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15 small octavo volumes bound in red morocco, gilt fillet on covers, smooth spine decorated with gilt fleurons, green morocco title and volume labels, gilt fillet on edges, gilt inner dentelle, gilt edges. Period binding.

174 x 103 mm.

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. Selected Works of J.J. Rousseau of Geneva.
London, n.d. (1783).

The Works of Rousseau illustrated by Marillier with the figures before letters “very rare in this condition” (Morgand and Fatout).

“Charming edition of the Works of J.J. Rousseau including Emile, 4 volumes, La Nouvelle Héloïse, 4 volumes, and Diverse Works, 7 volumes. It is adorned with a portrait of Rousseau and 26 plates by Marillier, which are here in proof before letters.”

Dufour, 396; Cohen, 911; Quérard, VIII, 200; H. Beraldi and R. Portalis, Graveurs of the 18th Century, IIIa, pp. 18-22; The Illustrators of the 18th Century, R. Portalis, pp.365-379.

“We know what a draughtsman Marillier (1740-1808) was, with what ingenuity and flexibility he displayed in that multitude of well-composed small pictures with which he adorned books. Dorat owed him much. People desire his Fables for Marillier’s vignettes. Marillier lived wisely, dividing his time between cultivating the arts and fulfilling administrative duties, which he discharged with praiseworthy zeal. It appears he contributed to the founding of the Melun public library.” (H. Beraldi and R. Portalis).

“The graceful draughtsman Marillier received his first lessons from a painter named Morelot, came to Paris and entered Hallé’s studio. He was well educated, with a refined and delicate mind, and quickly rose to the level of the masters of his day. He began by engraving sequences of numbers and flowers after designs by Carles de Saint-Aubin, royal embroiderer. Grimm, in his correspondence, stressed that ‘it is the draughtsmen and engravers who give all the merit to Dorat’s poems.’ Marillier was chosen to design two tailpieces for Les Baisers that Eisen, usually responsible for decorating Dorat’s works, had been unable to deliver on time. He performed to the satisfaction of the author, and immediately, delighted to have found such a graceful draughtsman, Dorat hastened to entrust him with the illustration of other works. The execution of these different drawings, and especially those for the Fables where Marillier had tried not to make Dorat regret Eisen, pleased their author so much that he at once considered a new edition specifically enriched with the witty compositions of the draughtsman. Marillier triumphs in these small-scale subjects. He excels in letting his characters move with grace and ease in confined spaces. He is the artist of the infinitesimal; his animals, his accessories are excellent, and his delightful frames—all different, all graceful and well-conceived—are true models of the exquisite taste that would later be called the Louis XVI style. He will remain among the most graceful figures in 18th-century art” (R. Portalis).

Beautiful and precious copy of the Works of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, with immense margins, printed on blue Dutch paper, preserved in its period red morocco binding.

Provenance: Library of André Langlois, with ex-libris on endpaper.