LA FONTAINE - OUDRY. Fables choisies mises en... Lot 251

LA FONTAINE - OUDRY. Fables choisies mises en vers. 4 folio volumes. 415x280 mm. Contemporary binding, marbled calfskin, triple golden fillet framing the covers, ribbed spine with gold friezes with floral motifs and two green morocco labels with title and volume number, marbled endpapers and edges.Vol. I: Half-title, Titlepage, pp. XXX, VI, Frontispiece, VII-XVIII, 124, 70 Plates; II: Half-title, Titlepage, pp. II, 135, 1 blank, 68 Plates; III: Half-title, Titlepage, pp. IV, 146, 68 Plates; IV: Half-title, Titlepage, pp. II, 188, 69 Plates. Vignettes in the titles, engraved head and tail-pieces, 209 woodcuts in the text. Splendid allegorical frontispiece with the bust of La Fontaine of Oudry, finished by Dupuis and engraved by Cochin, placed after the Preface to Vol. 1, and 273 [of 275] out-of-text plates engraved on copper, numbered I-CCXLV. Traces of wear and lackings on the bindings, sporadic foxing, nice copy with wide margins. Missing 2 plates. Rare first edition, typographical masterpiece magnificently illustrated. The work is illustrated by a refined frontispiece by Oudry, engraved by Cochin and by 273 wonderful illustrations in full-page plates drawn by Oudry and also engraved by Cochin and by the best artists of the time. The tailpieces and other woodcut ornaments in the text, which contribute so much to the elegance of the work, are designed by Bachellier and engraved by Le Sueur and Papillion. The history of the illustrations of the Fables in this edition is told in the "Avertissement de l'editeur." Oudry had drawn freely for his own amusement, various landscape and animal subjects. Cochin took on the responsibility of turning these freehand drawings into finished prints. Although Oudry's skill in portraying animals and his interpretation of La Fontaine's humor can hardly be surpassed, Cochin's sure and expert hand did much to improve the original drawings, particularly the figures. He redesigned them, correcting the figures and background and providing precise lines for the engravers.Cohen-de Ricci "magnifique ouvrage ; Lesage "Les deux cent soixante-quinze dessins de Jean-Baptiste Oudry... vont donner naissance à l'édition la plus prestigieuse et la plus copiée du siècle et à de très nombreuses déclinaisons dans les Arts décoratifs"; Tchemerzine "édition magnifique... par les meilleurs graveurs du temps."