Béranger

ref. 04871 — Paris: Baudouin Frères Éditeurs 1828. Pierre-Jean de Béranger "The Most Popular French Songwriter of All Time" "The First Superstar of French Popular Music" Thirty Three of Forty Hand Colored Lithograph Plates by Henri Monnier MONNIER Henri illustrator. Chansons de P.J. Béranger Anciennes Nouvelles et Inédites avec des vignettes de Devéria et des dessins coloriées d'Henri Monnier. Suivies des Procès Intentés a l'Auteur. Paris: Baudouin Frères Éditeurs 1828. First edition. Two octavo volumes 8 1/8 x 5 1/8 inches; 207 x 130 mm. ii 1-439 1 blank; iv 1-438 pp. Some light waterstaining to the top edge of the first few leaves in volume one not affecting text. Thirty-three of forty superb hand colored lithograph plates by Henri Monnier and numerous charming black & white vignettes by Achille Devèria. The color plates have the original tissue guards. The plates that were never included in this copy are numbers: 21 26 28 31 35 37 & 39.These seven plates are highlighted below within the listing of all 40 plates. Contemporary quarter russia over blue boards spines decoratively ruled in gilt two black morocco labels lettered in gilt pink marbled endpapers. Head and tail of spines expertly and almost invisibly repaired corners rubbed. Bookplates removed from front pastedowns. A very good copy. "The forty drawings by Henri Monnier lithographed with a pen on stone and colored with a brush are very rare complete. Seven of these lithographs are often missing they are: The Court Dress The Exile The Good Old Man The Marquise of Pretintaille The Flight of Love The Voyager The two Grenadiers." Carteret III p. 72. KVK locates no complete copies; OCLC locates just one complete copy in libraries and institutions worldwide: Paris-Est Marne-La-Vallee-Bu France. All other copies that are recorded or that we know of have the same thirty-three of forty hand colored plates. It would appear that the seven plates numbers 21 26 28 31 35 37 & 39 were either destroyed soon after printing or purposely left out in all but the very first copies. "Monnier also illustrated Béranger's Chansons creating numerous series over time that reflect his admiration for Béranger's work. His lithographs and early watercolors despite their small size demonstrate his extreme finesse and simplicity. Monnier's bright flat colors encircled by precise pen or pencil strokes bring his subjects to life with values and shadows indicated by more or less dense hatching. Some watercolors from this period appear almost as pen drawings enhanced with color due to the prominence of the pen work." Marie. Pierre-Jean de Béranger 1780-1857 was a prolific French poet and chansonnier songwriter who enjoyed great popularity and influence in France during his lifetime but faded into obscurity in the decades following his death. He has been described as "the most popular French songwriter of all time" and "the first superstar of French popular music". The Chansons were composed with fastidious care and are most notable for their clarity wit and incisiveness however the socialist and revolutionary content of his songs resulted in several brushes with the authorities resulting in his nine month incarceration in La Force Prison. Stephens Lyne-Stephens 1801-1860 was an English Tory politician who represented Barnstaple before the 1832 Reform Act. After inheriting a family fortune from glass manufacture in Portugal he was later reputed to be the richest commoner in England. The plates: 1. Le Roi d'Yvetot 2. La Bacchante 3. Le Sénateur 4. La Gaudriole 5. Roger Bontemps 6. Ma Grand'Mère 7. Ma Mère Aveugle 8. Le Petit Homme Gris 9. La Bonne Fille 10. L'Éducation des Demoiselles 11. Madame Grégoire 12. Les Gueux 13. Le Vieux Célibataire 14. Le Commencement du Voyage 15. Requête des Chiens de Qualité 16. Vieux Habits! Vieux Galons! 17. Le Nouveau Diogène 18. Le Maitre d'École 19. La Chatte 20. Bon Vin et Fillette 21. L'Habit de Cour p. 205 22. Ce n'est plus Lisette 23. L'Hiver 24. la Bonne Vieille 25. La Vivandière 26. L'Exilé p. 285 27. La Bouquetière et le Croque-Mort 28. Le Bon Vieillard p. 315 29. L'Aveugle de Bagnolet 30. Les Cartes ou L'Horoscope 31. La Marquise de Pretintaille p. 402 32. Le Tailleur et la Fée 33. Le Violon Brisé 34. Les Hirondelles 35. La Fuite de l'Amour p. 87 36. Le Vieux Sergent 37. Le Voyageur p. 111 38. Le Grenier 39. Les Deux Grenadiers p. 169 40. Les Souvenirs du Peuple Champfleury Monnier p.364; Escoffier The Romantic Movement N°675; Marie 653-692; Vicaire I-402. Paris: Baudouin Frères, Éditeurs, 1828 unknown books