Beschreibung:

LE HAY, Jacques (c.1645-c.1713) – [Charles de FERRIOL (1652-1722)]. Recueil de Cent Estampes representant differentes Nations du Levant, gravées sur les Tableaux peints d'après Nature en 1707 & 1708 . Paris: Sr. Le Hay and Sr. Duchange, 1714 [ Bound with :] – Explication des cents Estampes . Paris: Jacques Colombat, 1715. Horace Walpole's copy of the first edition of the 'most popular and influential illustration of Turkish dress to date' (Blackmer). A special hand-coloured copy, embellished with sprinkled mica chips in gold and colours to simulate in the relief the jewelled ornamentation on belts, turbans, horse furniture, sword scabbards and other costume decoration. The work was commissioned by Charles de Ferriol (1652-1722) French ambassador in the Ottoman Empire between 1699 and 1709 and illustrates the regional, religious and national costume of the Turkish Empire. Cohen de Ricci 619; Colas 1819-1820; Lipperheide Lb26-27; Blackmer 591; Graesse IV, 150. 2 parts in one volume, folio (470 x 330mm). Engraved title illuminated in gold, 102 hand coloured plates, including 3 folding plates, heightened with gold and embellished with mica chips to simulate jewelled ornamentation, engraved music plate at end (a few marginal tears, one into plate mark of pl.53, one into caption of pl.68, final plate with tear through caption and torn at fold, minor finger soiling in some blank margins). Contemporary red decorated morocco, covers with gilt roll tooled borders and floral cornerpieces, inner blind-tooled panel enclosing gilt-tooled floral and foliate centrepiece, gilt spine, turn-ins and edges (old repairs to hinges and to spine ends and corners, extremities lightly rubbed). Provenance : Horace Walpole (1717-1797, politician and author; armorial engraved bookplate) – ?I.L. (engraved crest of lion's head erased, probably of the Lowndes family) – 19th-century inscription 'Bought at Chester by Robert H. Walpole November 1891'.