6 - [HISTORY - GHENT]

[HISTORY - GHENT] "Account of the Solemn Inauguration of His Sacred Majesty Leopold II, Emperor of the Romans, King of Germany, Hungary, and Bohemia, &c. &c., as Count of Flanders, celebrated in Ghent, the provincial capital, on July 6, 1791” Ghent, Adrien Colier, 1792 Narrow folio. Full havana-colored calfskin with root-stained edges. Spine with 5 raised bands surrounded by gilt fillets. Covers decorated in the center with the coat of arms of the Counts of Flanders. Text of 47 pages framed by an engraved frieze. The edge of the back cover is split; corners are very worn; some scuffing. Interior is in very fresh condition. First edition of this important official account commemorating the accession and inaugural oath of Emperor Leopold II as Count of Flanders, a lavish ceremony orchestrated in Ghent under the auspices of its governors-general, Marie-Christine of Austria and Albert of Saxe-Teschen. Printed by Adrien Colier, the official printer of the States of Flanders, this commemorative volume—the last of its kind due to the consequences of the revolutionary events that unsettled the region—constitutes a valuable historical and iconographic document for the study of political rituals during the late Austrian period in the Southern Netherlands. The work offers a detailed description of the processions, temporary decorations, triumphal arches, illuminations, and medals struck for the occasion. Provenance: from the Library of Philippe de Volkaersbeke (bookplate) References: Bibliographie gantoise, II, 7069; Funck, 381