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THE GARDENS, A POEM

THE GARDENS, A POEM by (VELLUM PRINTING). DELILLE, JACQUES

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Seller: Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Medieval Manuscripts
Title
THE GARDENS, A POEM
Author
(VELLUM PRINTING). DELILLE, JACQUES
Seller
Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Medieval Manuscripts (United States)
Description
London: Printed by T. Bensley, 1805. APPARENTLY THE ONLY COPY PRINTED ON VELLUM. 260 x 152 mm. (10 x 1/4 x 6"). 2 p.l., 146 pp., [1] leaf (notes). Translated by Maria Henrietta Montolieu. Very pleasing contemporary straight-grain scarlet morocco, gilt, by Charles Hering (binder's ticket on verso of front flyleaf), covers bordered with a wide frame of multiple patterned rolls with rosette cornerpieces, enclosing a delicate frame of a dotted roll cornered small floral tools, raised bands, spine gilt in compartments, wide turn-ins sumptuously gilt, cream silk endleaves with gilt borders and fleuron cornerpieces, all edges gilt. WITH EIGHT ENGRAVINGS BY FRANCESCO BARTOLOZZI IN TWO STATES, one on gold silk and the second on paper. EXTRA-ILLUSTRATED with two engravings depicting Princess Izabela Czartoryska and her daughter Zofia. A Large Paper Copy. Henrey 624. See also Clemens Alexander Wimmer, "The Princess and the Poles," Historic Gardens Review, no. 10 (2002): 14-17. Spine slightly darkened, joints and edges with minor (barely noticeable) wear, vellum a bit (and naturally) rumpled (and consequently the book yawning a bit), a handful of light spots, but still an extremely appealing copy with fine impressions of the plates, vast margins, and a special story to tell. Printed on vellum, richly bound, and illustrated with attractive plates on silk, this is an extraordinarily luxurious copy of Delille's famous poem on gardens that almost certainly belonged to a noblewoman whose gardens are mentioned in the text. First published in 1780, our poem condemns formal gardens and broad promenades in favor of a gardening art which hides its artistry by reproducing the asymmetrical groupings of nature and careless bounty of the countryside. This view accords with the translation of Virgil's "Georgics" done by Delille (1738-1813) in 1769, a version that brought him great acclaim for its supple and sonorous versification. In fact, it so pleased the Count of Artois (the future Charles X) that he named Delille abbot of Saint-Séverin; however, revolution disrupted things, and the poet for a time led a wandering life in Switzerland, Germany, and England, where this updated and expanded version of "Gardens" was published in 1801. The present special edition includes the plates which had appeared as head- and tailpieces in the first edition but now used as stand-alone plates in two states. These were executed by Bartolozzi after originals by Portuguese neoclassical painter Francisco Vieira. In addition to the called-for suite of illustrations, our copy includes two inserted plates, portraits of Princess Izabela Czartoryska (1745-1835) and her daughter Zofia. Czartoryska was a major figure in the Polish Enlightenment as a writer and patron of the arts, as well as an advocate for improving the lives of the poor. She is best remembered for the sprawling gardens at her palace in Pu awy, which included a formal garden, a "wild promenade" or landscape park, and multiple structures, including the neoclassical Temple of the Sibyl, which became one of Poland's first museums. She made the acquaintance of the author while travelling through Paris in 1791, and the two struck up a friendship. She financially backed the second edition of the work in exchange for a mention of her gardens, which duly appears in heightened verse on pp. 11-13: "Favoured Pulhavi! You from Heaven obtain / Each separate charm Earth's choicest scenes contain; / Bright glow thy features fresh from Nature's hand, / Excite our wonder, and our praise command." The presence of this poetic tribute--and especially the inserted plates showing the princess and her daughter-- clearly suggest that the our apparently unique luxury edition must have been a presentation copy to Czartoryska herself. The present copy is as striking outside as it is inside. Charles Hering was the most distinguished and influential English binder of the first decade of the 19th century, and although his career was brief (from about 1795-1812), Ramsden focuses on his work as representing the transition in binding styles from those of the German émigrés of the late 18th century to the new generation of binders headed by Charles Lewis. Dibdin states that until "the star of Charles Lewis rose above the bibliopegistic horizon, no one could presume to 'measure business' with [Hering]. There was a strength, squareness, and a good style of work about his volumes which rendered him deservedly a great favourite." We have been unable to trace any other copies of the present edition on vellum..

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