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an old book with a gold medallion on the covera black and white image of a book with a picture of a man on a horsean old book with a black and white image of a man on a horsean old book with a black and white image of a man holding a sword
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24 - HERODIAN: The History of Herodian, an excellent historian, d…
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Estimate CHF 1,000 - CHF 1,500
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Description
HERODIAN: The History of Herodian, an excellent historian, dealing with the lives of Marcus Aurelius’ successors to the Roman Empire, translated from Greek into French by Jacques des Contes de Vintemille, a native of Rhodes. Lyon, Guillaume Roville, 1554; Small folio, brown calfskin, ribbed spine decorated with a repeated gilt fleur-de-lis within eastern-style fillet frames, covers with a double row of Eastern-style fillets, gilded fleurons in the corners, a fine medallion in the centre; on the front cover, the portrait of King Henry II struck in gold, and on the back cover, the Chariot of Fame struck in gold; gilt edges. Contemporary binding. A copy of exceptional quality: a very fine title page set within an engraved frame featuring Renaissance decoration, at the top of which cherubs hold shields bearing the repeated monogram ‘D’ and the coat of arms of Diane de Poitiers, framing her allegorical portrait. The copy has been bound and is in a remarkable state of preservation. It is dedicated to the Constable Anne de Montmorency. Pontus de Tyard, the famous Lyon poet and friend of Louise Labé, offers a dedication to the Count of Ventimiglia; and finally, Guillaume Des Autelz follows with a collection of 18 douzaines addressed to Pontus de Tyard. This is undoubtedly a book presented by King Henry II. The upper cover is adorned in the centre with a medallion bearing the effigy of King Henry II. This is one of the few known bindings to have come from a Parisian bookbinder’s workshop, produced between 1552 and 1560. They are based on a medal of King Henry II, engraved by Etienne Delaune in 1552. Eugénie Droz, having studied the subject, established that this was not of royal provenance but rather a bookbinder’s decoration, in homage to King Henry II, who died in 1559. Eugénie Droz: Bookbindings featuring the medal of Henry II, type 6; Baudrier, VIII, 279. It comes from the Firmin Didot library, cat. 1883–84, no. 427, and from the libraries of C. Peters and Raoul Edouard Cartier, the latter two bearing their bookplates. This volume is housed in a later leather slipcase modelled on the binding.
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About the sale AUCTION: Slatkine Library
Auction location
Auction time 09/22/2026 at 6:30 PM
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