Solleysel - Le Parfait Mareschal - 1744

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EQUITAZIONE, MASCALCIA E MEDICINA EQUINA – IL GRANDE MANUALE ILLUSTRATO DELL’IPPOLOGIA EUROPEA
Important seventeenth-century edition of the famous Le Parfait Mareschal by Jacques de Solleysel (1617-1680), one of the foundational texts of European literature dedicated to the horse, farriery, and veterinary medicine. First published in 1664, the work enjoyed extraordinary editorial success and remained for over a century one of the main manuals intended for riders, breeders, farriers, and horse owners. Solleysel systematically addresses the selection of the horse, conformation, defects, breeding, feeding, care during travel, shoeing, diseases and their remedies, as well as the use of various types of bits. This Paris edition of 1744 preserves the rich figurative apparatus with an engraved title page, 2 plates out of text – one of which folded – and 27 woodcut illustrations dedicated to horseshoes, bits, and equestrian equipment. Of notable charm is the contemporary full calf binding with marbled spine richly decorated in gold.

WHY TO BUY
GRAND EUROPEAN HORSE CLASSIC! One of the most influential texts on hippology and veterinary medicine of the Ancien Régime.
MEDICINE + FARRIERING + BREEDING! A true practical encyclopedia of the horse.
ILLUSTRATED EDITION! Engraved title page, engraved plates, and 27 woodcuts dedicated to equipment and bits.
CONTEMPORARY MARBLED CALF! Elegant French example in an antique binding.

MARKET VALUE
The seventeenth-century editions of Le Parfait Mareschal maintain strong interest among collectors of hippology, horsemanship, veterinary science, and the history of science. For a complete two-part copy with the entire illustrative apparatus, preserved in a decorative contemporary binding, a realistic retail value is in the €700-1,200 range, with possible higher bids for particularly fresh copies in exceptional condition.

PHYSICAL / CONDITION
In-4°. Pp. (4), 6 nn., 512, 10 nn., 376, 12 nn., (2). Engraved frontispiece; 2 plates out of text, one folded; 27 woodcut illustrations in the text. Two parts with their own title pages. Contemporary full calf binding, marbled, spine with raised bands and rich gold decoration in the compartments, Morocco leather inlaid with gold-titled label. Signs of woodworm concentrated in the upper inner white margin of several pages; occasional halos and moisture marks. Chipping at the caps with minor defects and missing pieces; lower corners of boards worn. As with all old volumes, minor defects or restorations not expressly mentioned may be present.

FULL TITLES & AUTHORS
Jacques de Solleysel, sieur du Clapier (1617-1680).
Le Parfait Mareschal.
Paris: chez Pierre-Jean Mariette, 1744.
Illustrated edition in two parts.
Pp. (4), 6 nn., 512, 10 nn., 376, 12 nn., (2).
With engraved title page, 2 plates out of text and 27 woodcut illustrations.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Jacques de Solleysel, sieur du Clapier (1617-1680), was one of the most influential écuyers and equerries of seventeenth-century France. A deep practitioner of the equestrian arts and horse care, he was closely tied to French aristocratic academies and gained fame as a riding master and veterinary specialist in equine diseases. His practical experience formed the basis of Le Parfait Mareschal, a work in which direct observation, traditional farriery lore, and clinical attention fuse into a remarkably comprehensive system. The success was extraordinary: the treatise was continually reprinted, expanded, and translated into several languages, becoming one of Europe’s leading horse manuals. Solleysel contributed significantly to the progressive transformation of traditional ippia try into a more rational, observant discipline, paving the way for the birth of modern veterinary medicine.

RARITY
Le Parfait Mareschal appeared in numerous editions and is therefore not rare in itself, but complete copies of the two parts with the full visual apparatus and preserved in good contemporary binding are significantly more desirable. The 1744 edition represents one of the fine seventeenth-century impressions of the text and preserves the encyclopedic character of the work. The presence of the title page, plates, numerous woodcuts, and the full original marbled leather greatly enhances its collecting interest.

HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE
Le Parfait Mareschal holds a fundamental position in the history of horse medicine and in the transition from traditional farriery to modern veterinary medicine. Solleysel addresses symptoms, diagnoses, prevention, and treatment of equine diseases with a strong emphasis on practical experience, also critically discussing traditional procedures such as bloodletting and purging. But the work goes far beyond medicine: it covers shoeing, feeding, selection of foals, travel, bits, training, and daily management of the horse. The volume thus reproduces the entire material and technical universe of the horse in Europe during the Ancien Régime, when the animal remained essential for war, travel, agriculture, transportation, and aristocratic representation.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Mennessier de La Lance, Essai de bibliographie hippique, II, p. 525.
Huth, Works on Horses and Equitation.
Podeschi, Books on the Horse and Horsemanship, Paul Mellon Collection.
Brunet, Manuel du libraire et de l’amateur de livres.
Bibliothèque Mondiale du Cheval, entry for Jacques de Solleysel.
Repertori bibliografici dedicati alla mascalcia, alla medicina veterinaria e alla letteratura equestre europea.