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an open book with a picture of a man and a woman on itan open book with a picture of a man and a woman on it
Maître Pascal BLOUET

596 - CRESCENTIIS (Petrus de) [Pietro de Crescenzi]: The Book of R…
See original version (French)

Estimate €800 - €1,200
Sale commission
Description
CRESCENTIIS (Petrus de) [Pietro de Crescenzi]: The Book of Rural and Country Profits, Compiled by Master Pierre de Crescens... Translated from the Tuscan language into French, dealing with the knowledge of good air, good soil, good water, and the tilling of the fields. vineyards, gardens, etc., the method of feeding all livestock, poultry and game birds, as well as the method of catching all wild animals, fish and birds … It is sold in Lyon, at the establishment of Pierre de Sainte-Lucie, known as ‘le Prince’, near Notre-Dame de Conforct Lyon, Pierre de Sainte-Lucie, [1539]. One vol., large 8vo, [viij]-clxxj-[viij] ff. Soft full vellum binding of the period. Text in two columns in Gothic type, with fine initials, 12 woodcuts in the text, at the head of each chapter. The final leaf bears a fine printer’s mark depicting Medusa, framed by the mottos: ‘semita virtutis sudoribus undique septa’ (the path of virtue is surrounded by sweat on all sides) ‘difficilia quae honesta’ (What is difficult is honourable), “longior est, et ad hanc durus, perque ardua callis” (The path is longer, and the journey to it is arduous and steep.) The Bolognese nobleman Pietro de’ Crescenzi, a retired lawyer and landowner living at Villa d’Olmo near Bologna, wrote his treatise between 1304 and 1309, under the title *Liber ruralium commodorum*. Following the tradition of the ancient Roman agricultural writers, he wrote in Latin and divided the work into 12 sections, each devoted to a specific subject. An important source on agricultural practices, livestock farming and horticulture in the Middle Ages, it deals with hunting, fishing, winemaking, the use of medicinal plants and animal diseases, and provides a monthly calendar of duties and tasks. Book VIII, devoted to ornamental gardens, constitutes the first treatise on the art of gardening from the medieval period. Charles V commissioned its translation in 1373, and the first French edition was printed in Paris in 1486 by Jean Bonhomme. Numerous reprints followed, sometimes under the title ‘Le Bon Ménasger’ Provenance: 19th-century wet stamp: P.E. Ecuyer, successor in Lyon, then Joseph ROY-CHEVRIER (1860–1949) (his monogrammed bookplate is pasted onto the reverse of the front cover), then Louis Armand-Calliat (1896–1966) from 1923 onwards (according to a visiting card found inside the book), and subsequently a private collection belonging to a magistrate. In its original modest but heavily worn binding (with an annotation in old-style handwriting reading ‘rustic house from the time of Charles V, King of France’); on the cover, an old bookseller’s label and a monogrammed bookplate marked ‘JR’, with a wet stamp. The title page is missing; on the reverse of this page was a woodcut depicting François I on the throne. Holes in folios vii, viii and ix, without damage to the initials; water stains; the final folios are dog-eared; an old annotation on the verso of folio cliv; the final folio is detached, with an old writing exercise on the reverse. No copy held at the BNF; the Lyon Municipal Library holds two, one of which is incomplete (missing the title page), and neither bears the printer’s mark (Res. 131395 and 317841); one copy at the CNAM; one copy at the Natural History Museum; copies reported at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, in Châteaudun and in Grenoble. No copies are recorded abroad, with the exception of the one at the Wellcome Library in London.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
About the sale Original comic strips and comic books, antique and modern books – Afternoon sale at 2 pm
Auction location
Auction time 09/09/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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