[Gilt Binding] - AA. VV. - Semaine Sainte - 1734

THE GOLDEN BOOK OF THE SUN KING: AARALDIC BINDING OF THE BOURBON COURT
Contemporary binding in full red morocco, extraordinarily decorated in gold: covers entirely covered by a complex geometrico-floral composition with interlaced panels, with repeated rocaille ferrules and late Baroque “à la fanfare” flourishes.
Heraldic identification: shield party per pale; in the first field the arms of France with three Bourbon lilies; in the second field a radiated device with an eagle and chivalric ensigns traceable to imperial and aristocratic dignity. All topped by a royal crown.
The presence of the arms of France united with a second noble field crowned places the binding among the major commissions close to the court of Louis XV and the circles of the Franco-Bourbon high aristocracy.
MARKET VALUE
Copies bound in gold-tooling by the Office de la Semaine Sainte of the 18th century generally fetch between €1,200 and €1,500; the presence of an contemporaneous binding of extraordinary decorative richness and in well-preserved condition radically changes market positioning. For similar copies with dense gold decorations, central coats of arms and elaborately ornamented back covers, value can realistically rise to a range between €2,000 and €3,000, with further increases if the heraldic identification is definitively attributed to a specific French court family or historical figure.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION - COLLECTOR'S COPY
Contemporary binding in full red morocco, extraordinarily decorated in gold: covers entirely covered by a complex geometrico-floral pattern in interlaced compartments, with repeated ferrules of Rocaille taste and late Baroque “à la fanfare.”
Heraldic identification: shield party per pale; in the first field the arms of France with three Bourbon lilies; in the second field a radiated emblem with an eagle and chivalric ensigns recognisable to imperial and aristocratic dignity. All topped by a royal crown.
The presence of the arms of France united with a second noble field and crowned places the binding in the realm of major commissions near the court of Louis XV and the circuits of the Franco-Bourbon high aristocracy.
Back with raised bands and compartments entirely ornamented with gold tools of radial and floral taste, title impressed in gold; borders and fillets richly decorated; gold impression still very vivid. Counterplates and guards in multicolored French marble paper of the 18th century. Presence of a refined 18th-century copperplate ex libris belonging to André Éveillé, with motto “Ex Libris nec profanorum,” within an elegant Rocaille frame with putti and an open book bearing a French moral citation. The quality of the engraving and the deliberately initiation-toned motto confirm provenance from an aristocratic or scholarly French library of the mid-18th century.
Minimal signs of use at margins and hinges, physiologic for the era, but overall very good condition and of great visual impact. Numerous illustrations depicting the various moments of the Passion. In old books with a centuries-long history, some imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description. Pages [6]; 659; [6].

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Office de la Semaine Sainte, Latin et François, à l’usage de Rome et de Paris; avec l’explication des cérémonies de l’Église, et quelques prières tirées de l’Écriture, pour la confession & pour la communion, & sur les mystères que l’on célèbre durant ce saint temps. Nouvelle édition.
À Paris, chez Grégoire Dupuis, rue Saint-Jacques, à la Couronne d’or, 1734. Avec privilège du Roi.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
In the 18th century the Offices of Holy Week represented one of the main instruments for interiorising the Catholic rite, especially after post-Tridentine reforms aimed at greater conscious participation by the faithful. This bilingual edition reflects the aim of making sacred texts and liturgical practices accessible to a cultivated secular audience. However, what deeply distinguishes this exemplar is its material dimension: the ostentatious binding is not mere ornament, but an integral part of the political and spiritual message. The book becomes a visual symbol of monarchic sacrality, where crown, coat of arms, and gilded decoration construct a language of power and prestige. The exemplar fully belongs to the representational book culture of Bourbon France in the full eighteenth century.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
A collective liturgical work derived from consolidated ecclesiastical traditions. The publisher Grégoire Dupuis operated in Paris in the first half of the 18th century, on the famous rue Saint-Jacques, center of French religious publishing, contributing to the widespread diffusion of devotional and liturgical texts of broad circulation.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
Editions of the Office de la Semaine Sainte were reprinted numerous times between the 17th and 18th centuries, with minimal adaptations but continuing formal updates. The phrase “Nouvelle édition” indicates a revised reprint. Copies with luxury bindings, like the present one, were destined for aristocratic commissions and high-representation settings, and are today decidedly less common than standard versions intended for ordinary use.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
ICCU/OPAC SBN: search by uniform title “Office de la Semaine Sainte” and Dupuis, Paris, 18th century
BnF Catalogue général: Office de la Semaine Sainte, éditions parisiennes, années 1730 (département des imprimés, cote à vérifier)
WorldCat: Office de la Semaine Sainte, Paris, 1734, holdings multiple in European libraries
Brunet, Manuel du libraire, t. IV, p. 185 (Offices liturgiques)
Dictionnaire de liturgie catholique, entries “Semaine Sainte,” “Offices”
Catalogue des livres liturgiques français des XVIIe–XVIIIe siècles, sections dedicated to bilingual Latin-French Offices