Religious Ceremonies and Customs. Picart and Bernard. First French Edition. Paris, 1741. Original leather bindings. Gilt spine
Religious Ceremonies and Customs by Picart and Bernard. First French edition. Paris, 1741.
Monumental work by Picard in the French language, Cérémonies et Coutumes Religieuses de Tous les Peuples du Monde, with engravings by Bernard Picart. Complete set! 7 parts. First edition. 239 stunning engravings on entire leaves of thick paper, some spread across two pages. Additionally, there are dozens of title pages with engravings in red and black ink.
Masterpiece by Bernard Picart that earned the moniker "The book that changed the face of Europe." As the book's title indicates, these books sought to bind within them the customs and ceremonies of all the recognized religions of the world. In practice, their work laid the foundations of the study of religions and greatly influenced the representation of religions in the West.
This work, or "Picart, " as it is known to many, broke all the conventional consensuses in the field. It represented all the religions, even pagan ones, equally and non-judgmentally. It sought to advance religious tolerance by showing the undesirable results of fanaticism, for example, with especially graphic pictures of executions and tortures. In contrast, the work praised religions, such as Islam, that were tolerant of others.
Picart dedicated much space in this work to Jews and even opened his work with them, during a time in which antisemitism in Europe was extremely widespread. This work presents Jewish customs in a sympathetic way, and includes a famous engraving of "Purim" in an Amsterdam synagogue that covers two pages, and other works about the customs of Jews, Sukkot, Pesach, ritual circumcision, a wedding, burial rites and more.
It is probable that Picart was very familiar with the Jewish community in Amsterdam; he even prepared an engraving for the book Tikkun Sofrim.
Despite the books being banned by the Church, they were published in four languages (French, English, Dutch and German) and sold approximately 4000 copies. The books have gained renewed interest in recent years among scholars of religion.
Very Fine Condition.
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Religious Ceremonies and Customs by Picart and Bernard. First French edition. Paris, 1741.
Monumental work by Picard in the French language, Cérémonies et Coutumes Religieuses de Tous les Peuples du Monde, with engravings by Bernard Picart. Complete set! 7 parts. First edition. 239 stunning engravings on entire leaves of thick paper, some spread across two pages. Additionally, there are dozens of title pages with engravings in red and black ink.
Masterpiece by Bernard Picart that earned the moniker "The book that changed the face of Europe." As the book's title indicates, these books sought to bind within them the customs and ceremonies of all the recognized religions of the world. In practice, their work laid the foundations of the study of religions and greatly influenced the representation of religions in the West.
This work, or "Picart, " as it is known to many, broke all the conventional consensuses in the field. It represented all the religions, even pagan ones, equally and non-judgmentally. It sought to advance religious tolerance by showing the undesirable results of fanaticism, for example, with especially graphic pictures of executions and tortures. In contrast, the work praised religions, such as Islam, that were tolerant of others.
Picart dedicated much space in this work to Jews and even opened his work with them, during a time in which antisemitism in Europe was extremely widespread. This work presents Jewish customs in a sympathetic way, and includes a famous engraving of "Purim" in an Amsterdam synagogue that covers two pages, and other works about the customs of Jews, Sukkot, Pesach, ritual circumcision, a wedding, burial rites and more.
It is probable that Picart was very familiar with the Jewish community in Amsterdam; he even prepared an engraving for the book Tikkun Sofrim.
Despite the books being banned by the Church, they were published in four languages (French, English, Dutch and German) and sold approximately 4000 copies. The books have gained renewed interest in recent years among scholars of religion.
Very Fine Condition.
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
