Collectif - Satyre Ménipée - 1664

A true monument of French political literature, La Satyre Ménippée holds a decisive place in the history of ideas at the crossroads of the 16th and 17th centuries. Published in the heated context of the Wars of Religion, it deploys a remarkably intelligent satire against the excesses of the League, while defending with wit and eloquence the legitimacy of the monarchy. Through the vividness of its style, the finesse of its irony, and the modernity of its political reflection, the work transcends the simple pamphlet to become a foundational text of French civic thought. A 17th-century edition thus becomes an essential piece in any library concerned with gathering the great voices that shaped the kingdom’s political and literary consciousness."}

Collective work attributed notably to Pierre Pithou, Nicolas Rapin, and Jean Passerat, the Satire Ménippée reflects the influence of Parisian humanist circles at the end of the Renaissance. These jurists and scholars, trained in the school of the Ancients, put their erudition at the service of a political cause, giving birth to a text where critical spirit is joined with classical culture. Their engagement, combined with exceptional rhetorical mastery, endows the work with lasting authority and explains its continued success in the 17th century. Possessing this work means preserving the direct testimony of a moment when literature became a major instrument of history.



COLLECTIVE - Menippean Satire, on the virtue of the Catholicon of Spain.

Ratisbonne, at Mathias Kerner’s, 1664.

1 volume, 16mo (336 pages). Illustrated with a folding plate.

Decorative binding in full, glazed blond calfskin from the period. Wear and small losses to the binding. Interior well preserved, with a few small stains and handwritten notes. Illustrated with a folding plate.

Good specimen