Amadis, tragédie, représentée, pour la première fois, par l'Académie-Royale de Musique, le 16 Janvier 1684. Reprise le 31 Mai 1701, le 3 Mai 1718, le 4 Octobre 1731, le 8 Novembre 1740, le 6 Novembre 1759, et remise au Théâtre, le Mardi 26 Novembre 1771. Prix XXX sols.

Aux Dépens de l'Académie. A Paris, chés De Lormel, Imprimeur de ladite Académie, rue du Foin, à l'Image Sainte-Geneviève. On trouvera des Exemplaires du Poème à la Salle de l'Opéra. 1771. 4to. 62 pages (1 blank leaf). Full red morocco, gilt lace around the boards, gilt fleur-de-lys in the corners and coat of arms of Madame Elisabeth in the center of the boards (contemporary binding). The first "tragedy in music" inspired, at Louis XIV's request, by a novel of chivalry ("Amadis de Gaule" by Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo) rather than mythological themes, "Amadis" is one of Lully's most popular compositions, as evidenced by the number of performances given from 1684 to the present day. Perhaps more than any of his other works, it represents the glorification of absolute monarchy on stage. "Like Lully's earlier lyric tragedies, Amadis is intended to reinforce the image of the King. But it brings two significant inflections to the genre. Instead of ancient myths, it draws its inspiration from national history, based on a work by Garci Rodriguez de Montalvo, translated and popularized in France from 1540 by Nicolas d'Herberay des Essarts. The original action inspired a number of French novels in the 17th century, while criticism continued to mount. (...) But in 1683, Louis XIV, who had been fascinated by chivalry novels in his youth, himself asked Lully and Quinault to draw inspiration from the subject. The other inflection lies in the prologue, hitherto conceived as an address to the King, which now becomes an integral part of the action, suggesting a tribute to the power and wisdom of the Sun King" (translated from Maury). The present libretto was published for the 1771 performance. This was the work's last stage appearance before the French Revolution. It featured arrangements by musician Jean-Benjamin de Laborde, who was guillotined on July 22, 1794, five days before the fall of Robespierre. A valuable, beautiful copy, revealing a moving provenance for this masterpiece of lyrical art, bearing witness to the splendors of the monarchy. It is, in fact, bound with the coat of arms of Madame Elisabeth (1764-1794), sister of Louis XVI, one of the most illustrious, purest and most sympathetic victims of the Revolution (see Larousse), who was imprisoned in the Temple with the royal family and also guillotined. Madame Elisabeth was a particularly remarkable member of the royal family, whose tragic fate she shared, and to whom she remained steadfastly loyal until the very end. Endowed with a strong character, this princess, who chose to remain celibate, was passionate about science and learning, as evidenced by the care she devoted to her library. Today, she is the subject of a beatification procedure. "A connection must be made between Marie-Antoinette and her sister-in-law, Madame Elisabeth, who shares the same tragic destiny with the Queen of France. (...) Madame Elisabeth loved books; those in her library were elegantly bound, and stamped with a diamond-shaped escutcheon bearing the arms of France, surmounted by a ducal crown. (...) We often see Madame Elisabeth engaged in true bibliophile pleasures. More than one of her mornings is spent arranging her books. My library is almost finished," she wrote to Mme de Raigecourt, "the shelves are being placed; you can't imagine what a lovely effect books have'..." (translated from Eugène Asse). A magnificent copy, luxuriously bound with the youthful coat of arms of Madame Elisabeth, of which only a few examples are known, and which are very different from her escutcheon with the arms of France mentioned by Asse. OHR Plate 2531, iron n°4 (mentioning our copy sold by Rahir in his catalog of January 1920, n°516). On Amadis, see Bruno Maury in "Muse Baroque" (2014). On Madame Elisabeth bibliophile, cf. Asse “Les Bourbons bibliophiles” (1901), pp.130-133.