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DESANDRE, Jules-Marie. First Thus. Hardcover. One Of only 10 Copies On Vergé With Two States Of The Engravings. Extremely Rare. Only 1 other copy has surfaced in the last 30 years and it's uncertain if it included the engravings. Les Contes de Perrault. Paris: Theodore Lefevre, circa 1855. Royal octave, contemporary three-quarter crimson Morocco, raised bands, marbled boards and endpapers, top edge gilt. Very rare mid-19th-century French illustrated edition of "the basis for the modern canon of fairy tales," with engraved frontispiece and 11 engraved plates by Lefrancq after Desandré, numerous in-text wood-engraved vignettes, and wood-engraved borders on every page. Twelve tales in all. This is copy number 5 of only ten copies on Vergé paper, with two states of the full-page engravings, one of each a mounted proof before letters on Chine. Inspired by the fables of La Fontaine, Perrault began writing his own. His Accounts began their career in 1695 "as a five-story presentation manuscript dedicated to Princess Élizabeth-Charlotte, Louis XIV's niece" (Clute & Grant, 752). When first published two years later, the book contained eight stories. Perrault's Contes "La Belle au bois dormant" (Sleeping Beauty), "Le Petit Chaperon rouge (Little Red Riding-Hood), "La Barbe bleue" (Blue Beard), "Le Maistre Chat, ou le Chat botté" (Puss in Boots), "Les Fées" (The Fairies), "Cendrillon" (Cinderella), "Riquet à la Houppe" (Ricky with the Tuft) and "Le Petit Poucet" (Tom Thumb) "provided the basis for the modern canon of fairy tales" (Bottigheimer, 3). "The backdrop of his fairy tales is a combination of an old and beloved France, of courtly manners and costumes and the sunshine of pure imagination" (Meigs, 112). These original eight classic tales are all present in this collection, which also includes "Peau d'Ane (en prose)" (Donkey Skin, in prose), "Les Souhaits Ridicules" (The Ridiculous Wishes), "L'Adroite Princesse" (The Discreet Princess), and "Peau d'Ane (en verse)" (Donkey Skin, in verse). This copy includes two states of the frontispiece and ten full-page engravings, one final and one a mounted proof before letters. With Preface by JT de Saint -Germain. Text in French. Gumuchian 4446: "Édition recherchée et peu commune." Evidence of bookplate, faint library stamps on text block edges. Text generally quite clean, with only the occasional spot of foxing and offsetting; plates clean and fine, with crisp impressions. A few minor rubs to extremities of desirable contemporary Morocco binding. An excellent copy of this very rare issue. Perrault's wonderful Fairy Tales have continued to be printed and adapted to opera, ballet, and in blockbuster animations such as Puss 'n Boots and Sleeping Beauty. Grand in-8. 2 ff.n. c h., xviii pp. et 119 ff.n.ch. Demi-maroquin rouge à coins, dos à nerfs janséniste, tête dorée (Reliure d'époque). Cachet de bibliothèque à froid sur un feuillet, cachet gratté sur le titre et cachet humide sur deux tranches. Quelques rousseurs. Edition très rare illustrée de 12 bois hors-texte avec encadrement gravé par Lefrancq d'après Desandré et également de vignettes dans le texte. Un des 10 ex. num. sur papier vergé contenant les hors-texte en deux états (épreuve avant la lettre tirée sur Chine collé et état définitif). Edition très rare mentionnée ni par Vicaire ni par Carteret et citée seulemant dans le catalogue Gumuchian (Les livres de l'Enface. no. 4446). L'exemplaire Gumuchian était également un des 10 ex. sur vergé mais ne semblait pas contenir de gravures. Cette édition est qualifiée par Gumuchian de "recherchée" et peu commune". Exemplaire de bibliothèque d'un livre rare. A lovely copy. Seller Inventory # 33603
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Bibliographic Details
Title: [Perrault's Fairy Tales] LES CONTES DE ...
Publisher: Théodore Lefèvre, s.d. (c. 1855), Paris
Publication Date: 1855
Binding: Hardcover
Illustrator: DESANDRE, Jules-Marie
Edition: First Thus.
