238 - MUCHA, Alphonse, ROCHEGROSSE, Georges, and SEIGNOBOS, Charles. Scenes and Episodes from German History.

MUCHA, Alphonse, ROCHEGROSSE, Georges, and SEIGNOBOS, Charles. Scenes and Episodes from German History. First edition, illustrated with 40 engraved plates, including 33 by Mucha and 7 by Rochegrosse, preserved in its striking publisher’s binding. Paris, Armand Colin & Co., 1898. In-4, aubergine-colored morocco-bound sheepskin by the publisher, smooth spine adorned with fleurons, the title and author’s name in gold lettering, large decorative panel featuring the title and a “Doppeladler” with gold clasps on the front cover, blind-stamped decoration on the back cover, gilt head edge (contemporary binding). VIII, 328 pp. and 1 f. (end of printing), 40 plates with captions in a serpentine layout as separate inserts, including 33 by Mucha and 7 by Rochegrosse. Minimal scuffing, small tear at the top. Sporadic foxing, not severe. First edition of this study by Charles Seignobos (1854–1942), tracing the history of Germany in 40 chapters, from Arminius’s victory over the Romans to Goethe and Schiller, via Charlemagne, Barbarossa, Saint Elizabeth, and others. Each chapter is illustrated with a separate engraving, for a total of 40 previously unpublished compositions, including 33 by Alphonse Mucha (who created his first book illustration here) and 7 by Georges Rochegrosse. A very fine copy in the publisher’s original binding.