGER

    Nouvelle fortification françoise, espagnole, italienne & hollandoise

    Chez George Gallet|à Amsterdam 1698|11 x 19.50 cm|relié
    First edition, rare, decorated with a frontispiece by Picart as well as 46 folding plates depicting fortification diagrams. Title page in red and black.
    Contemporary full brown calf binding. Spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt compartments and fleurons, as well as a red morocco title label. Headcaps absent, headband of the top headcap half detached. A small lack at the foot joint level. Corners bumped. Surface wear.
    Practical treatise on fortification with methods of fortifying in France, Spain, Italy and Holland. The work is composed of a lexicon, practical maxims on measurements and the manner of fortifying and defending. One will note with interest in the different sections, choice of terrain, etc., the marked emphasis on geometry; this indeed seems to be the most original characteristic of this fortification treatise. One will therefore find in this work little discourse, but concrete elements of measurements and use of geometry to differentiate the methods of fortifying.
    €800
  4. La coûtume de la prevosté et vicomté de Paris
    Pierre LE MAISTRE

    La coûtume de la prevosté et vicomté de Paris

    Chez Guillaume Cavelier • et chez Charles Osmont|à Paris 1700|25 x 39 cm|relié
    Rare first edition.
    Contemporary full brown sheep binding. Spine with five raised bands richly decorated and bearing a red morocco title label. Lacks at head and foot clumsily restored, same for corners. Scuffing and cuts to front cover. Some very minor dampstains.
    A banner bearing Charles Osmont's address has been pasted over the publisher's address; on the recto of the page one can make out in reverse "Chez Guillaume Cavelier 1700" (we do not know the reason for this substitution, or perhaps Charles Osmont shared this edition and sold it himself). A fresh copy.
    €800
  8. L'Ecole des jeunes demoiselles ou Lettres d'une mère vertueuse à sa fille.
    Abbé REYRE

    L'Ecole des jeunes demoiselles ou Lettres d'une mère vertueuse à sa fille.

    Chez Varin|Paris 1786|10 x 16 cm|deux volumes reliés
    New edition.
    Contemporary full speckled blonde sheep bindings. Smooth spines decorated with blonde and black morocco title and volume labels, with gilt compartments and fleurons. All edges red. Head joint cracked on the second volume. Headcaps rubbed. Surface wear. One half-title leaf probably lacking. A small wormhole affecting the first leaves of the second volume. A work of pedagogy and morality consisting in the education of young girls.
    €100
  10. Les recherches de la France
    Étienne PASQUIER

    Les recherches de la France

    Chez Martin Collet|Paris 1633|22 x 34.40 cm|relié
    New edition, reprint of the first edition in ten books published in 1621; illustrated with a portrait by Léonard Gautier and a large vignette with royal arms. Title page in red and black. Printed on fine paper.
    Contemporary half calf binding. Decorated spine with raised bands. Red morocco title label. Head worn. Upper joint cracked at head. Rubbing to boards. Corners slightly bumped. An encyclopedic and highly celebrated work, Les recherches de la France stands out among all works of this kind for its radical novelty. Pasquier can be considered the father of modern history, History emerging then as a discipline and departing from legend and literature. Chapter VII, quite different from the others since those focused on research into the Antiquity of France, concerns itself with the formation of the French language; one part is devoted to the Pléiade, of which Pasquier was a member. Chapter VI already dealt with the origin of French poetry. "A unique monument raised to antiquities, the Recherches comprise, through their variety and boldness, everything that a scholar of the 16th century could aspire to." Robert Barroux (archivist of Paris and historian).
    €950
  11. Les arts au Moyen-âge et à l'époque de la Renaissance
    [Paul LACROIX as] BIBLIOPHILE JACOB

    Les arts au Moyen-âge et à l'époque de la Renaissance

    Firmin Didot|Paris 1874|20 x 29.70 cm|relié
    Fifth edition statement. Edition illustrated with 19 chromolithographs and 400 wood engravings.
    Publisher's binding in imitation of great Grolier-style bindings. Half dark green shagreen with shagreen-textured cloth boards. Corners slightly bumped. Very occasional light foxing.
    The interest of this work manifests itself both through its erudition and its accessibility and readability (historical anecdotes...). We owe it to Paul Jacob, who was a great bibliophile, a writer and scholar, and the curator of the Arsenal library. If the entire series has become a great classic in the field, it is because it successfully combines the work of publisher, printer, bookbinder, historian, illustrators, and documentation, and few books have ultimately achieved this amalgamation that we owe to Firmin-Didot, at a time when books had become quite mediocre.
    €350
  12. La vie de Frédéric, baron de Trenck, écrite par lui-même
    Frédéric Baron de TRENCK

    La vie de Frédéric, baron de Trenck, écrite par lui-même

    Imp. de Claude Lamort|Metz 1788|10.50 x 18.50 cm|2 volumes reliés
    Third edition, largely original as it is corrected and considerably expanded.
    Bradel binding in full boards covered with marbled paper, smooth spines slightly browned, small harmless paper lacks at foot of spines, two corners slightly bumped, bookplates pasted to verso of front boards.
    Some light foxing, final leaves marginally stained with corner lacks not affecting text on last page.
    €80
  13. L'Arétin moderne
    DU LAURENS ABBÉ

    L'Arétin moderne

    Bibliothèque des Curieux|Paris 1920|14.50 x 23.50 cm|relié
    New edition, conforming to the first edition published in 1763, one of 10 numbered copies on Arches paper, the only deluxe copies.
    Bradel binding in full paper, smooth spine, hazelnut shagreen title-label with minor marginal scratches, original wrappers preserved, contemporary binding.
    Work illustrated with a frontispiece portrait of the author.
    Introduction and bibliography by Radeville and Deschamps.
    €120
  14. Sciences et lettres au Moyen-âge et à l'époque de la Renaissance
    Paul LACROIX

    Sciences et lettres au Moyen-âge et à l'époque de la Renaissance

    Librairie de Firmin Didot|Paris 1877|20 x 29.70 cm|relié
    First edition, magnificently illustrated with 13 chromolithographs and 400 wood engravings in-text. Publisher's binding in its most luxurious version by Lenègre in half red shagreen richly decorated with a Souze plate, a plate also found on the red shagreen-textured percaline boards; binding evoking the rich Renaissance bindings of Grolier type. Gilt edges. Minor rubbing at foot. Very handsome copy, with some scattered foxing in the margins. The interest of the work manifests itself both through its erudition and its accessibility and readability (historical anecdotes...). We owe it to Paul Jacob, who was a great bibliophile, writer and scholar, and keeper of the Arsenal library. If the entire series has become a great classic in the field, it is because it successfully combines the work of publisher, printer, bookbinder, historian, illustrators, and documentation, and few books have ultimately achieved this amalgamation that we owe to Firmin-Didot, at a time when books had become quite mediocre. One will note the presence in the sciences of the study of alchemy and occult sciences, and a chapter on heraldry.
    €400
  15. La Jurisprudence des donations entre vifs, suivant l'usage de tous les Parlements sièges du Royaume, soit pays de droit écrit, soit pays coutumiers
    Pierre ROUSSILHE

    La Jurisprudence des donations entre vifs, suivant l'usage de tous les Parlements sièges du Royaume, soit pays de droit écrit, soit pays coutumiers

    Chez Pierre Delaire|Avignon 1771|9.50 x 16 cm|3 volumes reliés
    Rare first edition published in Avignon.
    Contemporary full marbled havana sheep binding. Smooth spines decorated with gilt compartments and floral motifs, red morocco title and volume labels. All edges red.
    Sheep somewhat faded in places. A small hole to each spine of volumes II and III. Note: The half-title page of the first volume has been placed in the third, the publisher having covered the mention of "volume one" with a label in the same typography indicating "volume three".
    €200
  16. Histoire du calvinisme
    Louis MAIMBOURG

    Histoire du calvinisme

    Chez Sébastien Mabre-Cramoisy|à Paris 1682|19 x 26.50 cm|relié
    First edition, illustrated with a handsome frontispiece title by Sevin, engraved by S. Gautrel, a title headpiece by Pollain engraved by Le Pautre, 7 decorative initials and 6 large and handsome tailpieces, as well as 6 historiated headpieces at chapter openings by Pollain. Printer's device on title page. A rather carefully produced edition, finely ornamented and illustrated, with wide margins.
    Contemporary full brown sheep binding. Raised band spine decorated. Red morocco title label. Worn headcaps. Upper joint cracked. 2 corners slightly bumped.
    This history of Calvinism presented as a major heresy generated numerous complaints among Protestants; it takes the form of a chronicle, from the year 1520 to the Edict of Nantes in 1598. In the foreword, the author recalls that he has just been expelled by the Pope from the Jesuit order to which he belonged; indeed, his virulent defense of Louis XIV, which he reiterates in this work, placed him in direct opposition to the Pope. The work also presents the history of the League and events in the history of Protestantism in France.
    €550
  17. Memoires de la cour de France, pour les années 1688 & 1689
    Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne LA FAYETTE

