Books and Manuscripts

Delgardette, C(laude).M(athieu).
Les ruines de Paestum ou Posidonia, ancienne ville de la grande Grece, a vingt-deux lieues de Naples, dans le golfe de Salerne: levees, mesurees et dessinees sur les lieux, en L'an II
Paris: Chez L'Auteur et Chez H. Barbou, 1799. First edition. Folio, 20 1/2 x 13 1/2 in. (521 x 343 mm). viii, 76 pp. Illustrated with 14 engraved plates (including one folding plate) by Moissy and Gaitte after Delagardette. Contemporary three-quarter brown cloth over marbled paper-covered boards, remnants of paper spine label, expertly rebacked, boards and extremities rubbed; all edges trimmed; light to moderate foxing to plates and text. Blackmer 466

First edition of French architect Claude-Mathieu Delagardette's account of the Greek ruins at Paestum in Southern Italy, containing detailed engravings of the plans, measurements, and elevations of the Temples of Hera and the Temple of Athena. Considered one of the best works on the ruins, its influence can be seen in the subscriber's list that reads like a who's who of prominent late 18th century French architects.