Catalogue des Livres imprimés et manuscrits, de la Bibliothèque de feu Monsieur d'Aguesseau, Doyen du Conseil..

xxxvi, 366 pp., one leaf (but lacking, as is often the case, the 12-page schedule of sale & the 80-page author index). 8vo, cont. speckled calf (two corners a bit worn, joints a little cracked but strong), flat spine gilt, red morocco lettering piece on spine. Paris: Gogué & Née de la Rochelle, 1785. The rare sale catalogue of the great library of books and early manuscripts, many illuminated, founded by Henri François d'Aguesseau (1668-1751), Chancellor of France, a man of great learning. According to the preface of the catalogue he had acquired the collection of the poet Florent Chrestien (1541-1596), and his son Claude (b. 1567). His library passed to his second son, Jean Baptiste Paulin d'Aguesseau, Marquis de Mannoevre (1701-84) who considerably enlarged it. Between the two generations they created a most remarkable collection. The father and son employed fifteen versions of their coat-of-arms on their bindings. The sale included 5583 lots and was sold over a 57-day period. Payne and the Marquis de Méjanes were major buyers. Very good copy, with some minor foxing. Short tear due to a paper flaw to title but with no loss of text. Bookplate of the great French bookseller Georges Heilbrun. As mentioned above, this copy lacks - as does the Grolier Club copy - the schedule of sale and index, but it does have a final leaf in which the auctioneers promise to deliver the index at no charge by the end of May 1785 to anyone who requests a copy. ❧ Gustave Brunet, Dictionnaire de Bibliologie Catholique, col. 405-"cette vaste réunion d'ouvrages importants." Grolier Club, Printed Catalogues of French Books Auctions...1643-1830, 318-(lacking both the schedule of sale and author index). Guigard, II, p. 173. Peignot, p. 76.