    Memoires de la cour de France, pour les années 1688 & 1689

    Chez Jean-Frederic Bernard|à Amsterdam 1731|9.50 x 16 cm|relié
    First edition, illustrated with a frontispiece by Bernard Picart, engraved by Buisson. Title page in red and black.
    Full red morocco binding from the late 19th century. Spine decorated with 5 small fleurons. Gilt title. Interior roll. Top edge gilt. Very fine condition.
    As announced in the preface, Madame de La Fayette wrote memoirs from her youth, but the manuscripts were lost, and only these few extracts remain. These historical memoirs, quite classical in execution, deal with the internal and external affairs of the kingdom of France; the style is lively, incisive, mixing more intimate chronicles and great affairs of the kingdom.
    €1,000
  19. Vie et voyages de Christophe Colomb d'après des documents authentiques tirés d'Espagne et d'Italie
    Antoine-François-Félix ROSELLY DE LORGUES

    Vie et voyages de Christophe Colomb d'après des documents authentiques tirés d'Espagne et d'Italie

    Laplace, Sanchez & Cie|Paris s. d. [circa 1880]|16.50 x 25 cm|relié
    New edition decorated with illustrations by Rouargue. Half red shagreen binding, spine with four raised bands decorated with richly ornamented gilt double compartments, gilt dots at head and tail, minor rubbing to headcaps and joints, blind-ruled frames on red paper boards, cream watered silk endpapers and pastedowns, all edges gilt. Occasional foxing.
    €70
  20. Traitez du douaire, et de la garde-noble et bourgeoise, qu'on appelle bail en plusieurs coutumes
    Philippe RENUSSON

    Traitez du douaire, et de la garde-noble et bourgeoise, qu'on appelle bail en plusieurs coutumes

    par La Compagnie des libraires|à Paris 1724|18.50 x 25.50 cm|relié
    New edition, after the original published in 1699. The second part is announced by a half-title.
    Contemporary speckled brown calf binding. Richly decorated spine with raised bands. Red morocco title label. Various rubbing. Good copy.
    Renusson devoted several works to family law including this treatise on dower rights, which concerns the property that a husband will leave to his wife in case of death. We distinguish customary law, thus fixed by custom, and contractual law, that is to say fixed by contract. Dower is a fundamental element of marriage law under the Ancien Régime.
    €350
  21. Institutionum oratorium libri duodecim
    QUINTILIEN

    Institutionum oratorium libri duodecim

    Apud Jacobum Estienne|Parisiis [Paris] • (Paris) 1715|9 x 17 cm|2 volumes reliés
    Edition produced by Charles Rollin under the direction of Jacques Estienne, with notes and commentary by Charles Rollin.
    Contemporary full brown sheep binding. Decorated spine with raised bands. Red morocco title-label. Headcaps slightly worn. Rubbing. 6 corners bumped. Pale yellow dampstain in margin of certain leaves in volume 2, extending into the text. Rather good copies, fresh.
    The Institutio Oratoria is Quintilian's fundamental work. It goes beyond the framework of a rhetoric manual and has durably influenced all questioning strategies (judicial procedure, investigations...); its influence is still perceptible today, it was decisive for the Renaissance which devoted a veritable cult to it. Quintilian was himself the son of a lawyer and orator.
    €300
  22. In quatuor libros institutionum imperialum commentarius academicus & forensis
    Arnold VINNIUS

    In quatuor libros institutionum imperialum commentarius academicus & forensis

    Apud Hieronymi Verdussen|Antverpiae [Antwerp] • (Anvers) [Antwerp] 1692|17 x 23.50 cm|relié
    New edition. Text in two columns.
    Contemporary full calf binding. Richly decorated spine with raised bands. Red morocco title-label. Tail headcap worn. 2 corners rubbed and bumped. Rubbing and some stains to boards. No endpaper at rear, only on pastedown.
    A work whose commentaries are highly regarded, the work of one of the greatest jurists of the Dutch school.
    €400
  23. Institutiones ac meditationes in graecam liguam
    Nicolas CLENARD

    Institutiones ac meditationes in graecam liguam

    Apud Iannem Houze|Lutetiae Parisiorum [Paris] • (Paris) 1581|16.50 x 23.50 cm|relié
    New edition, after the original published in 1530. Printer's device on the title page. The same edition also appeared from Le Bé's press on the same date, and many times in the 16th century. A second title page bears the title: Meditationes graecanicae in artem grammaticam (p.273).
    Full blonde calf binding from the 17th century. Spine with raised bands decorated with a pattern of fleur-de-lys in each compartment. Boards decorated with a pattern of fleur-de-lys and rich decorative gilt board-edges with the inscription in gilt letters on the upper board: Academie d'arras. Edges gilt. Tail headcap torn off. Lower joint split at tail. One corner cut. Missing marbled endpaper pasted to the first blank endpaper, at beginning and end of volume. 2 pale dampstains on title page and some yellow dampstains in margins; top and left margins of about twenty leaves frayed by 0.5 cm due to old dampstaining that weakened the paper. Rubbing, some surface wear on boards. Copy trimmed rather short. Rich 17th-century binding, but with defects.
    Famous work that enjoyed immense popular success of this Greek grammar by the philologist Nicolas Clénard, whose master was Henri Estienne. The Latin is in roman characters and the Greek in italics.
    €1,200
  24. Memoires du Mareschal de Bassompierre contenant l'histoire de sa vie. et de ce qui s'est fait de plus remarquable à la cour de France pendant quelques années.
    François Maréchal de BASSOMPIERRE

    Memoires du Mareschal de Bassompierre contenant l'histoire de sa vie. et de ce qui s'est fait de plus remarquable à la cour de France pendant quelques années.

    Chez Pierre Marteau|Cologne 1665|7 x 13 cm|relié
    First edition, rare. It was printed in Leiden by the heirs and widow of Jean Elzevier. It should be noted that another edition with the same date published by Pierre Marteau has a different collation: (2) 501pp. and (2) 493pp. and therefore seems to contain less text than the one we present; this is an unexplained curiosity.
    Bound in contemporary marbled blonde sheep. Spine with raised bands decorated with compartmentalized fleurons. Red morocco title label and black morocco volume label. Head of volume 1 partially split; a lack at the head of volume 2 and one at the tail. A 1.5cm lack along the upper joint (bookworm damage). Corners mostly bumped. Volume I slightly larger by 0.5cm than volume II. A translucent ink stain on the title page of volume II on the fleuron. Rather fresh copy.
    Bassompierre was imprisoned at the Bastille in 1631 for participating in the Day of the Dupes; he devoted his twelve years of detention to writing his memoirs (Journal de ma vie) then his embassies, which would appear in 1668. In addition to being one of the most accomplished gentlemen of his time, Bassompierre pursued two brilliant and parallel careers under Henry IV and Louis XIII, military and diplomatic. These memoirs have always been particularly appreciated, they bear the seal of bitterness from imprisonment and are the work of a great French gentleman.
    €500
  25. Concubitus sine lucina, ou le plaisir sans peine. Réponse à la lette intitulée Lucina sine concubitu
    Richard ROE

    Concubitus sine lucina, ou le plaisir sans peine. Réponse à la lette intitulée Lucina sine concubitu

    S. n.|à Londres [London] 1750|10 x 17 cm|relié
    French first edition.
    Contemporary full marbled and glazed calf binding. Raised spine decorated with 5 fleurons. Red morocco title-label. One crack to the lower joint at head.
    Response to the letter addressed to the Royal Society of London by John Hill, in which he affirmed and demonstrated that a woman can conceive and give birth without carnal commerce, and that he could thus restore honor to those women who had given birth without having had commerce with their husbands; this response is satirical and full of humor, mocking Hill's system, which, it must be remembered, he had only written to take revenge on the Royal Society of London which had refused his candidacy.
    €300
  29. Lettres de la marquise du Deffand à Horace Walpole écrites dans les années 1766 à 1780, auxquelles sont jointes des lettres de madame du Deffand à Voltaire écrite dans les années 1759 à 1775
    DU DEFFAND

    Lettres de la marquise du Deffand à Horace Walpole écrites dans les années 1766 à 1780, auxquelles sont jointes des lettres de madame du Deffand à Voltaire écrite dans les années 1759 à 1775

    Firmin-Didot frères|Paris 1864|12 x 19 cm|2 volumes reliés
    New edition, with some parts in first edition, as revised and completed from the original London edition of 1810.
    Half chocolate shagreen bindings, spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt floral motifs, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, corners slightly bumped, contemporary bindings.
    Some foxing.
    €80
  30. De sibyllinis. Aliisque quae Christi natalem praecessere oraculis.
    Isaac VOSSIUS

    De sibyllinis. Aliisque quae Christi natalem praecessere oraculis.

