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an old red book with gold trim on a white backgroundan old book with an image of a dragon on it
ALDE

18 - [ANEAU (Barthélemy)]. Alector. A fabulous tale, translated i…
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Estimate €2,000 - €3,000
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Description
[ANEAU (Barthélemy)]. Alector. A fabulous tale, translated into French from a miscellaneous fragment, found not complete but interrupted, and lacking a clear beginning. Lyon, Pierre Fradin, 1560. In-12, red morocco, framed with a triple gilt fillet, decorated spine, gilt inner edge, gilt edges (Trautz-Bauzonnet). 8 ff., 152 ff. numbered.  A rare first edition of Barthélemy Aneau’s masterpiece (Bourges, early 16th century – Lyon, 1561).  ‘On reading it, one recognises, amongst other things, the influence of Heliodorus’s *Aethiopica*, Rabelais, *Amadis of Gaul* and chivalric romances. Yet *Alector* is neither an ancient novel, nor a chivalric romance, nor a pastiche of *Pantagruel*, but a surprisingly modern work which, in a celebration of language and the imagination, combines different levels of narration and meaning, plays on the fragmentation of the narrative, and establishes a system of prolepses and analepses that lead the reader to take an interest in the narrative technique and the way the novel is constructed as much, if not more, than in the heroes’ adventures” (Brigitte Biot. Barthélemy Aneau, a leading figure of the Lyon Renaissance. Bulletin of the Association for the Study of Humanism. No. 36. 1993, pp. 60–65). At the end of the novel, the author announces a sequel to be published. This was never published, as the author was murdered in a street in Lyon in June 1561 by fanatical Catholics. From the P. Desq library, with bookplate. A fine copy. Haag I, pp. 101–109 – Baudrier XI, p. 152.
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About the sale Xavier de Planhol Library – The Origins of the Novel
Auction location
Auction time 09/30/2026 at 2:00 PM
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