Montesquieu Grandeur des Romains 1846 Antique French Prize Binding
Montesquieu Grandeur des Romains 1846 Antique French Prize Binding
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The centerpiece stamp on this binding stops you cold: Gothic cathedral spires flanking the Sacred Heart, with a banner beneath reading "Maison des Oiseaux" — the prize binding device of one of the most distinguished girls' schools in 19th-century Paris. The Pensionnat des Dames de Notre-Dame on the rue de Sèvres educated daughters of the French upper bourgeoisie and aristocracy, and their prize books are among the most recognizable institutional bindings of the period. The text inside is Montesquieu's Considérations sur les Causes de la Grandeur des Romains et de leur Décadence, his 1734 analysis of Roman rise and fall that shaped Gibbon, influenced the American Founders, and became a cornerstone of serious French academic study. A tipped-in award certificate accompanies the volume, dated on its printed form to August 1835, though the book itself was printed in 1846 by A. Pornin et Cie of Tours — the certificate blank predates the printing, as was common with institutional prize forms. The binding is the piece here, and it is a very good one.
The binding is sound and displays well. Boards are dark green pebble-grain leather with the gilt Maison des Oiseaux centerpiece stamp intact and sharp; the scrollwork border tooling shows some rubbing and light wear at the corners and edges, consistent with age. The spine leather is slightly darker than the boards — typical of two-leather prize binding construction — with gilt-ruled panels clean and legible. Hinges are firm with no cracking or loosening. Fore-edges are gilt, showing light wear. The text block is tight with light, scattered foxing throughout; no loose or missing pages. The tipped-in award certificate shows foxing and age-related wear; it remains attached. Overall a solid, presentable copy whose value is in the binding and institutional provenance.
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