CURMER, Henri Léon (1801-1870, publisher)
IV Livres de L'imitation De Jesus-Christ Qu'aucuns Attribuent a Iessen a'autres a Gerson, & d'autres a Thomas, a Kempis, Fidelement Traduits
Paris: L. Curmer, 1855-1857. 4to. (10 3/4 x 7 1/2 inches). pp. [vi], xii, [2]; [Book I]: [iv], 1-86; [Book II:] [ii], 87-134; [Book III:] [ii], 135-328; [Book IV:] [ii], 329-400; [Table of Contents:] xiv. Lavishly illustrated throughout with initials, borders, miniatures, and vignettes after medieval and Renaissance manuscripts, printed in colour and gold. [Together with:] Appendice a L'Imitation de Jesus-Christ. Paris: L. Curmer, 1858. 4to (10 3/4 x 7 inches). 28, 143, 52, [8], 16 pp. Illustrated with portraits of Gersen, Gerson, Kempis, and Marillac as well as in-text illustrations, decorative borders and vignettes.
Contemporary half dark blue morocco and blue cloth, spines with raised bands forming six comparments, spines tooled and lettered gilt, all edges gilt. Bound by Zaehnsdorf. Within custom protective cloth dust jackets and slipcases
A celebrated and sumptuous production, often cited as a masterwork of chromolithographic printing and a landmark achievement in nineteenth-century French publishing. Together with the rare Appendix.
A spectacular example of 19th-century French publishing, Henri Léon Curmer's sumptuous edition of L'Imitation de Jésus-Christ pays homage to medieval manuscript illumination. The production of this work was a tour de force of chromolithography and early colour printing: Curmer assembled a team of over 100 artists, wood engravers, and printers to recreate the effect of hand-illuminated manuscripts, drawing inspiration from more than 400 historic sources, ranging from Gothic Books of Hours to Italian Renaissance codices and Islamic texts. Each page is richly decorated, with elaborate coloured and gilded borders framing the text, and vibrant miniatures illustrating key moments of Christ's Passion, devotion, and spiritual reflection. The chromatic effects were achieved through an innovative mixture of colour printing and the use of gold dusted onto an ink or vanish, which was found on most pages. Curmer's L'Imitation is celebrated as one of the most beautiful books produced in France during the 19th century, a testament to both religious devotion and the revival of interest in medieval artistry. The text itself, a translation of the Imitatio Christi, has been a cornerstone of Christian devotional literature since the 15th century. Traditionally attributed to Thomas à Kempis, the work's authorship has been debated, as noted in the title, with suggestions also including Jean Gerson and others. Issued as a separate volume to accompany Curmer's edition of L'Imitation de Jésus-Christ, the Appendix offers an indispensable guide to the work's artistic, historical, and scholarly foundations. It features a learned inquiry into the vexed question of authorship of the work, reviewing the rival claims of Jean Gerson, Thomas à Kempis, and others and includes a substantial essay on the history of manuscript illumination, discussing the evolution of styles, regional characteristics, and artistic techniques that shaped devotional art from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. Notably, the Appendix contains a catalogue and index of the hundreds of illuminated borders, historiated initials, miniatures, and decorative motifs reproduced in the main text as well as in the Apendix, identifying the original manuscripts, including Books of Hours, missals, and psalters from collections across France, Italy, Flanders, and beyond. Henri-Léon Curmer was one of the most important French publishers of the 19th century, renowned for his pioneering work in producing richly illustrated, lavishly printed editions that elevated bookmaking to a form of high art. Establishing his Parisian publishing house in the 1830s, Curmer specialized in luxury editions that combined literary classics with groundbreaking innovations in typography, chromolithography, and decorative design. Curmer employed leading artists, engravers, and printers of his time, and his editions are distinguished by their technical mastery and helped popularize chromolithography in France, setting new standards for 19th-century illustrated books. Curmer's contributions not only appealed to a growing bourgeois readership eager for beautiful objects of culture but also influenced the history of book design and production in Europe.
Twyman, History of Chromolithography (2013) p.158; Ray, Art of the French Illustrated Book 1700-1914, 264; Carteret, Romantique et Moderne III-311.
Item #42193
Price: $2,800.00