Démeste, Jean (1779)
Lettres | Du | Docteur Démeste, | Correspondant de la Société Royale | de Médecine, | Au Docteur Bernard, | Premier Professeur de la Faculté de Médecine de | Douay, de la Société Royale de Londres, &c. | Sur la Chymie, la Docimasie, la Cristallographie, | la Lithologie, la Minéralogie & la Physique | en général. | [rule] | Novus…. Rerum nascitur ordo, Æneid, Lib. VII. | [rule] | Tome Premier [-Second]. | [ornament] | A Paris, | Chez Didot, Imprimeur de Monsieur, | Quai des Augustins. | Ruault, Libraire, rue de la Harpe. | Clousier, Imprimeur & Libraire, | rue Saint-Jacques. | [double rule] | M.DCC.LXXIX. | Avec Approbation, & Privilége du Roi.
Half title: Lettres | Du | Docteur Démeste, | Au | Docteur Bernard. | [rule] | Tome Premier [-Second]. | [rule]
Collation: 2 Vol.
Vol 1: 12°: a6 A-Bb12 Cc6; [5] 6 [1] 8-11 [1] [1] 2-611 [1 blank] p.
Vol 2: 12°: a6 A-Dd12 Ee12; [5] vj-xij [1] 2-665 [5] [2 blank] p.
Page size: 93 x 165 mm
Binding: contemporary calf, decorated gilt spine with red leather title-labels
Provenance: no marks of provenance
Other editions: German translation (1784)
References: Cole 366; Hoover 262; Schuh 1325
Note: The printing of the "Lettres du Docteur Démeste" amounts to one thousand copies, about half of which were sold during the four years following the edition. This information is found in a letter written, after the death of Jean Démeste, by Crombois a clerk of the editor Didot. The original manuscript (dated november 6th, 1783 and probably addressed to Romé de l’Isle) is preserved at the Library of the University of Liège, Belgium (Ulg, ms. 4171). It is also mentioned that the expenses of the impression of Démeste's book were supported by the marquis d’Aoust (1741-1805) a wealthy amateur of natural history.
The transcription of letters written by Dr Jean Démeste and addressed to Jean-Baptiste Romé de l'Isle is available here.
Collection: private collection
