ALDE

71 - MARCASSUS (Pierre de). *Le Timandre*.
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Estimate €200 - €250
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Description
MARCASSUS (Pierre de). *Le Timandre*. Dedicated to Monsieur Frère du Roy. Paris, Toussaint Du Bray, n.d. [1628]. In-8, brown calfskin, gilt fillet binding, fleurons at the corners, ribbed spine with gilt panels and fleurons, red edges (18th-century binding). Illustrated title page engraved by Crispin de Passe, 5 ff., 776 pp. First edition co-authored by T. Du Bray, P. Rocolet and H. Sara.  A roman à clef dedicated to the King’s brother, at the very moment when this prince was preparing to raise the banner of revolt against Louis XIII. It follows from this dedication that the novel’s hero, Timandre, is said to represent Gaston d’Orléans allegorically.  P. Lacroix provided, in the *Bulletin du bibliophile* of 1861 (p. 734), an interesting note on this now rare novel: “These unbearable adventure novels,” he says, “were nevertheless popular at the French court; for people sought in this insipid, fashionable literature more or less transparent and ingenious allusions to figures in aristocratic society, for whose benefit these novels were written with the most tedious verbosity…”.  Slight wear to the lower spine and front cover. Lever 404 – Drujon, *Les livres à clef II*, 934–35.
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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
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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