LA FONTAINE (Jean de). Fables choisies. Paris, Desaint & Saillant, Durand, 1755-1759. 4 volumes in-folio, red morocco, triple gilt fillet, fleurons at the corners, ornate spine, inner lace, gilt edges (Period binding). First edition of the magnificent and very famous illustration by the painter Jean-Baptiste Oudry. It includes a frontispiece and 275 out-of-text figures drawn by him, retouched for the engraving by Cochin and copper-engraved by the best artists of the time. The text is embellished with floral or allegorical vignettes and culs-de-lampe woodcuts by Le Sueur and Papillon based on compositions by the flower painter Jean-Jacques Bachelier. The typography was entrusted to Charles-Antoine Jombert. "One of the most ambitious and successful of all illustrated books" (Ray). A copy bound in contemporary red morocco, in rare and sought-after condition, complete with the fine portrait of Oudry engraved by Tardieu after Nicolas de Largillière. The engraving of the fable Le Singe et le léopard is after the inscription on the banner. Minor defects to bindings, a few scattered freckles and slightly browned leaves, tear without missing a plate (II, 70). Cohen, 548 - Ray, n°5 - Rochambeau, Fables, n°86 - Des livres rares (BnF), n°207.