An exciting and well preserved book on paintings about MYTHOLOGY from 1615
LES
IMAGES OU TABLEAUX
DE PLATTE PEINTURE
DES DEUX
PHILOSTRATES SOPHISTES GRECS
ET LES STATUES DE CALLISTRATE
Mis en Francois par BLAISE DE
VI GENERE Bourbonnois Enrichis
D’ Arguments et Annotations
Reueus et corrigez sur l’original par un docte personnage de ce temps en la langue Grecque
ET
REPRESENTEZ EN TAILLE DOUCE
En cette nouuelle edition
Avec des Epigrammes sur chacun d’iceux par
ARTUS THOMAS SIEUR D’EMBRY
Avec Privilege du Roy Jaspar Isac Incidit
A PARIS
Chez la veusue Abel l’Angelier au premier pilier de la grand Salle du Palais,
ET
La vuesue M. Guillemot. En la Gallerie de Prisonniers
M.DC.XIIIII
(1615)
This is a very lovely, well preserved, clean and bright volume of dissertations about paintings that deal with mythology. It is written primarily in French, with some Greek, some Latin (?). The images are crisp, well preserved, and contain little foxing, I found no tears except where indicated below, though I have not viewed EVERY page of the book. I have tried to not handle the book any more than necessary. The images are wonderful, capricious, detailed. Below is further descriptions of the sections of the book.
On the second page in is a pencil notation that says
“See opposite leaf for inscription about “This Beautiful copy….
Praz Emblem books, (a symbol I do not recognize) 463-4
This page also has a watermark. It is very similar to what is described as the Strasburg Lily watermark. Below the Lily watermark are the initials, in gothic script, I G W though I do not know if this refers to the Whatman watermark. Below are a couple of informational pages about watermarks, though it is clear from the text that it is hard to determine exactly where a watermark comes from.
http://www.nga.gov.au/whistler/watermarks/details/Strasburg.cfm http://www.nga.gov.au/whistler/watermarks/details/Whatman.cfm
There is an entry on the third inside page, in pen, a very nice script
“ A copy of this work was marked in Baxters leaf for 1802 at 2.2.0. See (cannot decipher) Lot 87
This beautiful copy belonged to the celebrated Isabelle or Elizabeth of Bohemia, Princess Palatine of the Rhine, Daughter of Frederic the 5th, Tu Marche (?)
E fot. 7
J.L. Philips
1805”
Under the pen inscription, a pencil inscription states
“daughter of James I of England, Married Frederick V, the Elector Palatine,
in 1613.
I have done a bit of research, and found the names of Frederick and
Elizabeth Stuart, who married in 1613, and had a daughter Elizabeth of Bohemia, born about 1627.
Frederick V OF BOHEMIA
was born in 1596 in , Bohemia, Czech Republic. He died in 1632. He married Elizabeth STUART on 14 Feb 1613 in London, , England, Great Britain.
Elizabeth STUART
was born on 19 Aug 1596 in Dunfermline, , , Great Britain. She died on 13 Feb 1662 in London, , England, Great Britain. She was buried in Abbey, Westminster. She married Frederick V OF BOHEMIA on 14 Feb 1613 in London, , England, Great Britain.
Elizabeth OF BOHEMIA
was born about 1627 in <, Bohemia, Czech Republic>. She died in 1680
Underneath the pen inscription by J.L. Philips, are two lines of text off to the right of the page, but I do not know what language it is, possibly Russian?
One the back of this page, again in pen, and it looks like the same script as
written by J.L. Philips. It says
Thomas de Leu______Strutt 2. 92
Jaspar Isac _________ Do (?) __56
Leonard Gaultien_____ Do (?) 1 __ 323”
Thomas de Leu was a Franco-Flemish painter and engraver. (1560-1612, active 1580-1610).
Could not find dates for Jaspar Isac
Leonard Gaultier. Born, 1561. Died, 1641.
Above this inscription in pencil, is written (possibly) “DeBure 6097”
And in a different hand, in pencil 2477
This page is a bit wrinkled, and a bit smaller than the other pages.
The next page, the frontispiece, contains a full page illustration, with the title of the book, and other information. It is a perspective drawing of a domed building in the top, middle of the page, with a well dressed gentleman looking out from the middle window, with two wings of the building coming towards the forground. Just below the domed building, in the “courtyard” area are a group of women with musical instruments, then a plate with the title and info being held up by four cherubs. The sun is above the domed building, and there are various statuary atop and robed gentlemen conversing in the wings of the side buildings. A very clean and clear impression, with a slight water stain at the top of the page, and a patch on the back of the bottom right corner, where there was a tear about two inches up from the bottom of the page.
The first section, entitled “A MONSEIGNEVR” has a small banner across the top of the page, with a soldier in the middle surrounded by armament and musical instruments. There is an inscription in pen across the top of this page, “Isabelle 1644”, thus the above reference to it belonging to the daughter of Frederick V, Isabelle or Elizabeth. This section is signed
“Voitre tres-humble, & tres-obeiffante feruante, F. de Louuain veufue d’Abel l’Angelier.” (always your humble and obedient servant, F. de Louuain, widow of D’Abel l’Angelier)The next section is the
“ADVERTISSEMENT SvR LES IMAGES OV TABLEAVX DE PHILOSTRATE”Then there is a listing of
“Les Tableavx dv premier livre and Ceux dv second livre.”Then the preface
“Le premier livre des tableaux de platte-peintvre de philostrate lemnien sophifte Gre. LES IEVS DE LA GRECE.”Then the illustrations begin. The water stain that begins on the first illustration continues through the first illustration “Scamandre”. After that it is not apparent. After that the pages are very well preserved, with very little foxing, no apparent tears, the end pages are clean and clear with only one pencil notation on the second to last page, “770622 ECZZ” probably a stock number or something.
Below is a description of the book, a more “formal” description as far as an official book dealer may describe it.
folio. pp. 18 p.l., 921 [ie. 925], [1]privilege, [46]index. engraved title by Jaspar Isac. 68 large (almost full-page) engravings in the text by L.Gaultier & T. de Leu after designs by A.Caron & J.Isac. 2 small text engravings of musical instruments & numerous woodcut ornaments & initials. early 18th century speckled calf, spine richly gilt, covers with gilt arms of Philippe Lefebvre de Plainval, director of the Royal farms at Rouen, 1710, & gilt cherub cornerpieces (binding restored, joints partly cracked, title backed, Gg5 partly silked repairing several tears - no loss, a few marginal repairs, some damp & brownstaining to outer & lower margins, scattered spotting). First Illustrated Edition of Blaise de Vigenere"s French translation of the Imagines of the Philostrati, two Greek sophists of the Roman imperial period. The Imagines of the elder Philostratus purports to be a description of sixty-four pictures in a gallery at Naples, that of his grandson a description of seventeen pictures done in the same manner. Vigenere"s French translation with commentary was first published in 1578. The present edition is embellished with fine large engravings by Leonard Gaultier and Thomas de Leu after designs by Jaspar Isac and Antoine Caron, who had worked under Primaticcio at Fontainebleau. Hofer notes that the engravings of mythological and allegorical subjects were "much admired and imitated throughout the century." An important Baroque iconographical source book. In some copies the title is dated 1615; the reference in Brunet to a 1609 edition appears to be an error. Brunet IV 620. Goldsmith, BM STC French P983 (title dated 1615). Hofer, Baroque Book Illustration, 23. Landwehr, Romanic Emblem Books, 586. Praz pp. 453-54 (title dated 1615, mistakenly calling for 64 copperplates). Hardcover