133 - Marolles, M. de.

Marolles, M. de. Tableaux du temple des muses. Taken from the collection of the late Mr. Faverau, advisor to the king in his Court of Aids, and engraved in intaglio by the finest masters of his time to depict the virtues and vices found in the most illustrious fables of antiquity. With accompanying descriptions, remarks, and annotations. Paris, Antoine de Sommaville, 1655. Folio (35 x 26 cm.). [10] leaves, 477 (recte 475), (9) pages with engraved Engraved frontispiece, portrait, and 58 copper plates by Theodor Matham, Cornelis Bloemaert, and Nicolas Langlois after Abraham van Diepenbeeck, Jacques Favereau, and Pierre Brebiette. Modern half-parchment binding. Brunet, III, 1143. Duportal, 261. Landwehr VI, 502. Cf. Praz 413. — First edition of the famous French Baroque work. - According to Duportal, the beautiful copperplate engravings are among the finest of their time. The motifs from ancient mythology, with ancient Greek captions, depict not only Atlas bearing the heavens on his shoulders, but also the battle with the Hydra from Ovid’s *Metamorphoses* and Daphne. - Abraham van Diepenbeeck (1596–1675) was a student of P. P. Rubens. - “The work by the Abbé de Marolles, published in Paris in 1655 and dedicated to the Queen of Poland, Marie-Louise de Gonzague, is one of the most important books published in the 17th century for the study of mythology in the literature of that time. It is a folio volume of over 500 pages, illustrated with 58 full-page engravings. The Abbé de Marolles was a long-time member of the household of the future Queen of Poland. The history of this imposing work is complex..." (J. Vanuxem, "Mythology in 'Le temple des muses' by the Abbé de Marolles." Presented at the 24th Congress of the Association, July 26, 1972, p. 295). - Binding and endpapers professionally replaced; a corner tear on the right margin of one plate and a few marginal tears in the text have been restored; slight brown staining and discoloration throughout; a good copy.