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4 volumes. First Edition of the most famous illustrated Ovid of the 18th century and one of the most beautiful French illustrated books of the period. With fine provenance, the Taisne de Raymonval family copy, their plate with coat of arms tipped in. Profusely decorated with very fine copperplates throughout, elaborately engraved head and tail-pieces throughout, engraved title-pages and preliminary leaves. A beautiful production. 139 Plates by Boucher, Eisen, Gravelot, Monnet, Moreau and others, engraved title, 3 pages of Dedication, 4 Fleurons on Titles, 30 vignettes and 1 very finely engraved full-page cul-de-lampe at the end of Vol. 4 by Choffad & Monnet 4to, very finely bound by the Belgian binder Isidore Smeers in antique crimson crushed morocco, the covers with triple gilt fillet rules at the outer borders surrounding an inner panel of triple gilt fillet rules and gilt corner tools, the spines elaborately gilt decorated with intricate panel tooling in compartments featuring gilt center and border tooling in an overall dense pattern, raised bands decorated in gilt, two compartments lettered in gilt, elaborate gilt rolled turnovers in multiple layers, gilt ruled edges, marbled end-leaves, all edges gilt. An especially handsome and appealing copy of this revered production. An exceptionally fine set with the bindings, text-blocks and plates in excellent condition. A beautiful survival of a great book with care having been shown in the preservation over the centuries. FIRST EDITION OF ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS FRENCH ILLUSTRATED BOOKS OF THE 18TH CENTURY AND ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFULLY PRODUCED OF ALL ILLUSTRATED OVID PRINTINGS. A COPY IN RARE FINE RED MOROCCO BINDINGS. This work includes the magnificent plates engraved for this superb edition of Ovid's Metamorphoses published by Le Mire and Basan 1767-1771, a book reverred during the great period of 18th century French illustration. There are 140 numbered plats and the "fin des estampes" plate. The designs for this work were executed by a brilliant galaxy of artists such as Eisen, Boucher, Moreau, Le Prince, Monnet, and Choffard, and their designs were skillfully engraved by Le Mire and Basan. There is a significant biography of Ovid presented with this edition. The text is offered both in the Latin and in French. The romantic intersection is thus completed. Though most illustrated books published in France at this time fell into the rococo style, Ovid's stories begged a classical treatment, and indeed this book marked the transition from Rococo to Neo-Classical style, the latter being best exemplified by Moreau (in his later work) and Fragonard. The poem is mainly a collection of Greek and Roman myths, retelling classical stories such as Echo and Narcissus, Jason and Medea, and Venus and Adonis. It also includes the Eastern Babylonian tale, Pyramus and Thisbe. This great epic work has been recognized throughout the centuries for its inventiveness, charm, and originality. "As a story-teller and guide to Greek myth and Roman legend, Ovid was very influential on later Roman writers and was read, quoted, and adapted during the Middle Ages. He was the favourite Latin poet of the Renaissance, and there were many translations of his works into English."-M.C.Howatson. His influence upon great writers through history, from Chaucer to Marlowe and Shakespeare, is well-known. Ovid's lively and witty poem on the transformations of the Greek and Roman gods has attracted many artists. The present edition demonstrates how the team-work of illustrators helped make the third quarter of the eighteenth century one of the most productive periods of book-illustration in Europe. To accompany the text and translation the team of publishers - acting 'par les soins des Srs Le Mire et Basan' - commissioned 140 plates, a cul-de-lampe and 34 vignettes from a team of draughtsmen and engravers of overlapping generations. Evidence of the pressure under which they worked may be gathered from their frequent r.
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