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184 - LA FONTAINE (Jean de). Fables choisies, mises en vers par J.…
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Estimate €2,500 - €3,500
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Description
LA FONTAINE (Jean de). Fables choisies, mises en vers par J. de la Fontaine. The most beautiful illustrated edition of La Fontaine's Fables, with 275 finely engraved plates after drawings by Jean-Baptiste Oudry. Paris, Desaint & Saillant et Durand, 1755 (volumes I and II), 1756 (volume III) and 1759 (volume IV). 4 vol. in-folio, full porphyre calf, smooth spine decorated with compartmented fleurons, title and tomaison gilt on red and green morocco leather, triple gilt framing on covers, gilt roulette on sides, red speckled edges. Bound in contemporary style. XVIII (Epistle to Monseigneur Le Dauphin, preface, the life of Aesop, epistle to the king, warning, the life of La Fontaine) and 124 pp; II and 135 pp; IV and 146 pp; II and 187 pp, 1 portrait-frontispiece etched by Cochin after Oudry, 274 plates hors-texte etched after Oudry (69 in vol. 1, 68 in vol. 2, 68 in vol. 3 and 69 in vol. 4), all framed and captioned, one repeated title vignette and 209 culs-de-lampe. Minor rubbing, clever old restoration to headpieces and corners, head blown off and beginnings of cracks to spines of volumes 1 and 4, tiny white marks on three boards. Very rare spotting and some pages a little browned, small brown spot in the lower margin of volume 4. Splendid edition of the Fables, with an allegorical frontispiece designed by Oudry, finished in burin by Dupuis and engraved in etching by Cochin and 274 plates out of text engraved in intaglio by 42 of the "best engravers of the time" (Tchemerzine, III, 874-875), including Chedel, Cochin, Le Bas and Tardieu, based on pencil and wash drawings by Jean-Baptiste Oudry, retouched by Cochin le Fils. The illustration also includes 209 floral and allegorical culs-de-lampe, drawn by Bachelier and wood-engraved by Lesueur and Papillon. A second edition copy, printed on medium Hollande paper, with Le Léopard on the banner in volume III. Complete with its figures but without the portrait of Oudry. [Brunet III, 753; Tchemerzine III, 874-875]. Handwritten bookplate "Seguin le Cadet" on the title pages. An elegant copy of this most desirable edition.
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About the sale Prestige sale - Antiquarian and collectible books
Auction location
Auction time 06/15/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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