Récréations instructives - Instructive recreations. Zoologie pittoresque - Picturesque zoologie. Mammifères - Mammalia.

Paris, Aubert, [1845?]. 4to. Lithographed title page showing a lion, 24 lithographed plates with about 190 figures, captioned in two languages. Somewhat later blind quarter cloth over marbled boards. In this little known bilingual work by the French traveller, illustrator and naturalist Felix Achille Saint Aulaire (1801-1889), the mammals - with usually about five to nine species on each plate - are grouped into orders much in the fashion of diverse Buffon editions. The illustrations, however, seem to be original. The first plate shows several human races. It also includes 14 pp. of publications by this rather unknown publisher: Aubert et Cie, Place de la Bourse in Paris. No work later than Le keepsake des Dames pour 1846 is mentioned here, and together with the fact that the chimpanzee and gorilla are not included we assume this work to be from the early 1840's - 1845 at the latest. The Bibliographie Française for January 8th 1842 lists a similar work, with a French title only. The title page with a few small brown spots and advertisemens a bit foxed, otherwise a very good copy. Rare. Not in Nissen ZBI.