1 - ABEILLE, Louis-Paul, and LA TOUCHE, Jean-Gabriel Montaudouin de. Collection of Observations by the Society of Agriculture, Commerce, and the Arts. Established by the Estates of Brittany.

ABEILLE, Louis-Paul, and LA TOUCHE, Jean-Gabriel Montaudouin de. Collection of Observations by the Society of Agriculture, Commerce, and the Arts. Established by the Estates of Brittany. Paris, Widow of B. Brunet, 1772. In-8, full brown marbled calfskin, spine with guilloché raised bands, panels decorated with gilt metalwork, title labels in red morocco, gilt fillet on the edges, red edges (contemporary binding). viii, 328 pp. and 1 f. (privileges), 1 title vignette, 3 headpieces, and 1 inset plate engraved by Watelet after Abeille, 1 inset plate of figures. Binding rubbed, wormhole on the back cover, top cap missing, very rare foxing and water stains on a few pages. New illustrated edition of this survey of agriculture, the rural economy, the arts, and commerce in the province of Brittany for the years 1759 and 1760, written by the economist Louis-Paul Abeille (1719–1807) in collaboration with the Nantes merchant and shipowner Jean-Gabriel Montaudoin de La Touche (1722–1780). It was published under the auspices of the Society of Agriculture, Commerce, and the Arts of the Estates of Brittany, the first society of its kind in France, founded on the initiative of Montaudoin de La Touche in 1757. Notable essays include a study on the improvement of beehives (accompanied by a beautiful engraved plate), a report on the state of Breton maritime trade, and various technical proposals on agronomy. A fine copy in a contemporary binding.