    E theatro Sheldaniano|Oxoniae [Oxford] • (Oxford) 1680|In 12|relié
    Second edition, rare, after the first published in 1679, also rare. Fine printer's device of Sheldon's theatre.
    Contemporary full brown sheep binding. Spine with raised bands, decorated. Joint split with lacks. Corners heavily bumped. Worn binding.
    Studies by the famous scholar and learned Isaac Vossius on the oracles and predictions that preceded the birth of Christ. Follow the objections and criticisms, then Vossius's response. At the end of his life, Vossius was settled in England where he was appointed canon of Windsor; this writing appears to date from his English period.
    €450
  31. Memoires de François Paul de Clermont, Marquis de Montglat, Mestre de Camp du Régiment de Navarre, Grand Maître de la Garderobe du Roi, & Chevalier de ses Ordres
    François-de-Paule de Clermont MONTGLAT

    Memoires de François Paul de Clermont, Marquis de Montglat, Mestre de Camp du Régiment de Navarre, Grand Maître de la Garderobe du Roi, & Chevalier de ses Ordres

    S. n.|A Amsterdam 1727|9 x 16.50 cm|4 volumes reliés
    First edition. A title vignette repeated on all four volumes, depicting Erasmus. Title pages in red and black.
    Contemporary full brown calf binding. Spine with raised bands richly decorated. Red morocco title and volume labels, decorated with roulettes. One lack to headcap of volume I due to worming, same to the last compartment. Dampstaining to upper board of volume II (darkened). 3 corners bumped.
    Essentially historical memoirs, the marquis de Montglat rarely puts himself on stage, carefully gathering the facts of his time, from 1635 to 1668; although the memoirs provide military details (campaigns between France and Austria), Montglat applies himself to unraveling the mechanisms of the court; the troubles of the Fronde are skillfully described and with much more impartiality than in all the memoirs of the time (Retz and associates). The preface that recommends the book is by Father Bougeant, a highly regarded Jesuit man of letters and historian, who applied himself to editing these memoirs very conscientiously.
    €550
  33. XVIIeme siècle, lettres, sciences et arts. France, 1590 - 1700
    Paul LACROIX

    XVIIeme siècle, lettres, sciences et arts. France, 1590 - 1700

    Librairie de Firmin Didot|Paris 1882|20 x 29.50 cm|cadeaux
    Second edition statement. Work illustrated with 17 chromolithographs and 300 wood engravings in the text (including 16 full-page). Title page in red and black. Fine luxurious production by Didot, carefully executed in all aspects (typography, illustration, paper...).
    Publisher's red half-shagreen binding with corners, spine very richly decorated by Souze, and bound by Engel. Fillets on boards. Corners rubbed, 2 small paper lacks on boards (edges). Very pale stain from old dampstain in right margin of some pages, but overall very fresh. Handsome copy, with decorative appearance.
    The work's interest manifests itself as much through its erudition as through its ease of approach and reading (historical anecdotes...). We owe it to Paul Jacob, who was a great bibliophile, writer and scholar, and curator of the Arsenal library. If the entire series has become a great classic in the field, it is because it happily combines the work of editor, printer, bookbinder, historian, illustrators, and documentation, and few books have ultimately achieved this amalgamation that we owe to Firmin-Didot, at a time when books had become quite mediocre.
    €350
  34. Les memoires de Messire Philippe de Commines, chevalier, seigneur d'Argenton : sur les faicts & gestes abbregees, de Loys xj. & Charles viij. son fils, rois de France: Auec la vie de mess. Angelo Cattho, archeuesque de Vienne: Plus, deux epistres de Iean Sleidan en la recommandation de l'autheur. Le tout reueu & corrigé de nouueau. Item, vn indice des choses plus remarquables
    Philippe de COMMYNES

    Les memoires de Messire Philippe de Commines, chevalier, seigneur d'Argenton : sur les faicts & gestes abbregees, de Loys xj. & Charles viij. son fils, rois de France: Auec la vie de mess. Angelo Cattho, archeuesque de Vienne: Plus, deux epistres de Iean Sleidan en la recommandation de l'autheur. Le tout reueu & corrigé de nouueau. Item, vn indice des choses plus remarquables

    Pour Jacques Chouet|s. l. • [Genève] [Geneva] 1593|8 x 14.30 cm|relié
    New edition of the version revised and corrected by Denys Savage with the epistles of Sleidan, which first appeared in 1552, in Paris.
    Contemporary limp vellum binding with ties. Manuscript title and date. Traces of ties. First blank leaf not bound in. Very pale dampstaining from p.280 to p.330. Good copy in its original binding.
    An essential work that gave birth to modern history, Commynes' work, which also establishes a rule of political conduct for the Grands of the kingdom, forms the greatest source for this period. From 1472 to 1483, after having been advisor to the Duke of Burgundy (Charles the Bold), Commynes entered the service of Louis XI, then Charles VIII and Louis XII. He distinguished himself through his diplomatic talents, notably in Italy; consequently, the Mémoires are also a history of Europe. Too often forgotten is that his exemplary career experienced an interlude of disgrace: opposing young Charles VIII through his liberal ideas, he rallied to the cause of the future Louis XII (plot aimed at removing Charles VIII). He was consequently arrested and imprisoned in an iron cage at Loches for five months, in 1488.
    Until today, the work still being studied, Commynes' Mémoires have never failed to achieve success and interest.
    €900
  35. Mémoires du ministère du Duc d'Aiguillon, pair de France, et de son commandement en Bretagne, pour servir à l'histoire de la fin du règne de Louis XV et à celle du commencement du règne de Louis XVI
    Emmanuel Armand de Vignerot DU PLESSIS DE RICHELIEU, Honoré Gabriel Riquetti Comte de MIRABEAU

    Mémoires du ministère du Duc d'Aiguillon, pair de France, et de son commandement en Bretagne, pour servir à l'histoire de la fin du règne de Louis XV et à celle du commencement du règne de Louis XVI

    Bureau de la collection historique des Mémoires relatifs au règne de Louis XV.|Paris 1790|12.50 x 21 cm|relié
    First edition. Posthumous publication by Soulavie.
    Contemporary full sheep binding. Smooth spine decorated with double gilt fillets, title-labels, headcaps worn, joints rubbed, numerous scuffs, corners slightly bumped.
    Emmanuel Armand de Vignerot du Plessis de Richelieu, duc d'Aiguillon, was appointed governor of Brittany in 1753; until 1770, he was in open war with the Parliament of Brittany, appointed by the king in a regional state that desired above all to preserve its privileges. Louis XV had to intervene several times in agreement with the duc d'Aiguillon. The memoirs record the numerous intrigues at court to destroy the duc d'Aiguillon. A final memoir concerns Louis XV's beautification projects in Nantes and Paris.
    €400
  36. Journal des choses mémorables advenuës durant tout le Regne de Henry III. Roi de France & de Pologne. Edition nouvelle, augmentée de plusieurs Pièces curieuses, & enrichie de Figures & de Notes pour éclaircir les endroits les plus difficiles
    Pierre de L'ESTOILE

    Journal des choses mémorables advenuës durant tout le Regne de Henry III. Roi de France & de Pologne. Edition nouvelle, augmentée de plusieurs Pièces curieuses, & enrichie de Figures & de Notes pour éclaircir les endroits les plus difficiles

