Racine, Athalie, tragédie, Paris, 1692, red crushed morocco by Charles Petit

first edition in 12mo (158 x 89 mm). Roman type. collation: ã⁴ ẽ² i² A-I^8,4 K1-2: 64 leaves (of 66: lacking K3-4 blanks). Woodcut ornaments. (ã1-A8 and C1-8 between 1 and 2 mm shorter at lower margin than the rest of the textblock, small wormholes skilfuly repaired in margins of last 2 leaves, washed).

binding: Red crushed morocco by Charles Petit (successor to Alphonse Simier) (162 x 96 mm), elaborately gilt wide border, central roundel, surrounded by leafy tools of double circles containing flowers between circles, rose on stem in centre, spine gilt with rose in compartments, gilt edges, marbled endpapers, inner dentelles.

provenance: Gaspard Mathieu, early signature on title-page—Caroline (1884-1932) and Hudson Poole (1878-1940), early-twentieth-century bookplate. acquisition: Purchased in 1985 from Bernard Rosenthal, San Francisco. references: Guibert, 111, 3; Tchemerzine, V, 351; Répertoire du théâtre français imprimé 1600-1699, no. 9239 (this copy cited)