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an old red book with gold trim and a crest on the covera close up of a book with writing on it
ALDE

59 - BOSSUET (Jacques-Bénigne). Exposition of the Doctrine of the…
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Estimate €2,000 - €3,000
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Description
BOSSUET (Jacques-Bénigne). Exposition of the Doctrine of the Catholic Church on Controversial Matters. Paris, Sébastien Mabre-Cramoisy, 1679. 2 parts in one in-12 volume, red morocco leather, triple gilt fillet, coat of arms in the centre, spine decorated with gilt fleurs-de-lis, inner lace, gilt edges (contemporary binding). A new edition of this work on religious controversy intended for Protestants who have converted to Catholicism. It is preceded by a lengthy preface and supporting documents following on from the Roman edition of 1678. The text was first published in 1671. A very fine copy in red morocco leather bearing the coat of arms of Louis II de Bourbon-Condé, known as the Grand Condé (1621–1686). Grandson of Henri de Bourbon (1552–1588), who had been the principal leader of the Protestant party during the Wars of Religion, Louis II de Bourbon was, in turn, the architect of the resounding French victory at Rocroi, a leading figure in the Fronde des Princes, an ally of the Spanish defeated by Turenne at the Battle of Les Dunes, and a prince stripped of his titles and sentenced to death. The Treaty of the Pyrenees finally secured him a pardon from Louis XIV, and he returned to France in 1659. In 1668, he was given a command in the king’s army. He then conquered Franche-Comté in less than a month, annexing it permanently to France, and retired, showered with honours, to his château at Chantilly in 1676. Bossuet and Louis II de Bourbon-Condé were very close. On the death of his friend, Bossuet composed one of his most famous funeral orations in his memory, the ‘Funeral Oration for the Most High and Most Powerful Prince Louis de Bourbon’, which he delivered at Notre-Dame on 10 March 1687. Numerous manuscripts and letters from Bossuet to the Prince of Condé are now held at the Condé Museum in Chantilly. An avid reader, the Grand Condé had amassed a substantial library in Paris comprising over 10,000 volumes, which subsequently passed to his son Henri-Jules (1643–1709), who further enriched it considerably. It was entirely dispersed upon the latter’s death. Louis II and Henri-Jules bore the same coat of arms, encircled by the collars of the king’s orders. Given the date of publication of the work, it is difficult to state definitively which of the two was its first owner. The BnF holds another copy of this same edition in an identical binding, the coat of arms on which are attributed to Louis II, which would tend to confirm the hypothesis that these were gift copies bound with the coat of arms of the Grand Condé. An old handwritten note on the title page: ‘August. disc. pavil. (?)’, repeated on the verso of the first endpaper; shelfmark: O.224. Minimal wear to the hinges; scattered pale foxing. Brunet, I, 1134 — OHR, 2624 and 2625.
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About the sale Fine antique books – A library in the Languedoc
Auction location
Auction time 10/20/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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