    Chez les héritiers de Pierre Marteau|A Cologne • [Bruxelles] [Brussels] 1720|10 x 16.50 cm|4 parties reliées en 2 volumes
    New and rare edition, illustrated with 15 figures by Harrewyn, including 13 portraits. Title page of volume I in red and black. All first editions of this work were published by Marteau (Louis Elsevier); the true address of this one is unknown.
    This edition, after consulting copies recorded in libraries, does not always contain the figures, and when it does contain them (the British Library copy), only 13 are counted, without the two figures of the clement priest, and the one integrated in Les Sorcelleries de Henry de Valois. Furthermore, the notice to the binder shows only 12 portraits. All these figures are contained in volume I, volume II being occupied by the remarks of Duchat and Denys Godefroy and numerous texts that did not appear in previous editions.
    Contemporary full marbled blonde sheep binding. Spine with raised bands, decorated. Beige morocco title label. Upper joint of volume I cracked at head. Upper joint of volume II cracked at head and foot. Lower joint of volume II cracked.
    Collection of violently satirical and critical texts on Henry III, the queen mother, Queen Margot and the court; the whole originally formed in the 1621 enterprise only a few texts gleaned from Pierre de l'Estoile's notebooks by Louis Servin. Pierre de L'Estoile (1546-1611), Secretary to the King and Grand Audiencier of the Chancellery of France, was witness to all the events and intrigues of the reigns of Henry III and Henry IV. The number of texts was increased in numerous editions, letters of Henry IV, the Discours merveilleux (on Catherine de Medici, by Charles Estienne). The interest, naturally historical, of all these texts, often contemporary with the League, is the same as that found in the Satyre Ménipée, namely that the quality of the texts was due to great writers, such as D'Aubigné. Magistrate and secretary to the king, Pierre de l'Estoile began at the death of Charles IX the writing of his daily registers. These were not intended for publication, but they constitute today a precious testimony on the reigns of Henry III and Henry IV. Related in chronological order, the facts are seen according to contemporary public opinion and reveal the author's opinions, such as his rejection of religious fanaticism or his love of Letters (his library was one of the most considerable in Paris).
    €800
  37. Annales politiques
    Charles - Irénée CASTEL

    Annales politiques

    S. n.|Londres [London] 1758|10 x 17 cm|2 volumes reliés
    Second edition, after the first of 1757.
    Contemporary full calf binding. Smooth spine, decorated. Red morocco title label, and black morocco volume label. Two small tears with lacks on the upper cover of volume I. Handsome copy.
    Essay on political events in France from 1658 to 1739. Considering the bitter criticisms against Louis XIV whose policy Castel judged despotic, Castel's family preferred posthumous publication. The work is much more than a political essay, the events being only a pretext for the author to establish his economic and political theories specific to the Enlightenment. The essence of the author's thought being the happiness of peoples. He is the author of the famous "Projet pour une paix perpetuelle en Europe" premises of the future Europe (EEC). To situate the spirit of the character, let us recall that he was excluded from the French Academy for having criticized the way ministers were appointed by the king, when they should have been elected by a council.
    €550
  38. Mémoires de Henri-Charles de La Tremoille, prince de Tarente
    Henri Charles de LA TREMOILLE

    Mémoires de Henri-Charles de La Tremoille, prince de Tarente

    Chez J. F. Bassompierre|à Liège 1767|10 x 16.50 cm|relié
    First edition, relatively rare. Title page in red and black. This is the only early edition of these memoirs.
    Near-contemporary half speckled brown sheep binding. Spine with raised bands decorated with fillets.
    Henri Charles de la Tremoille is the 4th Duke of Thouars and Duke of La Trémoille, although he died before his father. He began his career with his uncle in Holland, the Prince of Orange. In 1651, he opposed Cardinal Mazarin and supported the Prince of Condé during the Fronde. He was arrested and imprisoned in Amiens in 1656. These memoirs are not merely an account of the events of the Fronde; they are also a political portrait of the high nobility staging itself, since this is an autobiographical work (whose original manuscript is held by the Bibliothèque Nationale). Father Griffet, responsible for the 1767 edition, would have deliberately published these memoirs to prevent the return to favor of the La Tremoille family. What the Duke of La Tremoille offers his children, since he announces that he writes essentially for them, is an example of life; addressed to his contemporaries, it is a political message.
    €450
  39. Recueil des Edits, declarations, lettres patentes, arrest et reglemens du roy; registrés en la cour du Parlement de Normandie, depuis l'année 1683. jusqu'en 1700

    Recueil des Edits, declarations, lettres patentes, arrest et reglemens du roy; registrés en la cour du Parlement de Normandie, depuis l'année 1683. jusqu'en 1700

    Chez Nicol. & Rich. Lallemant|à Rouen 1755|19 x 25.50 cm|relié
    First edition.
    Contemporary full calf binding, spine with five raised bands richly decorated, red morocco title label, green morocco volume label, rubbing, small lacks to corners of headcaps, gilt edges to leading edges, red edge, some scratches to boards.
    Pleasant interior condition.
    Census of all edicts concerning notably Protestants, classified by years and by district.
    €450
  41. Anecdotes piquantes de Bachaumont, Mairobert, etc, pour servir à l'histoire de la société française à la fin du règne de Louis XV (1762 - 1774), avec des notes et une table de bio-bibliographie.
    Jean GAY

    Anecdotes piquantes de Bachaumont, Mairobert, etc, pour servir à l'histoire de la société française à la fin du règne de Louis XV (1762 - 1774), avec des notes et une table de bio-bibliographie.

    Gay & Doucé|Bruxelles [Brussels] 1881|18 x 12 cm|relié
    First edition.
    Half blue cloth binding with imitation shagreen corners, smooth spine decorated with double gilt fillets.
    Frontispiece illustration by Carmontelle engraved by J. Chauvet, decorated initials.
    Bookplates on endpapers: Emile Abeele and Kraft de la Saulx. Foxing.
    €50
  42. Mémoires secrets sur l'établissement de la Maison de Bourbon en Espagne, extraits de la Correspondance du Marquis de Louville, gentilhomme de la chambre de Philippe V, et chef de sa maison française
    Marquis de LOUVILLE

    Mémoires secrets sur l'établissement de la Maison de Bourbon en Espagne, extraits de la Correspondance du Marquis de Louville, gentilhomme de la chambre de Philippe V, et chef de sa maison française

    Maradan|Paris 1818|12 x 19.50 cm|2 volumes reliés
    First edition.
    Half wine-lees calf binding with corners, circa 1900; skillful pastiche of an 1820 binding. Spine with false flat raised bands decorated with roulettes and fillets. Spine uniformly lightened, without consequence. A handsome copy.
    This military man was appointed head of the French Household of Philip V of Spain, the first Bourbon king of Spain (from 1700 to 1703). He would receive a new mission in Spain in 1716, as extraordinary ambassador. During three essential years, everything done at court passed through him. Here is what the Duke of Saint-Simon says about him in his memoirs: "To speak truly, he governed the king and Spain." These memoirs were written during the marquis's retirement and remained in manuscript form.
    Raymond Clavreuil bookshop label.
    €450
  43. La guerre d'Italie, ou memoires du Comte D ***. Contenant quantité de choses particulières qui se sont passées dans les cours d'Allemagne, de France, d'Espagne, de Savoïe & d'Italie
    Samuel GRANDCHAMP

    La guerre d'Italie, ou memoires du Comte D ***. Contenant quantité de choses particulières qui se sont passées dans les cours d'Allemagne, de France, d'Espagne, de Savoïe & d'Italie

    Chez Pierre Marteau|Cologne 1707|9 x 16 cm|relié
    New edition, after the original of 1702 published by the same publisher. Illustrated with four folding maps including one of Italy with its different kingdoms and republics.
    Contemporary full calf binding. Raised bands spine decorated. Red morocco title-label. A slight lack at head. Split to upper joint at foot. A tear to the Mantua map. Rubbing. Fairly good copy.
    The Italian war constitutes an excellent narrative, teeming with picturesque details; it begins in a most romantic manner before undertaking to recount the battles of Piedmont, Milan and Turin, and the political intrigues between Spain, France, the Duke of Savoy and the duchies of Italy. The work draws indeed from two registers, autobiographical memoirs and the historical genre, and one will find there amorous adventures, numerous travels and descriptions as well as a rigorous account of the battles and armies present in Italy.
    €550
  44. Memoires de Monsieur de Montresor
    MONTRESOR

    Memoires de Monsieur de Montresor

    Chez Jean Sambix|Cologne 1663|7.50 x 12.50 cm|2 volumes reliés
    First complete edition of these memoirs, which had appeared in expurgated form the previous year. The second volume, extremely rare and almost never found together with the first volume of the memoirs, appeared in 1665. Volume I bears no volume indication on the title page, volume II does; the publisher indeed deemed it appropriate after the fact to provide a sequel to the Memoirs by gathering various pieces.
    Contemporary full brown sheep bindings. Spine with raised bands decorated in the 19th century (pastiche) in shagreen.
    The Count of Montresor, Claude Bourdeille, was a seasoned conspirator, and we see him conspiring in all periods, against Richelieu, against Gaston D'Orléans, during the Fronde... He interested himself in all sorts of secrets and his memoirs, as well as the pieces contained therein, are rich testimony to this, from 1632 to the early years of the Fronde. The second volume is composed of various pieces, speeches by Montresor himself, letters and replies...
    €700
  45. L'ordene de chevalerie, avec une dissertation sur l'origine de la langue françoise. Un essai sur les étimologies. Quelques contes anciens. Et un glossaire pour en faciliter l'intelligence
    Étienne BARBAZAN

