Du Bartas, Commentaires et annotations sur la sepmaine, Paris, 1582, French brown morocco gilt for Jean Taron

2 works in one volume, 12mo (145 x 77 mm). (1) Roman and italic type. collation: ã¹⁰ †¹² 2†⁸ A-Z¹² Aa-Ff¹² Gg⁶: 394 leaves. Woodcut initials and printer's ornaments, folding table bound before A1, ruled in red throughout. (2) Roman and italic type. collation: ã⁶ a¹¹ b-g¹² h⁶ (final 2 leaves blank): 83 leaves (of 84: lacking a1). Woodcut initials and printer's ornaments, ruled in red throughout. (Lacking a1 leaf in second volume).

binding: Contemporary French (possibly Parisian) binding for Jean Taron (151 x 89 mm), light brown morocco over wooden boards, profusely gilt, in centres of both covers a large oval azured arabesque stamp, cornerpieces in matching style, on the 4 sides a lotus flower composed of 2 azured arabesque tools, the interstices filled with a close semé of small fleurs-de-lys, outer border of 2 gilt fillets, 4 gilt raised bands on broad spine, 3 of the compartments filled with 2 impressions each of a lace tool, vellum liners and endleaves, followed by 2 pairs of paper endleaves, gilt edges. (Boards slightly bowed).

provenance: "Taron", ownership inscription to upper pastedown, dated 1582 (the French lawyer and poet Jean Taron, Sieur de la Roche-Taron)—?"Fritinyerre" early modern ownership inscription beneath that of Taron, flanked by 2 s-fermés, the initials ΜΛ, heightened with gold—John Hunter of Kew, sale, Leigh & Sotheby, 4 February 1805, lot 287, to Richard Heber, with note of sale in ink on flyleaf perhaps in his hand—Sotheby & Son, Bibliotheca Heberiana, Part IX, 11-26 April 1836, lot 987 ("in old richly gilt morocco, ruled"), to Joseph Crozet (1808-1841) for £1 4s—Baron Léopold Double (1812-1880), red silk bookplate, by descent to—Baron Lucien Double (1846-1896), his son, historian and author, sold 22 February 1897, lot 152—Bibliotheque B*** (Théophile Belin), sale, Paris, 30 October 1934, lot 39—Martin Breslauer Inc., Catalogue 110, no. 60. acquisition: Purchased in 1992 from Martin Breslauer Inc., New York. references: USTC 74274/ 88493; Pettegree, French vernacular books, 16715/ 16717; Jean Balsamo & Michel Simonin, Abel L'Angelier & Françoise de Louvain (1574-1620): suivi du catalogue des ouvrages publiés par Abel L'Angelier (1574-1610) et la veuve L'Angelier (1610-1620) (Geneva, 2002), no. 67 (census of copies, including this one)