Louis XIV - Ordonnance du Commerce, de 1673 - Le "Code Savary" - 1785

DESCRIPTION: I present at auction a PRECIOUS AND SUPERB LUXURY EDITION IN RED MOROCCO OF the "ORDONNANCE DU COMMERCE, DE 1673 (Ordinances of Commerce, 1673)", also known as THE SAVARY CODE.

This magnificent book is the fourth volume of the celebrated collection of the great laws of the French law of the Ancien Régime, complete with all the laws and ordinances it contains. The main core of this volume is the historical "ORDONNANCE DE LOUIS XIV POUR LE COMMERCE (Ordinance of Louis XIV for Commerce)", originally issued in Versailles in the year 1673. Drafted under the impulse of the minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert and with the fundamental collaboration of the merchant Jacques Savary, this ordinance is considered an absolute milestone: the first commercial code in modern history, the cornerstone of European mercantile law that served as the direct basis for the subsequent Napoleonic Code of 1807.

For greater legal richness, this volume also includes the following very important legislative pieces:

+ The Ordonnance du mois d'Août 1669 (issued in Saint-Germain-en-Laye), devoted to the Evocations, the Judges’ Regulations and the Committimus, in both civil and criminal matters.

+ The Ordonnance du mois d'Août 1737 (issued in Versailles by King Louis XV), a crucial and highly specific text aimed at regulating uniformly the procedures in matters of counterfeiting and unifying judicial criteria against the "new wiles of litigants".

The entire volume features an extensive and careful technical compilation of the legal text, including the detailed indication of the Edicts, Declarations, Letters Patent, Arrests of Regulations and notable notes that interpreted, restricted, extended, changed or repealed the articles of those Royal Ordinances.

YEAR AND PLACE OF PUBLICATION: Paris, 1785. Chez Le Boucher.

LANGUAGE: French (Original Version).

SIZE AND PAGINATION: Dimensions: 11.2 x 7.2 cm. Pagination: Title page + independent title pages for each ordinance + (2pp) + 286pp + (3pp). COMPLETE WORK for this VOLUME IV.

CONDITION: Spectacular and richly luxurious LEATHER BINDING of the period in FULL RED MOROCCO LEATHER in excellent overall condition. Stunning flat spine, extensively decorated and studded with gilt botanical motifs and floral ornaments. Black leather label with the title of the work and the mythical year of the law of commerce ("1673") engraved in gold.

Boards gilt-ornamented with a triple neoclassical gilt filet and edges decorated with gold threads. The three edges of the leaves are beautifully gilded on the turn, maintaining a magnificent shine. A beautiful library copy.

The interior is in excellent preserved condition, as shown in the photos: Clean and fresh. Beautiful typography. A curiosity: we will find several engraved little hands with the finger pointing to a passage, as was customary in the 16th century.

PRECIOUS AND SUPERB LUXURY EDITION IN RED MOROCCO OF A MILESTONE IN WORLD MERCANTILE LAW. DO NOT LET IT SLIP AWAY.