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an old print of a group of moths on display in a museuma picture of a picture of butterflies and mothsan old book with a picture of a bird on itbutterflies and caters on a sheet of paper with a black borderbutterflies and caters on a white background with black and red markingsan old print of butterflies and caters on a white backgroundan antique print of a variety of butterflies on a white backgrounda drawing of butterflies and caters in various stages of lifean old book with a bunch of butterflies on ittwo butterflies and a cater on a white backgroundan old book with a drawing of moths and caters on ita drawing of a group of butterflies on a sheet of paperan antique print of butterflies and moths in various stages of lifean old book with a picture of moths and butterflies on it
Premium Maître Paul PASTAUD

87 - ENGRAMELLE (Father Jacques-Louis-Florentin). Insects of Euro…
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Estimate €1,500 - €2,000
Sale commission
Description
ENGRAMELLE (Father Jacques-Louis-Florentin). Insects of Europe, painted from life by Mr ERNST. Engraved and coloured under his supervision = [and under that of Gigot d’Orcy], described by the Reverend Father Engramelle [and subsequently by Arnoult Carangeot]. Paris, Ernst, Delaguette, Basan & Poignant, [1779–1786]. In-4 in folios, without a cover. First edition of the finest French work on butterflies, printed in a run of only 250 copies. This copy, which has never been bound, contains 258 plates (out of 350) engraved and coloured by Ernst, Maria Eleonora Hochecker, Desfontaines, Dovilliers… (with some gold or silver highlights in places) and 2 of the 3 frontispiece title pages (one of which is coloured and in poor condition, the other in black with extensive water damage). Extensive light water damage, not very pronounced overall. (Detailed list of plates available on request.) A monk at the Petits-Augustins monastery, Engramelle (1734–1814) was commissioned by the extremely wealthy collector and civil servant in the Treasury, Jean Gigot d’Orcy (1733–1793), to produce a work describing in detail his magnificent natural history collection. Gigot d’Orcy brought in the Alsatian naturalist and illustrator Jean-Jacques Ernst, himself a collector of butterflies, to work with him. The first volume was published in Paris in March 1779. Between 1779 and 1792, twenty-nine issues comprising eight volumes were published in succession, describing more than 3,000 specimens. Most are described in three stages: the first being the caterpillar, the second the chrysalis, and the third, known as the ‘perfect stage’, the imago. Only 250 copies of the work were printed, almost all of which were sold through a subscription scheme launched in July 1782, as evidenced by the list of subscribers, which includes the names of kings and the great families of Europe. (Nissen, no. 1300.)
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About the sale MONTIGNAC – 31st BOOK SALE – Day 1 of 4 – Nos. 1 to 549
Auction location
Auction time 08/19/2026 at 11:00 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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