François Coppée.
Le Passant. Comedy in one act, in verse. Paris, Alphone Lemerre, 1869.
In-12: red jansenist morocco, ribbed spine, gold filleted edges, royal blue morocco lining with gilt fillet, red silk endpapers, gilt edges on witnesses, cover and spine preserved, case (Chambolle-Duru)
First edition.
First play by François Coppée (1842-1908): created on January 14, 1869 at the Odéon theatre, with
Agar in the main role and Sarah Bernhardt as Zanetto, it was a triumph. "Coppée became fashionable, there were ties with his name; his play was performed in all the theatres and courts of Europe" (L.A. Gauthier-Ferrières, François Coppée et son oeuvre, p. 25).
Autograph address signed on the title:
To Victor Hugo, to the Master
François Coppée
In 1880, François Coppée composed a poem on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the creation of Hernani which was read by Sarah Bernhardt at the Comédie Française.
Brilliant binding by Chambolle-Duru
Large light spotting in the text.
Ex-libris of the libraries René Descamps-Scrive and Louis de Sadeleer.
A second volume by François Coppée, dedicated to Sarah Bernhardt, is enclosed:
Les Récits et les Élégies. Epic tales. The Exile. The Months. Jeunes Filles. Paris, Alphonse Lemerre, 1878.
In-12: contemporary red half-maroquin, spine decorated with gilt fillets with, at the foot, the figure SB in gilt letters.
Signed autograph address on the false title:
To the exquisite actress Sarah Bernhardt, her old friend, François Coppée
A fine copy from the libraries of Charles Miguet and Louis de Sadeleer, with ex-libris