268 - De Ville, Antoine. *Les fortifications… contenant la manière de fortifier toute sorte de places*. Lyon, Barlet, 1628. A portrait by Artemisia Gentileschi for a rare first edition

De Ville, Antoine. *Les fortifications… contenant la manière de fortifier toute sorte de places*. Lyon, Barlet, 1628. A portrait by Artemisia Gentileschi for a rare first edition De Ville, Antoine. *Les fortifications… contenant la manière de fortifier toute sorte de places*. Lyon, Barlet, 1628. Folio (360 × 220 mm); [16], 441, [13] pages (with pagination errors, as the plates are often—but not always—included in the page count). Frontispiece with title set within a grand fortified gate; magnificent portrait engraved on copper by Jérôme David after an original by Artemisia Gentileschi; 53 full-page and double-page plates decorated with landscapes, elaborate cartouches, or set within architectural frames (a few small tears repaired, marginal woodworm holes.) Contemporary full-parchment binding (restored). One of the rarest French works on fortifications from the 17th century, enriched by a fine series of illustrations created by the author. Of particular interest is the portrait of the author, painted by Artemisia Gentileschi (1593–1656) during a stay in Rome, when Ville was just twenty-seven years old, and engraved by Jérôme David (1605–1670), a French engraver active primarily in Rome. Ville was also among the first military treatise writers to address the construction and effects of mines in the context of fortifications. While later editions are relatively common, the first edition is extremely rare. A portrait by Artemisia Gentileschi for a rare first edition