FR EN
1 / 3
an old book with illustrations of animals and birds on itmany different types of fish on this pagean old book with a drawing of nuts and leaves on it
Premium Jeschke Jádi Auctions Berlin

1349 - Bertuch, Friedrich Justin
See original version (German)

Estimate €1,000 - €1,400
Sale commission
Description
Bertuch, Friedrich Justin A picture book for children, containing an enjoyable collection of animals, plants, flowers, fruits, minerals and traditional costumes … accompanied by brief scientific explanations suited to a child’s understanding. Volumes 1 and 2 (of 12). With 200 copperplate engravings, mostly hand-coloured, featuring a total of over 1,000 illustrations. Weimar, Industrie-Comptoir, 1792 and 1796. 3 leaves. (Title page, Preface), 99 (of 100) leaves, 100 plates, 3 leaves (Table of Contents) and 2 leaves (title page), 100 leaves, 100 plates, 6 leaves. Lex-8°. 19th-century half-leather binding, the covers covered with granite-patterned paper (with missing sections at the joints, bumped and scuffed). The first two volumes, published in the 18th century, of what is arguably the most famous illustrated children’s book of its time. - Goedeke IV, 1, 679, 19. - Nissen 340. - Rümann 33. - Schug 162. - Seebaß 180. - Wegehaupt I, 133. - Including the author’s ‘Plan, Announcement and Preliminary Report’ in Vol. 1, which is significant in the history of publishing and education, and constitutes a ‘fundamental contribution to the theory of picture books, children’s books and book pedagogy’ (Brüggemann I 69, following Schug). - The text leaves bound between the plates bear German descriptions on the recto and French descriptions on the verso. Vol. 1 is dated 1792, not 1790 as given by Nissen and Schug. Vol. 2 additionally features a French title page. - The text leaf for Plate ‘Plants I’ (Vol. I, No. 10) is missing. - The copperplate engravings have occasionally been trimmed at the edges, resulting in minor loss of text; a few leaves have tears and narrow (partly backed) marginal discolouration. Partly slightly browned, the text leaves occasionally more so; the plates have minor foxing, with marginal notes in pencil. Overall, these are sound copies; the copper engravings, carefully executed under the supervision of H. Lips, are of genuine artistic value and mostly feature strong, fresh colouring. The first two volumes of this most famous visual encyclopaedia for children of its time, complete with 200 copper-engraved plates, most of them old-coloured, containing a total of over 1,000 illustrations. Bound in 19th-century half-leather, the boards covered with granite-patterned paper (with missing sections at the joints, bumped and worn). – For references, see above. – With the author’s ‘Plan, Announcement and Preliminary Report’ in Volume 1 – a work of significance in the history of publishing and education – which constitutes a ‘fundamental contribution to the theory of picture books, children’s books and book pedagogy’ (Brüggemann I 69, according to Schug). The title leaf of Vol. 1 is dated 1792, not 1791 as stated by Nissen and Schug. The text leaves bound between the plates bear descriptions in German on the recto and in French on the verso. Vol. 2 also has a French title page. - The text leaf for Plate ‘Plants I’ (Vol. I, No. 10) is missing. - The copperplate engravings have occasionally been trimmed at the edges, resulting in minor loss of text; a few leaves have tears and narrow (partly backed) marginal discolouration. Partly slightly browned, with the text leaves occasionally more so; the plates show minor foxing, with marginal notes in pencil. Overall, these are sound copies; the copper plates, carefully engraved under the supervision of H. Lips, are of genuine artistic value, mostly in rich, fresh colours.
See original version (German)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
About the sale Valuable books, prints, historical photographs
Auction location
Auction time 10/24/2026 at 10:00 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
You may also like