VIGNY Alfred de Éloa, ou la sœur des anges. Mystère.

Clouzot, p. 272 : "Rare et recherché" ; Carteret, II, p. 447.

First edition of the author's third published book. At the height of his poetic art and one of the most beautiful French poems, Vigny develops here the themes of 'pity' and 'love' :' "… le thème de la pitié qui ne recule devant rien, qui veut sauver à tout prix, même le Diable ; l'amour qui voudrait, inutilement, racheter le monde, et qui périt de son audace, mais sans se plaindre" (Dictionnaire des œuvres).

His contemporaries were very much in favour of this piece and his fellow writer Théophile Gautier declared the poem "le plus beau, le plus parfait peut-être de la langue française", in which Vigny deployed "ces gris nacrés, ces reflets de perles, ces transparences d'opale, ce bleu clair de lune" . The poem was first published in the very influential review Muse française (1823-1824). Although of short lifespan, the publisher Ambroise Tardieu successfully enroled the most eminent writers and poets into his literary publication which saw works by Vigny, Hugo, Soumet, Nodier, Deschamps, Rességuier, Desbordes-Valmore, Ancelot or Guttinguer.

Bound in at head is another important work of romantic poetry, also by a writer and contributor of Muse française.

GUTTINGUER, Ulric. Mélanges poétiques. Paris, Auguste Boulland et Cie [Ambroise Tardieu, éditeur], 1824. 3 nn.ll., 252 pp.

Clouzot, p. 139 ; Carteret, I, 369.

First edition of the most important work of this poet from French Brittany (Rouen 1785 – Paris 1866).

His Mélanges poétiques, first published like Éloa in Muse française, form a fine dyptych of the French Romantic poetry at its height.

Very fine copy, elegantly bound at the time.

Some overall foxing.