Besson (Jacques) Theatre des Instrumens Mathematiques et Mechaniques...avec l'Interpretation des Figures d'icelluy par François Beroald, title with elaborate woodcut allegorical border, woodcut ornaments and initials, full-page diagram, 60 engraved plates by Jacques Androuet du Cerceau and René Boyvin, 2 old ink inscriptions to foot of title (one crossed out), plates 1-29 with contemporary ink annotations to head of fore-margin or upper margin forming tabs (reinforced), some light marginal staining, title frayed and reinforced at upper edge, dedication defective at upper outer corner not affecting text (repaired), one or two plates with small stain to images, B2 of preliminaries misbound after B3, small old ink library stamp to verso of title, later half calf, rubbed, lower corners repaired, [Adams B838; cf.Berlin Kat. 1769, 1579 edition; cf.Millard French 22, Latin edition], folio (c.395 x 270mm.), Lyons, Barthelemy Vincent, 1578.

⁂ One of the earliest French books on machinery and engineering, first published in Latin in 1569. It depicts pumps and irrigation systems, furnaces, mills, fire-fighting equipment, lathes, saws, dredging equipment, carriage suspension, bridge- & ship-building etc. There are three editions with the date 1578, one in Latin, this in French, and a third with title in Latin and French (text in French). They all contain the same plates.