Guillaume du Choul and illustrated by Pierre Eskrich - Discipline Militaire Des Anciens Romains COMPLETE, 565 illustrations, History, Military, Medicine - 1567

1567 ILLUSTRATED EDITION ON GREEK & ROMAN HISTORY, ARCHEOLOGY, MILITARY, ESOTERIC RITES, MEDICINE, COINS, ARCHITECTURE, BODY CARE, THERMAL BATHS, WELLNESS, GYMNASTIC by Guillaume DU CHOUL (1496-1560), a French antiquarian, archaeologist, humanist, numismatist and collector. THREE BOOKS IN ONE VOLUME, each with a different title and date, complete edition with around 500 illustrations of coins and art objects, plus 65 illustrations, mostly full-page (height 255 x width 187 mm or 10.1 by 7.4 inches). The splendid engravings are the work of Pierre Eskrich (1518-1590) a French engraver, illustrator and painter. Text and illustrations are intact and with wide margins. This is one of the first works of archaeology in France and is a research on the ancient Romans and their organization, emperors, centurions, costumes, tools, practices, battles, weapons, chivalry, strategies, superstitions and esoteric rites. By treating physical artifacts like ancient coins and marbles as primary historical evidence, Du Choul provided a tangible reconstruction of Roman life that was as visually stunning as it was scholarly. Original antique vellum binding from the period, with handwritten titles in French on the spine, in good condition as per photo. COMPLETE EDITION.

NO COPIES FOR SALE, THREE BOOKS IN ONE VOLUME. The oldest edition for sale is from 1581 at USD 8,750.00 here; https://biblio.co.uk/details.php?dcx=1537356079, while the older and complete 1567 edition is offered to you at a fraction of that price. The fine engravings according to H.L. Baudrier in "Bibliographie Lyonnaise 1895-1920", are attributed to Pierre ESKRICH (1518-1590). Eskrich, also known as Pierre Cruche or Pierre Vase, collaborated for many years with the Lyonese publisher Guillaume Rouillé (1518-1589), and François de Mandelot (1529-1588) the governor of Lyon, producing illustrations for various bibles, historical works and natural history prints. The text is illustrated by hundreds of engravings with scenes of ancient military life, coins of Roman emperors, a dissertation on the baths/spa/sauna, ancient gymnastic practices and roman fortress. The author Guillaume DU CHOUL (1496-1560) was one of the first French archaeologists and scholars of Roman antiquities. He was encouraged to study by the wealth of treasures found in the land on which his house in Lyon stood, and he subsequently perfected his knowledge through a trip to Italy. The history of Lugdunum or Lyon starts in 43 B.C., nine years after Caesar had conquered Gaul and one year before his assassination in Rome, when Lucius Munatius Plancus, the governor of Gaul, was sent by the Senate to found a Roman colony. The first inhabitants were Roman citizens, veterans of the army. Its status as a colony placed Lugdunum/Lyon at the summit of the municipal hierarchy and would favor its future development. The author found hundreds of ancient coins and art objects, infact Lyon was an imperial mint during the reign of Augustus, replacing mints in Spain. After 12 B.C., it was the sole mint producing gold and silver coinage for the whole Roman Empire, a position it retained until Emperor Nero moved production back to Rome in 64 AD.

FIRST TITLE : Discours De La Religion Des Anciens Romains...(Discourse on the Religion of the Ancient Romans...)
SECOND TITLE: Discours sur la castramétation et discipline militaire des anciens Romains...(Discourse on the castrametation and military discipline of the ancient Romans...)
THIRD TITLE: Discours des bains et exercitations antiques grecques et romains...(Discourse on baths and ancient Greek and Roman exercises....)
AUTHORS: Guillaume du Choul (circa 1496–1560) and illustrated by Pierre Eskrich (1518-1590)
PUBLISHER: Guillaume Rouillé also called Roville
DATE: MDLXVII (1567), printed in Lyon, text in french and latin

DESCRIPTION: in 4° size height 255 x width 187 mm or 10.1 by 7.4 inches. Pages 339, and [56] leaves for index. Second part and 154 pages, and [10] leaves for index, complete edition. Richly illustrated with around 500 engraving in the text, and 65 illustrations, mostly full-page. Original antique vellum binding from the period, with handwritten titles in French on the spine. Some defects, stains and some small cuts and wear especially on the corners and edges, but overall the binding is solid and intact in all its parts as shown in the photos. Pages are generally clean and in very good condition, few small stains, oxidation and offsetting here and there, small water stains mostly on the peripheral white margins, on 2-3 pages old college mark, ownership signature on the margins of a title, text and illustrations intact. COMPLETE EDITION, THREE BOOKS IN ONE VOLUME.

LITERATURE & REFERENCES: World Cat OCLC n°883665718 & 252853835; USTC n°1451; (Brunet-II-858); Herbert M. Adams, n° D 1025; Mortimer French Books 180 and 181; Henri-Louis Baudrier and Julian Baudrier, Bibliographie lyonnaise. vol. 9 pp. 312-313; Spanish Libraries Catalogue [Biblioteca Nacional de Espana] n° D 1563; Paris, France, Bibliothèque nationale de France Shelfmark: Résac. J 5079; London, United Kingdom, British Library Shelfmark: 602 g 2; München, Germany, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek Shelfmark: 4o Ant 59 c; Québec, Canada, Bibliothèque Université Laval Shelfmark: DG 76 D832 1567; Antwerpen, Belgium, Erfgoedbibliotheek Hendrik Conscience Shelfmark: K 49052 [C2-551 b]; Wien, Austria, Österreichische Nationalbibliothek Shelfmark: 53 h 4; Pierre Eskrich: peintre et tailleur d'histoires à Lyon au XVIe siècle. Lyon: Waltener; Félix Bourriot, « Un ouvrage lyonnais de la Renaissance : Discours de la religion des anciens Romains par Guillaume du Choul, Lyon, 1556 », Revue du Nord, t. 66, nos 261-262,‎ avril-septembre 1984, p. 653-675.

ILLUSTRATOR: Pierre Eskrich, born Pierre Krug and known variously as Pierre Cruche or Pierre Vase (c. 1518 – c. 1590), was a French engraver, illustrator and painter. Connected with humanists during the Reformation, one of his major works was the 16 piece Mappe-Monde Nouvelle Papistique made in 1566 for Jean Baptiste Trento to depict the Protestant's satirical view of the Catholic world. He also illustrated an unpublished project on birds. He was also producing wood engravings for use as frontispieces, ornaments and typography used in the works of Guillaume Rondelet, Balthazar Arnoullet, Jean Pillehotte, Berthelemy Honorat, and for the bookseller Guillaume Rouillé.

AUTHOR: Guillaume du Choul (circa 1496–1560) was a French antiquarian, humanist, numismatist and collector. Du Choul belonged to a family of lawyers from Lyon. After studying at the University of Valence, he graduated and was recognized as a doctor of law, then held the position of high official of the Montagne de Dauphiné from 11 April 1522, whose headquarters were however in Lyon. His vocation as an antiquarian and historian is due to the wealth of archaeological remains found in the place where he lived. His research on ancient Rome, encouraged by king Francis I (1494 – 1547), was partially published during his lifetime, in books that were authoritative until the 18th century. Not limiting himself to references from ancient authors alone, he innovated by giving historical value to the lapidary inscriptions and ancient coins, which abundantly illustrate his works.

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