CALVIN (Jean). Institution de la religion chrestienne, mise en quatre livres et distinguee par chapitres en ordre & methode bien propre. Genève, Jacques Bourgeois, 1562. In-4, seeded calf, triple fillet and azure fleurons at the corners, ornate spine, inner lace, gilt edges (Modern binding). One of the rarest and most sought-after editions of this seminal book. The Christian Institution by John Calvin (1509-1564) is considered to be one of the first monuments of the French language, at the origin of Reformed theology and prose ideas in French. The first Latin edition was published in Basel in 1536, then translated into French by Calvin himself and published in Geneva in 1541. The definitive Latin and French versions, after several reworkings, date from 1559 and 1560 respectively. The present Geneva edition, giving the text in its definitive form, was one of the last to appear during Calvin's lifetime, when he died two years later. Some old marginal annotations. Missing the blank leaf **8, the final leaf ***6 and, as is often the case, the table by Augustin Marlorat which concludes the volume ([72] pp. signed a-i4). Washed copy, traces of wetness, repair to title and corner of a few leaves, tear affecting a few letters on f. ***4. Peter & Gilmont, 62/8 - GLN-542 - Haag, III, 552 - Brunet, I, 1502.