    L'ordene de chevalerie, avec une dissertation sur l'origine de la langue françoise. Un essai sur les étimologies. Quelques contes anciens. Et un glossaire pour en faciliter l'intelligence

    Chez Chaubert • Claude Herissant|Lauzanne [Lausanne] • (Lausanne) • & se trouve à Paris 1759|11.50 x 18 cm|relié
    First edition. Uncommon.
    Half glacé calf with corners, 19th century, signed Petit succ de Simier. Raised spine decorated in compartments. Fillets on covers.
    Etienne Barbazan (1694-1770) was a philologist specializing in medieval manuscripts, notably contributing to bringing forgotten texts back to memory and rehabilitating the Middle Ages in the field of research. L'ordene de chevalerie is a 13th-century text on the rules and ceremonies of chivalry, of which Barbazan would have had a manuscript in his hands. The work contains other 13th-century texts and a glossary.
    €300
  46. Les recherches de la France
    Étienne PASQUIER

    Les recherches de la France

    Chez Laurent Sonnius|à Paris 1607|17 x 23.60 cm|relié
    Edition with some parts in first edition, expanded with Book VII, a table of contents, numerous additions and a portrait of Pasquier by Thomas de Leu. This portrait had been created in 1583 in Troyes and had never been integrated into the editions. This is the last edition published during the author's lifetime.
    Contemporary full calf binding. Spine with raised bands richly decorated. A lack to head. A lack of leather to the last compartment. Upper joint cracked at foot and head. Wormholes to part of the upper board.
    Encyclopedic and highly celebrated work, Les recherches de la France stands out among all works of this kind for its radical novelty. Pasquier can be considered as the father of modern history, History then emerging as a discipline and departing from legend and literature. Chapter VII, quite different from the others since those focused on research into the Antiquity of France, examines the formation of the French language; a section is devoted to the Pléiade, of which Pasquier was a member. Chapter VI already dealt with the origin of French poetry.
    €1,000
  49. Recueil de differentes choses par le Marquis de Lassay
    Armand-Léon de Madaillan de Lesparre LASSAY

    Recueil de differentes choses par le Marquis de Lassay

    Chez Marc Michel Bousquet|à Lausanne 1756|10 x 17 cm|quatre volumes reliés
    New edition after the original of 1726 published in a very small print run on the château presses in quarto format.
    Bound in full glazed marbled blonde calf. Raised band spine decorated. Red morocco title label. Broken and missing corner to the upper board of volume I. Head caps partly worn on volumes I and II. Tail cap worn on volume II.
    Armand de Madaillan de Lesparre (28 May 1652 - 21 February 1738) is better known under one of his titles, marquis de Lassay. Aide-de-camp to the great Condé in 1672, man of letters, friend of the libertines of the 17th and 18th centuries, he became acquainted with madame de Maintenon during the salons held by her husband, the poet Scarron. Close to the princes de Condé and Conti, he departed with them to Austria to defend Vienna from the Ottoman Empire's attack, without Louis XIV's authorization. He led a very eventful life: his adventures caused a scandal and earned him the nickname "the Don Juan of the Grand Siècle". He gathered in his Recueil the pieces from his portfolio: his correspondence, anecdotes and maxims. The whole forms a unique and disparate composition, both a history book and a literary work.
    €550
  50. Les negociations de Monsieur le President Jeannin
    Pierre JEANNIN

    Les negociations de Monsieur le President Jeannin

    Chez Pierre Le Petit|à Paris 1656|25.50 x 37.50 cm|relié
    Rare first edition. Illustrated with a frontispiece portrait engraved on copper by Nanteuil and a large title vignette.
    Late 19th-century half tawny sheep binding with corners. Jansenist spine with raised bands. Small tear at headcap extending 1cm. A very fresh copy.
    These historical memoirs cover essentially the end of the 16th century and the beginning of Henri IV's reign, along with various later events (notably disputes between the queen and young Louis XIII). They contain, besides the narrative of events, various documents including numerous letters. Pierre Jeannin was initially a lawyer and student of the great jurist Cujas, becoming president of the parliament of Burgundy in 1580, then advisor to the Duke of Mayenne. His involvement in League affairs did not prevent him from becoming councillor of state and member of the finance council (1598). He negotiated the Treaty of Lyon with Savoy (1601) and became Henri IV's extraordinary ambassador to the revolted Netherlands in 1607. Upon the king's death, Marie de Medici appointed him superintendent general of finances.
    An index of key terms reveals behind the terminology used in negotiations the great figures of the French kingdom.
    €1,000
  52. Histoire de la ligue faite a Cambray, entre Jules II pape, Maximilien I emperereur, Louis XII roy de France, Ferdinand V roy d'Aragon & tous les princes d'Italie contre la République de Venise
    Jean-Baptiste DUBOS

    Histoire de la ligue faite a Cambray, entre Jules II pape, Maximilien I emperereur, Louis XII roy de France, Ferdinand V roy d'Aragon & tous les princes d'Italie contre la République de Venise

    Chez Chaubert|à Paris 1728|9.50 x 16.50 cm|2 volumes reliés
    New edition, after the original of 1710. Illustrated with 2 frontispieces representing Louis XII and Henry VIII in medallions.
    Contemporary full calf bindings. Spine with raised bands, decorated. Red morocco title and volume labels. 3 headcaps worn. Joints cracked and split at foot and headcaps. Rubbing.
    The League of Cambrai was formed on the initiative of Julius II and brought together all the princes of Europe with the aim of dismembering the Venetian empire. Julius II had secret intentions to turn the league against France after gaining the advantage over Venice. The conflict ended with the battle of Agnadel where Julius II won victory against the Venetians; despite numerous concessions from Venice, the Republic continued to prosper and shine while the King of France was led to war against his former allies.
    €300
  53. Oeuvres complètes de Boileau-Despréaux précédées des oeuvres de Malherbe suivies des oeuvres poétiques de J.B. Rousseau
    Nicolas BOILEAU DESPREAUX, François de MALHERBE

    Oeuvres complètes de Boileau-Despréaux précédées des oeuvres de Malherbe suivies des oeuvres poétiques de J.B. Rousseau

    Firmin Didot frères|Paris 1837|17.50 x 27.50 cm|relié
    Collected edition.
    Bradel binding in full dark brown cardboard, smooth spine faded with traces of rubbing and some losses, hazel shagreen title-label with Malherbe's name in gilt, corners slightly bumped.
    With an engraved portrait of Boileau as frontispiece.
    Printed in two columns.
    Copy almost entirely free from foxing.
    €120
  54. Vie privée du Marechal de Richelieu, contenant ses amours et ses intrigues, et tout ce qui a rapport aux divers rôles qu'à joués cet homme célèbre pendant plus de quatre-vingt ans
    Louis-François FAUR, Benjamin de LABORDE

    Vie privée du Marechal de Richelieu, contenant ses amours et ses intrigues, et tout ce qui a rapport aux divers rôles qu'à joués cet homme célèbre pendant plus de quatre-vingt ans

    Chez Buisson|à Paris 1791|12 x 20.50 cm|trois volumes reliés
    First edition, written according to Barbier (Dictionnaire des ouvrages anonymes) by Faur, and according to the BN de France by Faur or Benjamin de Laborde.
    Contemporary half blonde sheep bindings. Smooth spine with fillets. Marbled paper boards. Title and volume labels gilt. Stains on spines.
    The preface of the work indicates that the Memoirs of Richelieu are less a single biography of Richelieu than memoirs covering the end of the reign of Louis XIV, the Regency and the reign of Louis XV. The present work claims to remedy these memoirs and present the marshal as he truly was "it is the hero in undress that we present to the public". As the title indicates, besides his historical role, the book reveals the relationships that Richelieu maintained with women, "all women disputed over his heart... Loving them all, he claimed to owe them equal homage." The work contains a great number of original letters and private memoirs written by Richelieu, or addressed to Richelieu. A new type of historical work that would have a great future, the book through various perspectives attempts to paint clearly the man that Richelieu was, with his virtues and his vices.
    Stamp of Grande bibliothèque école libre N.D. de Mont-Roland on the half-title.
    €480
  55. L'été du nord, ou voyage autour de la Baltique par le Danemark, la suède, la Russie et partie de l'Allemagne dans l'année 1804
    John CARR

    L'été du nord, ou voyage autour de la Baltique par le Danemark, la suède, la Russie et partie de l'Allemagne dans l'année 1804

