DESCRIPTION de l'Égypte, ou Recueil des observations et des - Lot 1

DESCRIPTION de l'Égypte, ou Recueil des observations et des recherches qui ont été faites en Égypte pendant l'expédition de l'armée française. Second edition, dedicated to the King, published by C. L. F. Panckoucke. Paris, C. L. F. Panckoucke, 1821-1830. 24 tomes in 25 vol for the text and 11 full-page volumes of atlas, half havana leather (covers restored, vol XX lacks). Second edition, dedicated to Charles X. On June 23, 1820, Charles-Louis-Fleury Panckoucke (1780-1844), a leading Parisian bookseller and printer, obtained an order from King Charles X authorizing him to reprint the Description de l'Égypte. He had a second edition printed in a thousand copies, comprising twenty-six octavo volumes of text and eleven volumes of plates in large-atlas format. The plates were printed with the original copperplates, some of which had been retouched for the new edition. This second edition partly financed the first, more than half of which had been donated. The exceptional Egyptian campaign, one of the last of the Enlightenment, was followed by a no less exceptional publication. Forty-three authors took part in the Grand Ouvrage, producing 157 memoirs. For the copperplates, the best engravers were called upon; there were over 266 of them, mainly burinists and aquafortists. They were assisted by a machine invented by Nicolas Conté, a sort of large pantograph, now kept at the Musée National des Arts et Métiers in Paris, while the copperplates were deposited at the Chalcographie in the Louvre, where they remain to this day. Painters, draftsmen and colorists were also hired. Along with Vivant Denon's work, the book aroused an unprecedented enthusiasm for Egypt. It is one of the sources of Egyptology and Egyptomania. Its influence was felt in the decorative arts, architecture and fashion, giving rise to the so-called "retour d'Égypte" style. For the iconographic part, the copy is composed as follows: 1. Antiquity (5 vols.). Vol. 1: Watercolor frontispiece, engraved portrait of Louis XVIII after Lafille, "Egyptian Medal with the names of the subscribers" leaf, plate A and 97 plates numbered 1 to 97. Volume 2: 92 plates numbered 1 to 92. Plate 26: 2 tears, one in the upper margin, the other affecting the image, restored. Volume 3: 69 plates numbered 1 to 69. Vol. 4: 71 plates numbered 1 to 72 (plate 21 missing) Volume 5: 89 plates numbered 1 to 89 2. Modern state (2 vols.). Vol. 1: 83 plates numbered 1 to 83 Vol. 2: 22 plates numbered 84 to 105, followed by : Arts and crafts: 31 plates numbered I to XXXI; Costumes and portraits: 11 plates numbered A to K; Vases, furniture and instruments: 13 plates numbered AA to NN (no JJ); Inscriptions, coins and medals: 10 plates numbered a to k (no j). 3. Natural history (3 vols.). Vol. 1: 7 plates followed by : HN Mammals (supplement): 1 plate; HN Zoology birds: 14 plates; HN reptiles: 8 plates; HN reptiles (supplement): 5 plates; HN fish: 27 plates. Volume 2: HN zoology cephalopods: 1 plate; gastropods: 3 plates; shells: 14 plates; annelids: 5 plates; crustaceans: 13 plates; arachnids: 9 plates; myriapods : 1 plate; orthopterans: 7 plates; neuropterans: 3 plates; hymenopterans: 20 plates; echinoderms: 9 plates; zoophytes: 3 plates; ascidians: 1 plate; polyps: 14 plates; algae: 2 plates Volume 2 bis: HN botany: 62 plates followed by HN mineralogy: 15 plates 4. Topographical map (one vol.). Double title leaf, engraved assembly table for the map; 2 engraved tables "Caractères topographiques..." and "Alphabet harmonique..." on the same plate; the map of Egypt in 3 double plates numbered 1 to 3 and 47 double map plates numbered 1 to 47 . (The volumes show the usual foxing, more or less pronounced depending on the volume, and reaching the image in the case of the plate volumes). Dimensions: 208 x 127 mm (text volumes); 68 x 54 cm. Provenance: Doctor F. in Normandy Expert : M. Emmanuel de BROGLIE