L'ENCYCLOPEDIE READEX COMPACT EDITION Complete in 5 Vols PMM

DIDEROT & D’ALEMBERT — L’Encyclopédie Readex Compact Edition — Complete in 5 Volumes Denis Diderot (1713–1784) and Jean-Baptiste d’Alembert (1717–1783). Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers. Elmsford, NY: Pergamon Press / Readex, circa 1969. Large folio volumes, illustrated throughout. Complete set of five volumes, reproducing the entire original encyclopedia. Publisher’s full burgundy cloth bindings, spines and front boards stamped in gilt. Minor rubbing and light surface soiling; overall a near-fine set. This is the Readex Compact Edition, a high-quality facsimile reproduction of the original 18th-century Encyclopédie. Each printed page reproduces four pages of the original edition, allowing the complete 17-volume text to be issued in five volumes, as published. Containing nearly 71,000 entries, the work was primarily authored by Diderot and d’Alembert, with notable contributions from Rousseau, Voltaire, Montesquieu, and others. Produced via photolithographic reproduction of the original 35-volume work published between 1751 and 1756. The text appears in reduced but highly legible microprint, and the plates—though scaled down—remain remarkably clear and detailed. An excellent and practical opportunity to own the entirety of Diderot’s monumental encyclopedia in printed form at a fraction of the cost of the original edition. Shipping note: This set is very large and heavy and will be shipped in two boxes. Shipping costs reflect size and weight.…