1131 - Constant, B.

Constant, B. Adolphe. An anecdote found among the papers of a stranger. Fifty etchings by G. Jeanniot. Paris, G. Jeanniot, 1902. 4°. With 54 (!) etchings (11 of which are on separate plates) and 1 colored, signed Original pencil drawings by Georges Jeanniot. 6 leaves, IX, 167 pp., 3 leaves. Olive-green morocco (marked: Rene Kieffer) with gold-embossed fillets and inlaid leaf ornaments, gilt inner edges, gilt title and head lettering, as well as bound original illustrations, in a slipcase. (Spine slightly discolored, slipcase somewhat worn.) Monod 3089. Carteret IV, 122: “One of Jeanniot’s finest books. A beautiful, highly prized edition.”—One of 100 copies on Arches vellum with the “Adolph” watermark (GA 151), embossed with a colored and signed pencil drawing. - This autobiographical novel by Benjamin Constant (1767–1830, born Henri-Benjamin Constant de Rebecque) was first published as early as 1816/17. The author, however, denied the widely held belief at the time that the novel reflected his relationships with Madame de Staël and Charlotte von Hardenberg. - With a foreword by Paul Hervieu. Pierre-Georges Jeanniot (1848–1934), who also served as the publisher here, came into contact with Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas, and others. In the years that followed, he illustrated numerous works of French national literature. Signed by the artist-publisher in the edition note. The first etching features a facsimile of a line of text by the author. - The binding by the famous bookbinder René Kieffer is in subdued colors, though the covers are divided by gilded fillets and decorated with maple leaf motifs. The wide inner edges, which frame the silk endpapers, are edged with a double gold fillet featuring corner fleurons. - A fine copy.