This book depicts scenes with Chinese emperors from the sixteenth century, on finely engraved plates by Isidore Stanislas Helman (1743-1809), a copperplate engraver from Lille, France. The title is Faits Mémorables Des Empereurs De La Chine. Tires des Annales Chinoises, Dédiés a Madame, Orne de 24 Estampes in 4.o., Gravees par Helman, d’apres les Dessins Originaux de la Chine, tires du Cabinet de M Bertin, Mtre. et ancien Sre. d’Etat., A Paris. Chez l’Auteur, Graveur de Madame, Rue St. Honore … Et chez M. Ponce, Graveur de Mgr. Comte d’Artois … 1788, and in English, that means Memorable Facts about the Emperors of China from the Chinese Annals, Dedicated to Madame, Adorned with 24 prints [engravings], from the Original Drawings from China, taken from the Cabinet of M Bertin, minister and former Secretary of State, … at Mr. Ponce, engraver of the Count Artois … 1788.

The plates were finely engraved by Helman from designs by the Jesuit artist Jean-Denis Attiret, who went to China in 1737 and was given the title “Painter to the Emperor” by the Qianlong Emperor. The original paintings, from which the engravings are reduced, were commissioned by Attiret, by orders of the Emperor Qianlong, to be drawn and engraved in a western style and based on the work ”Dijian tushuo” (The Illustrated Discussion of the Emperor’s Mirror) from 1573, telling of the heroic deeds of the Emperors of China in parables.

The book was privately published and it has five raised bands, with gilt titles, giltflowers and gilt tooling on the spine, gilt borders on the original leather covers, blank endpapers, the dedication page to Madame, who was unnamed, but with a space left open for a name to be filled in later on, and we believe the Madame was actually Marie Antoinette. The book was intended for a French audience, and it was published a year before the French Revolution, and possibly a veiled criticism not only of Louis XVI, but of his wife, Marie Antoinette, as well.

At the bottom of the dedication page it reads “prix in 4 en feuilles [in sheets] 12 francset broche en carton 13, 10 sur le papier vélin [vellum] en feuilles, 18 sur le papier d’hollande peint a l’aquarel, 48; il y a aura quelques exemplaires sur le grand papierqui feront suite aux batailles de la chine] prix 18; l’ouvrage entier sera divise en quatre livraisons, qui paraitront tous les deux mois a commencer le 15 avril 1788”, which means the publication was available on different types of paper, and you could buy part 1 in unbound sheets at 12 livres, in paper wrappers at 13 livres and 10 francs, unbound on wove paper for 18 livres, on Holland paper painted in watercolors for 48 livres (₶), and the entire work would be divided into four deliveries, which would come out every two months starting April 16, 1788. ₶ stands for livre tournois, one of several currencies used in medieval France and a unit of value used to show the relative worth of something; according to a law passed in 1262, the livre tournois was established at about 20 sous tournois, or about 81 grams of fine silver.

This is a first edition with black and white engravings, published on heavy paper, with wide margins, and all the plates and tissue guards are present.

The book is 4to. and measures 10 1/2 x 7 3/4 in. wide, with wear on the boards commensurate with age, faded gilt on the spine and boards, very light browning or foxing, and some offset on the tissue guards from the engravings. A scarce copy ofthis unusual printing designed to appeal to educated Parisians in the 1700’s.