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an old red book with gold trim and a gold emblem on the coveran old book with a black and white image of the title of a poema black and white image of a book with a line drawing on itan old book with a drawing of an object on it
ALDE

183 - MAUPERTUIS (Pierre-Louis Moreau de).
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Estimate €3,000 - €4,000
Sale commission
Description
MAUPERTUIS (Pierre-Louis Moreau de). *The Shape of the Earth, as determined by the observations of Messrs de Maupertuis, Clairaut, Camus, Le Monnier… carried out by order of the King at the Arctic Circle*. Paris, Royal Printing House, 1738. In-8, red morocco, triple gilt fillet with fleurs-de-lis at the corners, coat of arms in the centre, spine decorated with fleurs-de-lis, interior lace, gilt edges on marbled paper (contemporary binding). First edition. It is illustrated with a map of the arc of the meridian measured at the Arctic Circle, engraved by Delahaye, and nine folding plates. The work publishes the findings of the geodetic expedition of the Royal Academy of Sciences led by Maupertuis in Lapland: in accordance with the ideas of Huygens and Newton, the shape of the Earth is indeed that of a sphere flattened at the poles. A very fine copy in red morocco leather bearing the coat of arms of Louis de Bourbon-Condé, Count of Clermont (1709–1771), the younger son of the Prince of Condé; a prince of the blood, clergyman and military man, he was Abbot of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Commander of the Army of the Rhine in 1758, Grand Master of the First Grand Lodge of France from 1743 and a member of the Académie française from 1753. Slight marginal water-stain on a few leaves and plates. Wellcome, IV, 175 – Norman, no. 1458 – Babson, no. 94.
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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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