Antique French Gilt-Stamped Book, Jeanne de Montfort, Mégard, Rouen, 1858

Jeanne de Montfort: Leçons d'histoire et de morale by Mme C. Fallet, published in Rouen by Mégard et Cie in 1858 for the Bibliothèque morale de la jeunesse, a series of improving books for young readers. The heroine is Jeanne de Montfort, the 14th-century duchess who defended Brittany with remarkable persistence. Judging by the engraved frontispiece, which shows her calmly holding a child aloft while a crowd advances with an axe, the lesson was not subtle.

The binding is the reason to own it. Dark green publisher's cloth is stamped all over with a gilt lattice of fleurs and diamonds around a plain oval cartouche, with a matching decorated spine. It's handsome on its own, better in a stack, and very good on a nightstand.

Details

• Title: Jeanne de Montfort: Leçons d'histoire et de morale
• Author: Mme C. Fallet
• Publisher: Mégard et Cie, Rouen, 1858 (Bibliothèque morale de la jeunesse)
• Language: French
• Binding: gilt-stamped publisher's cloth
• Illustrations: engraved frontispiece
• Condition: light rubbing to the binding and scattered foxing to the pages, consistent with age. Please review all photos.