    Chez Chaumerot|à Paris 1808|13 x 20 cm|2 volumes reliés
    First edition. Illustrated with 2 folding frontispieces representing a view of Cronenbourg castle and one of Copenhagen. Translated from English by Bertin. The original English edition dates from 1805.
    Half brown shagreen cloth binding. Smooth spine with cold fillets and gilt titles. Fine copies.
    Travel account in the northern countries of Europe which were then little known to the English. The author, sir John Carr (1772-1832) dwells on the customs and traditions of the natives and blends picturesque and historical anecdotes into his narrative.
    €350
  56. Histoire de dona Olympia Maldachini, traduite de l'italien de l'abbé Gualdi
    [Gregorio LETI] Abbé GUALDI

    Histoire de dona Olympia Maldachini, traduite de l'italien de l'abbé Gualdi

    Chez Jean du Val|Leyde [Leiden] 1666|7.50 x 13 cm|relié
    First edition à la sphère. Rare. The work would appear in Italy, in Ragusa, the following year.
    Full brown calf binding ca 1820 signed Simier at foot. Spine with raised bands decorated with cold tooling in cross-hatched pattern, gilt fillets and roulettes. Cold-tooled geometric decoration framing the boards. Gilt edges. Rubbing. Slight leather loss at foot. Handsome copy.
    Grégorio Leti (1630-1701) is, under the pseudonym of Giulio Capocoda, the author of numerous anti-Catholic pamphlets. Capocoda converted to Protestantism and settled in Geneva. He later became historiographer to Charles II in England. The history of Donna Olympia tells the story of a courtesan at the court of Rome; in fact, the man who would become Pope Innocent X was her brother-in-law. It is said they were lovers. She schemed for her half-brother to become pope, and once he was in place, it was she who ruled the church, amassing an immense fortune by squandering the church's assets. The work details her biography up to her trial.

    NB: This work is available at the bookshop on request within 48 hours.
    €500
  57. Vie de Louis Balbe-Berton de Crillon : surnommé le Brave : et mémoires des regnes de Henri II, François II, Charles IX, Henri III et Henri IV, pour servir à l'histoire de son temps
    Marguerite de LUSSAN

    Vie de Louis Balbe-Berton de Crillon : surnommé le Brave : et mémoires des regnes de Henri II, François II, Charles IX, Henri III et Henri IV, pour servir à l'histoire de son temps

    Chez Pissot|à Paris 1757|9 x 16 cm|2 volumes reliés
    First edition. A folding portrait frontispiece. At the end of the work: "Piéces tirées des ouvrages faits à l'honneur du Brave Crillon, après sa mort," and "Histoire de la maison Balbe de Quiers." A table of contents allows one to follow and locate all the protagonists of this history.
    Contemporary full marbled calf bindings. Decorated spine with raised bands. Red morocco title and volume labels. Head headcaps worn. Joint cracked at head of volume I. Corners bumped on volume I.
    Historical work attributed to Mademoiselle de Lussan, which she certainly wrote in collaboration with Nicolas Baudot de Jully (1678-1759), historian and tax collector of Vendôme. Louis des Balbes Crillon was a famous captain who served successfully under several kings, including Henri IV, who called him 'The foremost captain in the world'. History remembered his valor and probity, notably during the assassination of the Duke of Guise and during the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre. He was from Provence and gave his name to a village that is famous today: Crillon le Brave.
    €550
  58. Les ordonnances du roy Charles neuviesme, à present regnant, faictes en son conseil : sur les plaintes, doleances & remonstrances des deputez des trois estats, tenus en la ville d'Orleans. Leuës & publiées en la cour de Parlement à Paris, le samedy treziesme jour de septembre, 1561
    CHARLES IX

    Les ordonnances du roy Charles neuviesme, à present regnant, faictes en son conseil : sur les plaintes, doleances & remonstrances des deputez des trois estats, tenus en la ville d'Orleans. Leuës & publiées en la cour de Parlement à Paris, le samedy treziesme jour de septembre, 1561

    Benoist Rigaud|à Lyon 1572|11 x 17 cm|broché
    New edition after the first published in 1561, Paris, for Jean Dallier. These ordinances were published several times, even after the king's death, the last one held by the BN de France dates from 1585.
    Contemporary stitching with reuse of leaves from a Latin incunable. 5 gatherings are bound together (and to the endleaves) with leather thongs, the first three gatherings now held together only by one stitch. A light dampstain at bottom right on the first 5 leaves, pale foxing on the title page.
    A table of contents, at the end of the work, allows one to find the various ordinances which concern all the trade guilds, the king's officers and the clergy. Charles IX was only ten years old when he acceded to the throne in 1560, during the regency of Catherine de Medici, who appointed Antoine de Bourbon Lieutenant General of the kingdom. It was during the meeting of the Estates General at Orleans, from 13 December 1560 to 31 January 1561, that these ordinances were proclaimed and published.
    €600
  59. Edict du roy, pour le restablissement & attribution de l'ancienne juridiction des Eleuz, & augmentation de leurq gages [...] [Ensemble] Edict du roy, sur la suppression de la multiplicité des presidens, Eleus, Thresoriers & Officiers és generalitez [...] [Ensemble] Edict du roy, contenant le restablissement des pres idens, Esleuz, & autres Officiers, par cy devant supprimez
    HENRI III

    Edict du roy, pour le restablissement & attribution de l'ancienne juridiction des Eleuz, & augmentation de leurq gages [...] [Ensemble] Edict du roy, sur la suppression de la multiplicité des presidens, Eleus, Thresoriers & Officiers és generalitez [...] [Ensemble] Edict du roy, contenant le restablissement des pres idens, Esleuz, & autres Officiers, par cy devant supprimez

    Fédéric Morel|à Paris 1584, 1588|9.50 x 16.50 cm|relié
    According to the privilege, the first edition dates from 1571, the second edition is found in first edition and the third was originally published in 1585.
    Contemporary full vellum binding, reusing a manuscript leaf. Crease along right edge. Corners folded on the first 23 leaves. First title page foxed.
    Collection of three ordinances concerning election officers, who were responsible for collecting taxes under Henri III. France was indeed divided into elections, ancestors of our departments, and the three ordinances which reintroduce, then abolish and reintroduce again the elected officials and presidents seem to show that tax collection and administration were not yet straightforward in the troubled period of the late Renaissance.
    €700
  60. Advis à Monsieur de Luynes : sur les libelles diffamatoires qui courent
    Charles d'Albert LUYNES

    Advis à Monsieur de Luynes : sur les libelles diffamatoires qui courent

    S. n.|s. l. • [Paris] 1620|10.50 x 17 cm|relié
    First edition. Rare.
    Half red percale binding, mid-19th century. Gilt title. Anonymous libel that appeared the day after the Duke of Luynes, favorite of Louis XIII, was made Constable. He is accused of all the evils that have befallen France since Louis XIII, and of serving only his own interests by ruining France and abusing so young a king. Charles d'Albert was made Duke of Luynes in 1619, and was the first of this line. Luynes nevertheless served the king skillfully by enabling him, through his intrigues against Marie de Medici and Concini, to accede to power, but gathering all the king's favors, he was hated by the people and many politicians such as Richelieu.
    €350
  61. Hector Fiéramosca ou le défi de Barletta, roman historique
    Massimo d' AZEGLIO

    Hector Fiéramosca ou le défi de Barletta, roman historique

    Hippolyte Souverain|Paris 1833|13 x 20.50 cm|2 volumes reliés
    First edition in French established by A.L. Blanchard.
    Half black sheep bindings, smooth spines decorated with cold-stamped tools and fillets as well as gilt fillets, headcaps and edges rubbed, marbled paper boards, corners slightly bumped, contemporary binding.
    Notice by A.L. Blanchard on the author and his father-in-law Manzoni preceded by an essay on historical novels by Paulin Paris. Foxing, first endpaper of the first volume lacking.
    Rare.
    €200
  64. Willem de Eerste
    Johann NOMSZ

    Willem de Eerste

    David Klippink|Te Amsterdam [Amsterdam] 1779|24 x 20 cm|relié
    Rare first edition absent from the catalogues of all major national libraries except the British Library. 25 fine plates by Buys engraved by Koming.
    Half marbled fawn sheep binding, smooth spine with 4 large stamps and multiple roulettes (later binding circa 1810). Title label torn, upper headcap damaged, small lack to tail, joints cracked, one tear to spine, otherwise handsome copy, very fresh internally.
    The work consists of an epic in verse and in 24 cantos of the life and exploits of William I of Nassau, Prince of Orange, Stadtholder of Holland, known as William the Silent.
    €500
  65. De l'estat et succez des affaires de France. Oeuvre depuis les précédentes éditions, augmenté, & illustré, contenant sommairement l'histoire des roys de France, & les choses plus remarquables par eux instituées pour l'ornement & grandeur de leur Royaume. Ensemble une sommaire histoire des seigneurs, comtes et ducs d'Anjou. Par Bernard de Girard, Seigneur du Haillan, secrétaire de monseigneur le duc d'Anjou
    Bernard de (Seigneur du Haillan) GIRARD

