13 - [LATIN LITERATURE - POETRY] - OVID

[LATIN LITERATURE - POETRY] - OVID "The Metamorphoses by Ovid, translated into French verse, with the original text alongside, by M. L. de M***" Paris, Cuchet, Nyon, Belin, and Lesclapart, 1784, 3 volumes. In-8°. Full period porphyry calf. Smooth spine richly decorated with Louis XVI-style gilt ornamentation. Title and volume number in gilt letters. Covers surrounded by a triple gilt fillet. Marbled edges. Minor, insignificant wear from handling. Interior in very fresh condition. First edition of this rare translation, written entirely in French verse, by the lawyer and scholar Louis-Charles-Clément Mathey de Massilian. Published collectively as a joint venture by the Parisian booksellers Cuchet, Nyon, Belin, and Lesclapart, this version differs from the earlier prose version by Abbé Banier. The work adopts a rigorous approach by presenting the original Latin text side by side with the French poetic translation, a mirror layout specifically designed for scholars and students of the late 18th century. This edition, devoid of decorative plates, focuses instead on the fluidity of the versification and fidelity to Ovid’s metrical structures. Provenance: from the Library of Philippe de Volkaersbeke (ex-libris) References: BnF Data 12008330; Quérard, VI, p. 505