477 - Physionotraces - Béthune-Hesdigneul, Eugène François Léon. Miscellaneous Works. Illustrated with intaglio portraits, divided into “Nocturnal and Diurnal Pastimes.” 2 parts in 1 volume. With a copperplate coat of arms and 17 engraved medallion portraits, 15 of which are in aquatint based on physionotraces by Gilles-Louis Chrétien (10) and Edme Quenedey (5). No place of publication; privately printed by L.-G.-T.-Beaurepaire, 1812. Title page, 16 leaves; 30 leaves. 19 x 12.5 cm. Contemporary half-leather binding with gilt spine (worn, joint covering cracked, spine nearly loose) in a red leather slipcase by Zaehnsdorf.

Physionotraces - Béthune-Hesdigneul, Eugène François Léon. Miscellaneous Works. Illustrated with intaglio portraits, divided into “Nocturnal and Diurnal Pastimes.” 2 parts in 1 volume. With a copperplate coat of arms and 17 engraved medallion portraits, 15 of which are in aquatint based on physionotraces by Gilles-Louis Chrétien (10) and Edme Quenedey (5). No place of publication; privately printed by L.-G.-T.-Beaurepaire, 1812. Title page, 16 leaves; 30 leaves. 19 x 12.5 cm. Contemporary half-leather binding with gilt spine (worn, joint covering cracked, spine nearly loose) in a red leather slipcase by Zaehnsdorf. An exceptionally rare private printing; known to us only from the Bibliothèque nationale (incorrect collation), the Houghton Library (collation as in this copy), and the Pennsylvania State Libraries. The princely author (1746–1823) was a chamberlain to Emperor Joseph II and a lieutenant general in the French army. The first part, illustrated with engravings, contains biographies of members of the Béthune-Hesdigneul family; the second part consists of charades, devised “during his stay in Wezel on the Rhine during the first six months of 1798.” The printer was the author’s son-in-law; the inconsistent typography is typical of a private printing of this period, and the plates were mounted on the protruding folds of the biographical text sheets. — Gilles-Louis Chrétien (1754–1811) invented the pantograph chair, known as the “Physionotrace,” in 1786; this device traced facial features life-size onto paper, which were then hand-drawn with interior details and transferred to a copper plate in reduced size using a second device. The process is considered a precursor to photography. Fifteen of the portraits in this collection are labeled as “Physionotraces” on the plate; ten are signed by Chrétien, and five by his temporary collaborator Quenedey, and bear addresses. The copper plates bear dates ranging from 1802 to 1808. - Provenance: The author’s copy with an engraved coat-of-arms bookplate identical to his coat-of-arms panel. - Additional engraved bookplate by Sir David Lionel Goldsmid-Stern-Salomons (1851–1925), a pioneer of electrical engineering, watch collector, and photography enthusiast. - Plates show heavy foxing; text is partly slightly browned.