    De l'estat et succez des affaires de France. Oeuvre depuis les précédentes éditions, augmenté, & illustré, contenant sommairement l'histoire des roys de France, & les choses plus remarquables par eux instituées pour l'ornement & grandeur de leur Royaume. Ensemble une sommaire histoire des seigneurs, comtes et ducs d'Anjou. Par Bernard de Girard, Seigneur du Haillan, secrétaire de monseigneur le duc d'Anjou

    Chez Pierre l'Huillier|à Paris 1573|12.30 x 8 cm|relié
    New edition after the first edition of 1570 (privilege of 1572), the summary history of the counts of Anjou has its own title page. The edition includes a portrait of the author. Although this book was reprinted several times, the 16th-century editions are now quite uncommon. 4th edition 'of a work that was very successful and is still worth consulting.' Brunet II, 1612.
    Contemporary full brown sheep binding from the first half of the 19th century, spine with raised bands, fillets and date at foot. Copy trimmed short.
    Bernard de Girard (1535-1610) was born and died in Bordeaux, after having been secretary to François de Noailles and having made himself known as a poet and historian, he was appointed by Charles IX in 1571 as historiographer of France, then genealogist of the order of the Holy Spirit by Henri III. He was the first French writer to have composed a body of national history, and if he adopted certain fables, he rejected numerous generally accepted traditions.
    €800
  66. Theatrum funebre, exhibens per varias scenas epitaphia nova, antiqua, seria, jocosa, aevo, ordine, dignitate, genere, sexu, fortunâ, ingenio, adeò & stylo perquàm varia, cum summorum pontificum, imperatum, et regum galliae, succincta chronologia, eorumque symbolis ac apitaphis
    Otto AICHER

    Theatrum funebre, exhibens per varias scenas epitaphia nova, antiqua, seria, jocosa, aevo, ordine, dignitate, genere, sexu, fortunâ, ingenio, adeò & stylo perquàm varia, cum summorum pontificum, imperatum, et regum galliae, succincta chronologia, eorumque symbolis ac apitaphis

    sumpt & typis Joannis Baptistae Mayr|Salisburgi [Salzburg] • (Salzbourg) [Salzburg] 1673|19.80 x 15.50 cm|deux parties en un volume relié
    First edition. Rare. One copy at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France and one at Bristol in England, another in the catalogues of West Germany. A second edition appeared in 1675 with 2 new parts. 2 very handsome frontispieces
    Later full vellum binding. 20th-century black title-label and endpapers. Light worming on the first 2 pages and the last 5. Scattered foxing.
    Otto Aicher (1628-1705), Benedictine and professor, was an Austrian playwright, professor of rhetoric and grammarian, but also a historian. In this book he gathers epitaphs from all periods, notably of Roman emperors and kings, the whole constituting a theatre of death as epitaphs are like voices from beyond the grave, the epitaph being the last sign that the dead leave to posterity. Very interesting for measuring the relationship to death throughout history. Brunet I, 118.



    €750
  67. Ordonnances et édits notamment sur la criminalité et la gendarmerie
    HENRI II

    Ordonnances et édits notamment sur la criminalité et la gendarmerieRoyal Ordinances and Edicts, notably on Crime and the Constabulary : Edict Issued by the King Against All Murders and Assassinations Committed Daily in This Kingdom, Published by Public Proclamation by Order of the Parliament Court, Friday, Fifteenth of July 1547 [together with] New Ordinance of King Henry the Second, Issued on the 15th Day of November 1547, Concerning the Constabulary [together with] Second Letters Patent of King Henry the Second on the Matter of Frank-Fiefs and New Acquisitions Throughout the Kingdom of France, Published by Trumpet and Public Proclamation at the Crossroads of Paris, on the Eleventh Day of January 1547 [together with] Ordinances Issued by the King Concerning the Constabulary, Provisions and Supplies [together with] Ordinances and Edicts of King Henry on the Offices of Senior Provosts, Aldermen, and Other Civic Offices in the Cities of France. Published in Judgment by the Court of Parliament in Paris, on the 28th Day of November 1547.

    Pour Jehan André • Charles l'Angelié|à Paris 1547-1548|16 x 11 cm|relié

    Collection of 5 royal ordinances on various subjects.

    1/ Edict faict par le roy contre tous meurdres et assassinementz qui se commettent journellement en ce royaume, le vendredi, quinziesme du moys de juillet 1547. Title vignette with royal arms.

    2/ Ordonnance nouvelle du roy Henry deuxiesme de ce nom, faicte le XV jour de novembre, Mil cinq cens quarente sept:sur le faict de la gendarmerie.

    3/ Secondes lettres patentes du roy Henry Second de ce nom, sur le faict des francz fiefz & nouveaux acquestz par tout le royaume de France, publiées à son de trompe & cry public par les carrefours de ceste ville de Paris, le unzieme jour de janvier, l'an mil cinq cens quarante sept.

    4/ Ordonnaces faictes par le roy sur le faict de la gendarmerie, viures et munitions d'icelle. Vignette with royal arms.

    5/ Ordonnances & edicts du roy Henry sur les estats des prevostz majeurs, eschevins & autres charges & estatz des villes de France. Publié en jugement en la court de parlement a Paris, le XXVIII jour de Novembre, M.D.XLVII.

    Full vellum binding, re-used.
    It should be noted that it was during the time of Francis I and Henry II that absolute royal power was definitively organized, and ordinances in all domains bear witness to a king managing his kingdom.

    €1,200
  69. Le négociant philosophe, traduit de l'allemand par Doray de Longray, officier de cavalerie
    HIRZEL

    Le négociant philosophe, traduit de l'allemand par Doray de Longray, officier de cavalerie

    S. n.|à Amsterdam • [Rouen?] 1786|16.50 x 10.50 cm|relié

    Rare. We have found nothing concerning this work, absent from libraries.
    Half calf Romantic binding with corners in red, smooth spine with 4 tools and fillets. Foxing. One corner of the title page border reinforced.
    In the form of a tale and dialogue between a father and son, the author examines the nobility of character of a good merchant, how he should be a good father to his son and a good father to his country. Numerous passages on the importance of agriculture. « Ce travail lui donna des vues très étendues sur les rapports du commerce, avec le bonheur particulier & général des hommes? » (This work gave him very extensive views on the relationship of commerce with the particular & general happiness of mankind?).

    €300
  70. Masaniello, ou la révolution de Naples, fragment historique, traduit de l'allemand de M. Meissner
    August Gottlieb MEISSNER

    Masaniello, ou la révolution de Naples, fragment historique, traduit de l'allemand de M. Meissner

    S. n.|à Vienne [Vienna] • & se trouve à Paris 1789|22 x 14 cm|broché
    First French translation of this work originally published in German in Leipzig in 1784. In original wrappers, with decorative period wrapping paper, pages from other works have been used as endpapers. History of the revolt in Naples in 1646, by a poor fishmonger named Masaniello, who became leader of one hundred thousand men, against Spanish oppression as it was exercised at the time. The preface emphasizes the resonance of this text for us French who know similar periods. At the end of the work, Meissner has placed the articles of the new privilege granted to Naples by the Spanish crown.
    €200
  71. Recueil des edits, declarations, et arrest du conseil, rendus au sujet de la religion pretendue reformée. Depuis 1679 jusqu'à present
    ANONYME

    Recueil des edits, declarations, et arrest du conseil, rendus au sujet de la religion pretendue reformée. Depuis 1679 jusqu'à present

    chez Charles Saugrain|à Paris 1701|19.50 x 12.50 cm (In-8)|relié

    First edition. Bound at the end of the volume are 4 edicts with separate paginations, the last dated 20 January 1706.
    Contemporary full calf binding, spine with raised bands and gilt tooling. Red morocco title label partly lacking. Upper headcap partially torn. Lower headcap damaged with losses. Wormholes along the spine.

    NB: This work is available at the bookshop on request within 48 hours.

    €800
  72. Les chroniques de Jean Carion philosophe. Avec les faictz & gestes du roy françois, iusques au regne du roy Henry deuxieme de ce nom, à present regnant. Traduit en françois par Maîstre Iean le Blond
    Johann CARION

    Les chroniques de Jean Carion philosophe. Avec les faictz & gestes du roy françois, iusques au regne du roy Henry deuxieme de ce nom, à present regnant. Traduit en françois par Maîstre Iean le Blond

    Par Iean Ruelle|à Paris 1556|12 x 8 cm|relié

    The first French translation appears to have been published in 1549, simultaneously with the Latin translation from the German. Rare. Not recorded at the Bibliothèque nationale de France nor in English catalogues, with only one copy located at the municipal library of Lunel.
    Contemporary full calf binding, spine with raised bands and a paper title label. Covers decorated with a cold-stamped rectangular frame and fleurs-de-lis in the corners, with a central blind-stamped tool. Upper headcap torn away, two compartments and half of another lacking. One fleur-de-lis missing. Corners rubbed. A worm track in the lower margin from p. 12 to 32. A few light dampstains on about ten leaves. Contemporary annotations on the title-page.

