Saint pierre

rif. 66289 — Paris: Didot l'Aine 1806. Large quarto c. 31 x 23.5 cmTitle page enhanced with gold. pp. xcii194Lisy os Subscribers 55 on 5 pages.Contemporary binding signed Thouvenin of aubergine morocco covers richly decorated with gilt and blind-tooled designs featuring a central lozenge and large corner spandrels covers framed with blind-tooled dentelles spine with double raised bands richly decorated and gilt compartments ochre paper doublures with a border of the same aubergine morocco and gilt edge flowers and mille-dots at the corners endpapers of the same ochre paper gilt edges some trivial rubbing to the edges and corners. Contained in a purpose-made quarter black morocco solander box. A total of 36 engraved illustrations comprising frontispiece portrait of Bernardin de Saint-Pierre engraved by Ribault after Lafitte 6 engravings after Lafitte Girodet Gerard Moreau the Younger Prud'hon and Isabey presented in four states final before lettering in colour and pure etching. A fifth state of "Tombs" the final state with the title but without the legend is also present. The copy has been further enriched with 10 additional engravings mostly either other representations of the same scenes or reductions reversed or not of the engravings from the work. Occasional very light spotting or foxing. An exceptional copy. First published in 1788 on the eve of the French Revolution Paul et Virginie is the tragic story of ill-fated romance set in Mauritius. Heavily influenced by Jean-Jacques Rousseau's philosophy of the innate goodness of nature it became an immediate international bestseller and remains a milestone of French pre-Romantic literature. Brunet V col. 57; Carteret Romantique III pp. 529-530. Paris: Didot l'Aine, 1806. hardcover