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large, heavy black cloth hardbound folio. very large & heavy ("coffee table" size book), int'l or priority shipping will cost extra). dustwrapper in protective plastic. very fine cond. binding square & tight. covers clean. edges clean. contents free of all markings. dustwrapper in fine cond. not worn or torn or price clipped. first edition. first printing ( # 1 in # line). full color photo illustrated frontis. xl+480p. glossy pages throughout. foreword by James Billington. foreword by Jean Favier. chronology of french history.index. illustration captions. 5 full color maps of western europe in different historical periods. list of contributors. 207 glossy full color illustrated catalogue exhibit items with detailed descriptions. many full page full color glossy plates. profusely illustrated througout in full color. world history. french history. history of the book. medieval literature. european history. charlemagne. napoleon. history of christianity. european history. book collecting. libraries. archaeology. art history. ~ From monastic cloisters in the time of Charlemagne to the book~lined studies of twentieth~century authors, this splendid book presents an overview of the literary and artistic world in France. The Bibliothèque nationale de France, today rich in collections of illuminated manuscripts, books, medals, maps, and prints, had its beginnings when Charles V established his library in the falcon tower of the Louvre. During the Middle Ages, culture was the handmaiden of Church and government; during the absolute monarchy, it became an instrument of propaganda; in the eighteenth century, it developed an independent voice. This book explores the changing relationship between power and culture in France as seen in the history of its national library.Four distinguished American scholars~Peter Gay, Orest Ranum, Elizabeth Brown, and John Contreni~write about the connection between French cultural expression and political power from medieval to modern times. Four French experts from the Bibliothèque nationale de France~Florence Callu, Antoine Coron, Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie, and Marie~Hélène Tesnière ~ discuss more than 200 of the objects in the library, almost all of which are pictured in the book, exploring their historical significance and their relationship to the Bibliothèque nationale de France. Among these objects are: a sumptuous ninth~century liturgical manuscript, entirely written in gold and silver on purple parchment; the bronze throne of Dagobert on which Napoléon sat at the founding of the order of the Legion d'Honneur; Marguerite d'Orléans's fifteenth~century book of hours with its delicate illuminated borders; a heart~shaped world map, published in 1536, showing the newly discovered lands of America; a sonata composed by Mozart when he was seven years old and dedicated to the daughter of Louis XV; a symphony by Berlioz written for the inauguration of the Bastille column; Zola's "J'accuse"; and much more. The book serves as the catalogue for a major exhibition at the Library Of Congress that presents a selection of the Biblioteque nationale de France s rare and beautiful treasures. The exhibit opens in September 1995.
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