    €900
  73. Déclaration du Roy contre les usurpateurs de noblesse, en interpretation de celle du huictième février mil six cent soixante-un
    LOUIS XIV

    Déclaration du Roy contre les usurpateurs de noblesse, en interpretation de celle du huictième février mil six cent soixante-un

    Par les imprimeurs & libraires ordinaires du roy|à Paris 1664|21.50 x 16.50 cm|broché
    First edition. In original wrappers, under chemise. Establishment of a commission against usurpers and obligation for the nobility to provide justifications for their titles since 1550. Those who will not be capable of doing so will be declared commoners and subject to a fine and tax. This declaration comes as a counterpoint to that of 1661.
    €450
  75. Le Chemin de la fortune ou les bonnes règles de la vie pour acquérir des richesses en toute sorte de conditions et pour obtenir les faveurs de la cour, les honneurs & le crédit , entretiens d'Ariste sur la vraye science du monde
    Charles SOREL

    Le Chemin de la fortune ou les bonnes règles de la vie pour acquérir des richesses en toute sorte de conditions et pour obtenir les faveurs de la cour, les honneurs & le crédit , entretiens d'Ariste sur la vraye science du monde

    Chez Jean Baptiste Loyson|à Paris 1663|15 x 9 cm|relié
    First edition. Rare. One copy at the university library of Tours, absent from the BN de France and the British Library, one copy in Edinburgh. Brunet does not cite this book among the works of Sorel.
    Contemporary full speckled brown sheep. Decorated spine with raised bands. Headcaps worn, upper joint cracked one-third down, corners slightly bumped. Attributed to Sorel by Barbier in the dictionary of anonymous works, the book treats an uncommon subject and a very free manner of making money in all trades and disciplines, from artisans to bankers and men of letters, the work extends its reflection to less official means such as court favors, inheritances. The whole constitutes an economic and moral portrait of 17th-century society quite interesting, and perhaps for the first time, considers money as a good destined to do good.
    €750
  77. Zodiaci vitae, hoc est, de hominis vita, studio ac moribus optime instituendo, libri XII
    Marcellus PALINGENIUS

    Zodiaci vitae, hoc est, de hominis vita, studio ac moribus optime instituendo, libri XII

    apud Ioannem Tornaesium • Gul. Gazeium|Lugduni [Leiden] • (Lyon) 1559|12 x 8 cm|relié
    New edition after the original of 1531. Brunet IV, 317. Caillet, 7096. Title page within an engraved border.
    Contemporary limp vellum binding with overlapping edges. Title (author) in black ink. Some red ink annotations on the endpaper facing the title concerning the book's history. Copy trimmed short on certain pages, notably of the index.
    Collection composed of 12 Latin poems on the liberal arts, human existence, and happiness, each corresponding to a sign of the zodiac. Due to the criticisms the book contains about the church and the pope, the 1531 edition was banned and the Inquisition kept a watchful eye on Palingenius's activities, until he was condemned to the stake. The 11th book deals with astronomy, and the 12th sets forth a theory of light that would be partly followed by Giordano Bruno. Marcellus Palingenius is the anagram of Pietro Angelo Manzolli.
    Ex libris Mathieu Varille Lyonnois.
    €600
  81. Clavis et fundamenta graeca linguae
    Eilhard LUBIN

    Clavis et fundamenta graeca linguae

    Lodovico Elzevirium (Elzevir).|Amstelodami [Amsterdam] • (Amsterdam) 1651|13.50 x 8.50 cm|relié
    First edition. Illustrated with a frontispiece.
    Full vellum binding with overlapping edges. Smooth spine with handwritten title. Endpapers renewed.
    Important Greek-Latin dictionary. The German humanist E. Lubin (1565-1621) taught poetics at the University of Rostock from 1595 to 1605 before becoming professor of theology. Fine Elzevier edition in small type. Between 1620 and 1680, Elzevier production experienced a golden age of typography. The origin of small formats and small type (a technical feat at the time) lay in cost considerations, as printing was then in crisis.
    €380
  86. L'estat et comportement des armes. Livre autant util, que necessaire à tous gentils-hommes, heraux, & officiers d'armes
    Jean SCOHIER

    L'estat et comportement des armes. Livre autant util, que necessaire à tous gentils-hommes, heraux, & officiers d'armes

    de l'imprimerie de Jean Mommart|Bruxelles [Brussels] 1626|15.50 x 19.50 cm|relié
    Second edition after the original of 1597, Brussels, in folio. Illustrated with 114 wooden coats of arms, genealogical trees. Title page in red and black. Printer's vignette on the title page. Decorated initials. The National Library of France possesses the edition of 1630 from Paris. No copy in French catalogues. The edition of 1597 and that of 1630 can be found at the British Library. One copy of the 1629 edition at Manchester.
    Contemporary rigid full vellum binding. Smooth spine with handwritten title (faded). An old dampstain at the bottom of the upper board.
    The work is one of the best heraldry books, and deals with the constitution of coats of arms and the significance of armorial bearings; it contains a method for drawing up genealogies and lineages, and establishes the transmission of arms. The work is also a manual of heraldic law. The arms of Jean Scohier are azure, three winged stags salient sable. 19th-century engraved bookplate with the quartered arms of the Duke of Guillaboz. A manuscript note on the endpaper: Bibliot. De Fontette. N°39986. Description of the three editions of 1597, 1629 and 1630.
    €700
  87. La sage folie de Spelte. Poëte & historiographe du roy d'Espagne. Traduite d'italien en françois par Louys Garon. [Première partie: La sage folie, fontaine d'allegresse, mere des plaisirs, reyne des belles humeurs : pour la defense des personnes Ioviales, à la confusion des archisages & protomaistres... Seconde partie : La delectable folie, support des capricieux, soulas des fantasques , nourriture des Bigearres : pour l'utilité des cerveaux faibles, & retenuë des boutadeux]
    Antonio Maria SPELTA

    La sage folie de Spelte. Poëte & historiographe du roy d'Espagne. Traduite d'italien en françois par Louys Garon. [Première partie: La sage folie, fontaine d'allegresse, mere des plaisirs, reyne des belles humeurs : pour la defense des personnes Ioviales, à la confusion des archisages & protomaistres... Seconde partie : La delectable folie, support des capricieux, soulas des fantasques , nourriture des Bigearres : pour l'utilité des cerveaux faibles, & retenuë des boutadeux]

    Chez Claude Larjot.|à Lyon 1628|9 x 15 cm|deux parties reliées en un volume
    First French edition. The first edition of the Italian text dates from 1607. Illustrated with two allegorical frontispieces signed Gr. Huret. Uncommon edition. One copy at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France from 1628, and another at the British Library. Nothing in French and English union catalogues.
    Contemporary full vellum binding with overlapping edges. Smooth spine with manuscript title partly illegible. Traces of ties. Scattered pale foxing.
    Antonio Maria Spelta (1559-1632) was a writer, scholar and historian from Padua, and it was while recalling Erasmus's Praise of Folly that he wrote this collection composed partly of reflections on madness, and partly on various subjects ranging from astrologers to hunters, including historical anecdotes. The first part tends more towards an eulogy of folly, despite the ever-present satire, while the second part presents a tableau of men and professions prey to madness, whimsy and vanity. Spelta's alert and biting pen perfectly captures the portrait of folly in its every guise. A singular work.
    €700
  88. Les voeux d'un patriote
    Pierre JURIEU

    Les voeux d'un patriote

    S. n.|à Amsterdam 1788|12.50 x 20 cm|relié
    Second edition of this text which was first published in installments in Amsterdam in 1689, under the title: Les soupirs de la France esclave, which comprised 15 memoirs. Only 13 memoirs are included in this collection.
    Contemporary full marbled calf binding. Smooth spine handsomely decorated with roulettes and fleurons. Tan morocco title label. Library label at head. Minor damage with losses to head of spine.
    Work by pastor and polemicist Pierre Jurieu (1637-1713), the Mémoires constitute a violent critique of Louis XIV's government. All the denounced abuses are found there, both of absolutism and of the Church's power. The author deplores the disintegration of the nobility and advocates the sovereignty of peoples and the subordination of kings to the Estates-General, principles that would be found again in the French Revolution. This is certainly why this reissue appeared in 1788.
    €450
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