Paris, Veuve Thiboust, 1764.
Folio [400 x 258 mm] of 8 pp., 7 pp. Full red morocco, triple gilt filet on the covers, crowned fleurs-de-lys on the corners and gilt coat of arms on the center, flat spine richly decorated, green morocco lettering piece, gilt inner border, gilt edges. Contemporary binding.
Partly first edition of this ode by Bernard on the rebuilding of the Pantheon as ordered by Louis XV by the architect Jacques Germain Soufflot.
“Jean-Baptiste Bernard, regular canon of Saint Genevieve, prior and priest of Nanterre, was born in Paris in 1710. He was chosen by his congregation to teach eloquence. Longing to have the double title of a poet and an orator, Bernard made himself known by his narrow-spread compositions, which gained the approbation of the critics from his time.
‘Ode sur le prix de sagesse’ that Louis, duke of Orleans, wanted to found in Nanterre, Paris, 1741, 12mo, was considered to be ‘one of the best that had been written since the great Rousseau’”.
Ode sur la reconstruction de l’église de Ste-Geneviève, that Bernard published in 1755, was reprinted in 1764 with changes and correction.
A precious copy for the history of Paris.
Printed on large paper, it was bound in contemporary red morocco with the arms of Madame Elisabeth.
“Elisabeth-Philippe-Marie-Hélène de France, eighth and last child of Louis, dauphin, son of Louis XV and Marie-Josèphe de Saxe, and sister of Louis XVI, called Madame Elisabeth, was born in Versailles on May 3rd 1764 and lived most of her life away from court, in her small house in Montreuil, solely dedicated to charity work; from 1789, this virtuous princess faced similar dangers than Louis XVI, refused to emigrate and was imprisoned at the Temple with the royal family. Charged with the accusation of having affairs with her emigrated brothers, she was sentenced to death by the revolutionary court on May 10th 1794 and guillotined the same day on the place de la Révolution.”
“Her collection of books, which contained books of faith, of history and of science, was moved to the Bilbiothèque Nationale; the volumes are generally of a simple binding, in marbled or granite-patterned calf; a few bear ‘Montreuil’ on the spine”.
(Olivier Hermal, planche 2531).
One of the privileged copy bound in contemporary red morocco.
Very rare provenance.
Copy mentioned by Olivier-Hermal, pl. 2531.
From the Béarn collection, 1st part, 1920, n°110.
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