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141 - DIDEROT ( Denis ) and D'ALEMBERT ( Jean le rond d' ) Encyclo…
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Estimate €2,500 - €5,000
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Description
DIDEROT ( Denis ) and D'ALEMBERT ( Jean le rond d' ) Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, par une société de Gens de Lettres. Paris, Briasson, David l'aîné, Le Breton et Durand, from 1751. Comprising the 17 volumes of text of the original edition (bound in 18 physical volumes) and 3 volumes of the Recueil de planches. Large folio. Uniform contemporary bindings in marbled calf, spines richly decorated with gilt small irons, title and tomes, spotted edges. FIRST EDITION OF ONE OF THE GREATEST MONUMENTS OF WESTERN THOUGHT Conceived at the instigation of Denis Diderot and Jean Le Rond d'Alembert, the Encyclopédie was the most ambitious publishing venture of the Age of Enlightenment. More than just a dictionary, it was intended to be a reasoned inventory of all human knowledge, from the theoretical sciences to the mechanical arts, from philosophical knowledge to craft techniques. Published despite bans, ecclesiastical condemnations and political pressure, the Encyclopédie quickly became the symbol of the circulation of new ideas. Its editors included some of the greatest minds of the 18th century: Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu, Buffon, Turgot, Jaucourt and many other contributors whose articles had a lasting impact on modern thought. This copy retains the famous allegorical frontispiece engraved by Benoît-Louis Prévost (this one folded) after Charles-Nicolas Cochin, a veritable visual manifesto of the encyclopaedic project, as well as its explanation and the Preliminary Discourse by d'Alembert, a founding text in the history of ideas that sets out the general architecture of human knowledge. Volume III is present in its two bibliographical divisions ("A-CH" and "CH-CONS"), in accordance with the original constitution of the work. Several volumes of the Recueil de planches have also been preserved, including volumes I, II and IV of the Sciences. These plates, devoted to trades, technical processes, instruments and factories, are one of the Encyclopaedia's major contributions to the history of technology and industry. The set remains in its uniform 18th-century bindings, a remarkable testimony to the reception and preservation of the work. Worn on headpieces, spines and corners, some leather missing, rubbing and minor accidents. The interior shows various signs of age: occasional stains, folds or creases, marginal tears, scattered foxing as well as slight old traces of damp and mould. Despite these defects inherent to the age of the work, the whole retains a remarkable bibliophilic presence and remains of a high quality of presentation. A rare collection of a substantial part of the first edition of the Encyclopédie in its original bindings. A detailed collation remains to be carried out.
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About the sale A fine sale at Château CARBONNIEUX
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Auction time 06/25/2026 at 7:30 PM
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