Le Menage des Champs, et le Jardinier Francois accommodez au gout des temps: Dans lesquelles on peut apprende faciliment a apreter tout ce qui est necessaire pour l'usage de la vie a la Compagne, & meme de la Ville; & la maniere de cultiver parfaitement les Jardins fruitiers, potagers, & flueristes, avec un traite de la Chasse & de la Peche; Ouvrage utile a toutes sorte de personnes

Paris: Michel David, 1711. Octavo, [6], 536, [8] pages. Frontispiece, five leaves of folding plates. Second printing of the First Edition. Michel David issued the title originally in 1710. A compilation of two seventeenth century works by Nicolas de Bonnefons, here issued under a royal privilege granted to Louis Liger, sieur d'Auxerre (1658-1717). The work is divided into four books, the first three concerning cooking, the fourth dealing with gardening, and with an additional brief treatise on hunting and fishing. Liger's compilation of de Bonnefons' work continued to be revised and reissued after his death and well into the eighteenth century. And rightly so. De Bonnefons' work recognizes the primacy of excellent ingredients. The final section is considered to be the first work on the kitchen garden. John Evelyn, who translated the work in 1658, called it "the first and best work of that kind that introduced the use of the olitorie garden to any purpose." Contemporary full-calf, compartmented spine with gilt-tooled ornaments and title. Some wear to foot of spine and corners, and one leather chip absent from the rear panel. Several contemporary ownership inscriptions to endpapers, some signed "Drouilly". Inkblot to verso of frontispiece has penetrated, and is visible in the image. Overall, near very good. [Bitting, pages 287-288; Cagle 285-85 (later editions); Oberlé refers to the earlier publication of de Bonnefons' work, but not the Liger editions; Vicaire 522-523].