Grandville

1849 · 167498 — 1849. GRANDVILLE J.J. Les Etoiles. By Joseph Mery. 4 xvi 252; 4 186 2 pp. Illustrated with 15 hand-coloured engravings. 8vo. 255 x 176 mm bound in publisher's elaborately gilt decorated cloth binding. Paris: G. de Gonet 1849. A fine copy of this charming work Grandville's last book of illustrations. It actually consists of two parts each having its own title-page but the parts are always found together. There are fifteen steel engravings by Grandville all with delicate original hand-coloring. Despite occasional minimal foxing the impressions are clean--an unusual state for French books of this type from this period. "The compositions of the `last fairy-tale' brilliantly engraved on steel by Charles Geoffroy and delicately colored form a fitting memorial to Grandville. They show that his powers remained unimpaired to the end of his short career" Ray. A wonderful fresh copy in a dazzling example of the publisher's binding rare thus. Ray French 200. hardcover books