OVIDE. LES METAMORPHOSES EN LATIN ET EN FRANÇAIS with historical explanations. Paris, Delalain, 1767-71. 4 volumes in-4°, blond calf, gilt fillet on covers, spine ribbed and decorated, gilt edges (period binding). One of the most elegantly illustrated books of the century. "This superb work is due to the care of the publisher Basan and the engraver Le Mire" (Cohen, 434/35). This edition, translated by Abbé Banier, is richly illustrated with a frontispiece, 140 OUT OF TEXT FIGURES and 30 vignettes in the text, all after Boucher, Eisen, Gravelot, Leprince, Monnet, Moreau, Parizeau and Saint-Gois. Hinges rubbed, 2 spines split, small marginal wetness on a few leaves and slight paper defects. 2 unidentified bookplates.