Pope's Grand Philosophical Poem Elegantly Illustrated and Elegantly Bound--and in (Elegant) 18th Century French

ESSAI SUR L'HOMME.

POPE, ALEXANDER.

(Lausanne & Genève: Chez Marc-Michel Bousquet & Compagnie, 1745). 275 x 207 mm. (10 7/8 x 8 1/8"). xxiv, 116 pp.

Very attractive retrospective russet morocco, elegantly gilt, covers bordered by multiple plain and decorative rules and graceful frame of floral sprays, acanthus leaves, and dragonflies, raised bands, spine compartments with large central fleuron, black morocco label, marbled endpapers, top edge gilt. With engraved tondo portrait of the author on title page, engraved portrait of the dedicatee, eight engraved headpiece vignettes, seven engraved tailpieces, and five allegorical engraved plates after Delamonce. Title printed in red and black. Text in French (roman type) and English (italic). Contemporary ink inscription to the lower margin of p. xvi, translating the quote in a footnote into French. ESTC T5652. Negligible wear to head of spine, Dedication page a bit darkened (from being exhibited over time?), a handful of leaves with faint overall browning, otherwise a beautiful copy--the text and richly impressed plates very fresh and clean, and the well-executed sympathetic binding virtually unworn.

This is an attractively illustrated, uncommonly seen bilingual Lausanne edition of Alexander Pope's grand philosophical poem. Written in heroic couplets, "An Essay on Man," like Milton's "Paradise Lost," sought to accomplish nothing less than the vindication of the ways of God to man. Not really an essay on man at all, but instead on the moral order in the universe, the four epistles making up this celebrated work maintain that apparent evil results from a human failure to see the total plan of the universe and that there is a reason for whatever appears to be imperfect. Dugald Stewart called the work "the noblest specimen of philosophical poetry which our language affords." Our translator, Étienne de Silhouette (1709-67), served for a brief but memorable time as French finance minister under Louis XV. He was so tight-fisted that, in hostile recognition of his parsimony, his name came to be attached to the shadow profile cut from black paper that was a popular art form at the time, in use especially in very modest households where more expensive portraiture like sculpture or paintings could not be afforded. (And "silhouette" remains in present-day vocabulary with much the same meaning.) Early in his career, Silhouette produced several translations of contemporary literary works, including the present poem, which was first published in translation in 1736. Our Swiss edition is the first illustrated edition of the translation. Rich in iconography, these engravings after French architect and artist Ferdinand Delamonce (1678-1753) feature gracefully rendered figures enclosed within opulent rocaille frames. In a very well-executed and fittingly elegant binding, this is a particularly appealing example of Pope's "Essai." (ST20733)

Price: $1,750.00