Library of Jean-Baptiste Colbert - Lot 541

Library of Jean-Baptiste Colbert [FERMANEL DE FAVERY (Luc)] Relatione delle Missioni de' Vescovi Vicarii Apostolici, mandati dalla S. Sede Apostolica alli regni di Siam, Cocincina, Camboia, e Tunkino [Relation des Missions des Évêques françois aux royaumes de Siam, de la Cochinchine, de Camboye, & du Tonkin]. In Roma, 1677, Nella Stamperia della Sac. Cong. de Prop. Fide. In-4. Handwritten bookplate "Bibliothecae Colbertinae" 9296 on title page. Contemporary red morocco, spine ribbed and decorated, figure of Jean-Baptiste Colbert between caissons, triple gilt fillet framing the boards, central arms of Minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert, gilt roulette on the edges, red speckled edges. Based on numerous correspondences and reports. Chevreuil, the survivor of the voyage, arrived in Siam in 1664 and, five months later, went to Cochinchina, where he had to leave because of the persecution of Christians, mentioned in the second part of the book. Each part mentions the journey made by the missionaries and the places they visited. There are descriptions of Siam, Cambodia, Cochinchina and Tonkin, as well as Mozambique, Bourbon Island, Reunion, Cape Verde, Madagascar, etc. First Italian edition, the French dates from 1674 (Bibliotheca Sinica 827). Provenances: 1/ Prestigious copy bearing the coat of arms of minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert, with his coat of arms, his cipher on the spine, and on the manuscript title page "Bibliothecae Colbertinae". While the manuscripts making up this immense collection entered the Bibliothèque du Roi in 1732, the printed works (numbering 50,000 volumes) were dispersed in 1728 by Abbé Charles-Eléonor Colbert de Seignelay (a three-volume catalog exists). 2/ Printed bookplate "Charles de Bachi - Marquis d'Aubaïs", his arms added on a piece of morocco on the spine in a box (mention 0.102). Charles de Baschi, Marquis d'Aubays (1686-1777) was a bibliophile, historian and genealogist who amassed a rich collection of manuscripts and printed works, and owned an immense library.