Lettres philosophiques, sérieuses, critiques, et amusantes, traitant de la Pierre Philosophale, de l'incertitude de la médecine, de la félicité temporelle de l'homme, de la nature de l'ame...

First edition. Dorbon no. 4403: "rare, full of singular documents." Caillet [III, 9922] 
Contemporary full brown calf binding. Spine gilt-tooled in compartments. Brown morocco title-piece. Loss at head of spine. Corners worn and somewhat clumsily restored. A filled loss on lower cover. Scattered foxing. A waterstain at one corner of the final leaves. Several gatherings protruding. 

A collection of letters to a fictitious addressee; the epistolary form allowing free discussion on all subjects—magic, sorcerers, cuckoldry, the philosopher’s stone, whether the dead return... The epistle is signed L. C. D. T., the Comte du Tonneau. Indeed, Abbé Saunier had begun composing his collection and certain of his letters in response to the impious questions raised by Swift’s Tale of a Tub. This work is especially valued for its philosophical letter on the Philosopher’s Stone, in which the author examines the possibility of its existence and cites the alchemical writings of Lull, Hermes Trismegistus, Espagnet, Arnaud de Villeneuve, Flamel, and Trevisan.