THOMASSIN (Simon). Recueil des figures, groupes,... Lot 87

THOMASSIN (Simon). Recueil des figures, groupes, thermes, fontaines, vases et autres ornemens tels qu'ils se voyent à présent dans le château et parc de Versailles, gravé d'après les originaux... Se vend à Paris, chez ledit Thomassin, 1694. In-8, 23 p., fr., pl., [2] f., contemporary havana basane, 5-ribbed spine, brown title page, ornate caissons, gilt roulette at the edges, red edges (binding worn, margins yellowed and light soiling). light soiling; 5 plates short of margins; split at fold on plate 144; wetness on page 23 on the 2 f. of the index; without engraved title). Rare first edition of this important work providing a kind of visual catalog of the statuary in the gardens of Versailles at the end of the 18th century. It consists of an engraved title (absent here), an engraved frontispiece, a portrait of the king opposite the dedication, 23 pages (dedication, preface, catalog of sculptures), and 218 plates, including 4 doubles and one fold-out, all engraved on copper by Thomassin; and an index (2 f.) closes the work.