Jean-Jacques Rousseau - Les Confessions - Genève 1782 (2 volumes) complète - 1782

Splendid set of 2 volumes from the contemporaneous edition of 1782 of "Les Confessions" by Jean-Jacques Rousseau. This variant is historically cataloged and sought after by collectors as a rare contemporaneous counterfeit (pirate edition of the era), printed in the same year as the first official edition. A fascinating testimony to the overwhelming and clandestine success of European Enlightenment. Pagination per volume: Volume 1: 252 pages; Volume 2: 286 pages. Condition: Exterior (Good): period full-leather binding with beautiful tooling and gilt titles on the spine. The boards and spines show the usual and natural signs of time and age (slight surface wear at the margins and at the tips), which add charm and authenticity to the set. Page edges decorated with a splendid color marbled spray typical of the period. Binding solid. Interior (Excellent / Superb): The inner pages are in an exceptionally fresh state for a book over 240 years old. The eighteenth-century wove paper is extraordinarily white, clean, fresh and almost completely free of foxing, damp stains, or inscriptions. Clear woodcut ornaments at the beginning of each chapter. A magnificent specimen, ideal for enriching a collection of ancient and rare eighteenth-century books.