Cohen-de Ricci, 288.<\/i><\/p>\n
Only edition of this magnificent commemorative publication celebrating the marriage of Louis XV\u2019s eldest daughter to the second son of Philip V of Spain in 1739.<\/p>\n
Marie-Louise-\u00c9lisabeth of France (1727\u20131759), known as \u2018Madame \u00c9lisabeth\u2019, was the eldest daughter of Louis XV and Marie Leszczynska. Born and raised at Versailles, she married her cousin Don Philip, the youngest son of King Philip V of Spain, at the age of twelve; he was 19 at the time. Their wedding was celebrated in two stages. First on 25 August in Paris by proxy \u2013 in the young man\u2019s absence \u2013 then three months later in Alcal\u00e1 de Henares, not far from Madrid, once the bride had travelled to Spain. The first of these two weddings was the occasion for spectacular celebrations in the French capital, culminating in a fireworks display over the Seine and a ball at the H\u00f4tel de Ville.<\/p>\n
The event was celebrated on the Seine between the Pont-Neuf and the Pont-Royal, and the Florentine painter and architect Giovanni Niccol\u00f2 Servandoni was commissioned to organise it. Temporary structures were designed and built for the occasion: a \u2018Greek-style temple\u2019 dedicated to Hymen, and a large hall in the middle of the Seine to accommodate the musicians.<\/p>\n
The festivities began on the afternoon of 29 August with naval jousting matches between two teams, \u201ceach comprising 20 jousters and 36 rowers<\/i>\u201d (Mercure de France, September 1739, p. 2281). \u201cAs night began to fall, the illuminations came into view<\/i>\u201d, first at the Temple of Hymen, then on the terrace, along the quays, on the Pont Neuf and the Pont Royal.<\/p>\n
Then, at the signal of the city\u2019s cannons, a fireworks display was set off \u2013 first from the bridges, then from dozens of boats and positions on the sets. A masked ball was held the following day at the H\u00f4tel de Ville.<\/p>\n
Whilst the Mercure de France<\/i>, filled with wonder, gave a dazzling description of a festival \u201cremaining in the memory of more than 500,000 spectators<\/i>\u201d, it was at Turgot\u2019s request that this work was published, with the aim of preserving the memory of the event through images. Turgot commissioned Jean-Fran\u00e7ois Blondel to produce large-format engravings to commemorate the highlights of the festivities.<\/p>\n
These remarkable intaglio illustrations include, in particular, a spectacular overview of the decorations at the moment of the fireworks display, which gives a sense of the scale of this celebration, one of the most significant of the century.<\/p>\n
The bookseller Le Mercier published 1,400 copies of the work, most bound in calfskin or morocco leather bearing the coat of arms of the City of Paris (such as our copy), which were presented to members of the royal family and prominent figures.<\/p>\n
A few scattered foxing spots and a tear in the binding; nevertheless, a fine copy of this spectacular book.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Folio (625 x 455 mm) 1 un.l. of title page decorated with a Bouchardon vignette engraved by Soubeyran, 22 pp. of text with an introductory banner engraved by Rigaud and two engraved initials, and 13 engraved plates (including 8 double-page plates). Red morocco, coat of arms of the City of Paris in the centre of the covers, gilt roll framing the covers, gilt fleurs-de-lis in the corners, spine richly decorated with fleurs-de-lis, gilt inner roll frame, gilt edges (contemporary binding<\/i>).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":90822,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[530],"product_tag":[1240],"class_list":{"0":"post-90831","1":"product","2":"type-product","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"product_cat-binding","7":"product_tag-18th-century-illustrations","8":"pa_auteur-blondel-jean-francois-2","9":"pa_type-de-livre-printed-book","11":"first","12":"instock","13":"shipping-taxable","14":"purchasable","15":"product-type-simple"},"acf":{"artist":"Jean-Fran\u00e7ois BLONDEL","chapeau":"","adresse_bibliographique":"Paris, Le Mercier, 1740","book_type":"Printed book","provenance":"","afficher_prix":"oui"},"yoast_head":"\n