Half Calf
1792 · Paris
by Cassini de Thury, César François. Desnos, Louis-Charles.
Paris: Veuve Hérissant, 1792. Half Calf. Very Good. Exceptionally richly hand-colored French atlas. Elephantine folio, 56 by 44 cm. Following title page (which contains table of contents as well), six two paged hand-colored maps. The first map, with its large allegorical cartouche, is especially spectacular, but all the maps are beautiful and noteworthy for the quality of their coloring. Scarce, with copies held by BNF, Bibliotheque Sainte-Genevieve, Leiden, and the National Library of Scotland, according to OCLC, and not clear whether all of these copies are hand-colored. Corner dampstains, most pronounced on title, then receding as progress. While unquestionably noticeable on the first map, in our view it doesn't seriously detract from the beauty of the map. Other light scattered soiling, which again, we do not find disconcerting. Some scuffing of the binding. While half calf technically, the calf coverage of the boards is minimal
(Inventory #: 005599)