BÈZE (Theodore de). Icones, id est veræ imagines virorum doctrina simul et pietate illustrium..., quibus adjectæ sunt nonnullæ picturæ quas Emblemata vocant. Geneva, Jean de Laon, 1580. 4 pages, soft vellum with covers (contemporary binding). First edition and first printing of the illustration, consisting of 38 full-page portraits - including that of James Stuart opposite the dedication - and 44 mid-page emblems, all wood-engraved. Theodore de Bèze (1519-1605) was Calvin's successor as head of the Geneva Academy and the undisputed leader of the Reformed cause throughout Europe. This biographical collection is followed by Christian emblems in Latin verse. Simon Goulart published a French translation the following year under the title: Les Vrais pourtraits des hommes illustres en piété et doctrine... An attractive copy in its original condition, with handwritten annotations by Jean Huguetan, a Calvinist from Lyon, with a handwritten bookplate on the endpaper. Binding a little rubbed and dusty, very light ring at the head of some leaves. Praz, 270 - GLN-2773 - Adams, B-920.