VINCI (Léonard de).

♦ Treatise on painting. Donné au public et traduit d'italien en françois. Paris, De l'Imprimerie de Jacques Langlois, 1651. In-folio, vellum (Binding of the period). First edition of the French translation of the theoretical writings on art by Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519). It is due to the art theorist Roland Fréart de Chambray and was based on a handwritten copy given by Cassiano dal Pozzo to his brother Paul Fréart during a trip to Italy in 1640. The illustration consists of a copper-engraved frontispiece, signed Lochon, with a very expressive portrait of Leonardo, and 56 intaglio engravings in the text, executed after drawings by Nicolas Poussin, representing figures of geometry and anatomy. Among these is the portrait of the Mona Lisa, engraved in reverse from the original work, which serves as an illustration in chapter 287: Ce qu'il faut faire pour que les visages ayent du relief avec de la grace. It would seem that this is the first representation in a book of this famous portrait. A vignette on the title and 2 engraved bands at the head of the dedication and the first chapter complete the decoration of the book. A few loose leaves, tear without missing a leaf. Some foxing. Tear at the end, small stains on the vellum.