[RESTIF DE LA BRETONNE (Nicolas-Edme). Les Parisiennes, ou XL caractères généraux pris dans les mœurs actuelles, propres à servir à l'instruction des personnes-du-sexe. Neufchâtel et Paris, Guillot, 1787. 4 volumes in-12, lemon half calf with corners, spine decorated, untrimmed (Binding of the late nineteenth century). First edition. Restif began writing Les Parisiennes in December 1785. Conceived as a counterpart to Les Françaises, the work was written almost as quickly: the first volume was completed on 30 June 1786 and Les Parisiennes was finished on 7 October. This is the first edition of one of the most remarkable illustrations of Restif's works, consisting of 20 unsigned plates hors texte, attributed to Binet, Richomme, Aze and Berthet. These illustrations "very singular [...] offer heads of women so varied and so piquant that they can be mistaken for portraits. The composition must be attributed to the caprice of Restif, who, without knowing how to draw, had his sketches or data executed by the draughtsmen he employed", writes Lacroix. A finely bound, untrimmed copy. Lacroix, 247 - Rives Childs, 302-303 - Cohen, 879 - Courbin, nos. 14640.