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LES DÉBUTS DE CÉSAR BORGIA.
(Paris: pour La Société des Bibliophiles Contemporains, 1890). 265 x 170 mm. (10 1/2 x 6 3/4"). 4 p.l., 83, [5] pp.Edited by Octave Uzanne. No. 162 OF 186 COPIES for members of the Society.
LOVELY DARK BLUE CRUSHED MOROCCO, BEAUTIFULLY INLAID, BY HENRI BLANCHETIÈRE (stamp-signed on front turn-in), covers with gilt fillet border, graceful frame of repeating lyre-shaped ornaments of inlaid orange, purple, pink, citron, and sea green morocco, raised bands, spine compartments with similar inlaid ornaments, turn-ins with inlaid brown and russet morocco frames, brilliant patterned silk endleaves in a colorful floral pattern, marbled flyleaves, top edges gilt. Original printed paper wrappers bound in. Housed in a felt-lined, matching morocco-lipped slipcase. With etched frontispiece portrait by LaLauze printed in sepia, 13 vignettes by George Rochegrosse, all printed in color, some finished by hand and highlighted in gold. Without the suite of etchings in black & white (see below). With a four-page facsimile of a letter written by the author to the publisher. Title page and bound-in printed wrappers with ornate architectural frame, the leaves of the book watermarked with this frame, which encloses the arch-topped text. Vicaire I, 510 and VI, 1127. See: Silverman, "Books Worthy of Our Era?: Octave Uzanne, Technology, and the Luxury Book in Fin-de-Siècle France" in "Book History" 7, pp. 239-84 (2004); Silverman, "The New Bibliopolis," pp. 21-60 and 89-93 (2013). Faint offsetting from illustrations, other trivial imperfections but A SUPERB COPY, clean, fresh, and bright internally, IN A PRISTINE BINDING.
This is a book of some importance to the history of exclusive publishing, representing as it does the first of the Connoisseurs' Editions to be issued by the Bibliophiles Contemporains under the direction of their president and founder Octave Uzanne; at least as important, it is offered here in a bountifully decorated binding by a follower of the great Marius Michel. A bibliophile extraordinaire who sought to employ the latest technology in order to produce what he deemed "books worthy of our era," writer and journalist Uzanne (1851-1931) was proclaimed "the Bibliophile's dream" by his friend and frequent collaborator, painter Félicien Rops. According to Silverman, "Breaking with the tradition of antiquarian, retrospective bibliophilia solidly established in France, Uzanne . . . called for change in all matters concerning the luxury book, especially in illustration, binding, and typography." An ally of the Symbolist poets and painters, Uzanne, says Silverman, "became the foremost herald of a new type of bibliophilia, one that privileged close collaboration between artists, authors, publishers, and collectors to create illustrated editions of modern texts." Uzanne admired the typographical innovations of Kelmscott Press founder William Morris and respected Morris' ability "to distinguish between machines that abased humanity and those that merely served as tools to simplify the task of book designers." But unlike the socialist Morris, the elitist Uzanne had no interest in the craftsman or laborer; he sought to exploit technological innovations to produce books of great beauty for a small, discriminating clientele. In 1889, he formed the Société des Bibliophiles Contemporains by bringing together 160 collectors he considered "the cardinals of the Modern Bibliopolis" with himself as their "grand priest." Somewhat ironically (in light of this nomenclature), the group chose for their first book the present "The Beginnings of Cesare Borgia," a historical novella about the grandson of a pope. It was written by one of these "cardinals," Jean Richepin (1849-1926), and called on another member, artist Paul Avril, to engrave the illustrations by Academy painter Georges Rochegrosse. The etchings were printed in multiple colors, then delicately hand-finished and touched with gold and silver. Our copy no. 162 was, according to Vicaire, one of those reserved for future members of the Society; this is perhaps why it does not contain the suite of black & white etchings, which were sent to existing members at the time of publication. Uzanne's opulent production is enhanced here by an elegant and at the same time fanciful mosaic binding. It is the work of Henri Blanchetière (1881-1933), whose considerable talents are clearly evident, but whose bindings are not seen in the marketplace with great frequency. After training with Marcellin Lortic and René Kieffer, he took over the atelier of binder Joseph Brétault in 1906, at which time (in the words of Duncan & De Bartha), "he aligned himself with Marius-Michel in the pursuit of a modern binding style inspired by nature. His designs incorporated a cautious blend of Art Nouveau flowers," but "after World War I, he gradually cut his remaining ties to traditionalism," embracing more geometric designs. As a craftsman of artistic fine bindings, he ranks with Kieffer and Charles Meunier. Our Art Nouveau binding is obviously one of his earlier productions, and the intricate inlays are very much in the tradition of Marius Michel's "Flore Ornamentale" style. Representing a notable achievement in sculptural finishing, the binding is colorful, kinetic, full of controlled intricacy, and absolutely beautiful. (ST20627)
Price: $6,500.00