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Best edition of this early manual on heraldry and French noble families by the inventor of indicating colours by hatching

VULSON, Marc de.
La science heroique, traitant de la noblesse, et de  l'origine des armes; de leurs blasons, & symboles des tymbres, bourlets, couronnes, cimiers, lambrequins, supports & tenans & autres ornements de l'ecu; de la devise & du cry de guerre, de l'ecu pendant & des pas & emprises des anciens chevaliers, des formes différentes de leurs tombeaux; et enfin des marques extérieures de l'ecu de nos Rois, des Reines, enfans de France, & des officiers de la Couronne, & de la Maison du Roy.

With richly engraved allegorical frontispiece by Greg, Huret Jr (1606-1670), large  engraved printer's device by Charles Audran (1594-1674) after Chauveau on title, engraved allegorical portrait of a knight confronting a Cerberus, full-page coat-of-arms of the author, a full-page plate of the hatching table of Vulson, many  engravings, mainly of coat-of-arms, in text, and numerous coat-of-arms and heraldic devices on 130 mostly full-page engraved plates, probably by Bernard Samuel (1615-1687).

With richly engraved allegorical frontispiece by Greg, Huret Jr (1606-1670), large  engraved printer's device by Charles Audran (1594-1674) after Chauveau on title, engraved allegorical portrait of a knight confronting a Cerberus, full-page coat-of-arms of the author, a full-page plate of the hatching table of Vulson, many  engravings, mainly of coat-of-arms, in text, and numerous coat-of-arms and heraldic devices on 130 mostly full-page engraved plates, probably by Bernard Samuel (1615-1687).

With richly engraved allegorical frontispiece by Greg, Huret Jr (1606-1670), large  engraved printer's device by Charles Audran (1594-1674) after Chauveau on title, engraved allegorical portrait of a knight confronting a Cerberus, full-page coat-of-arms of the author, a full-page plate of the hatching table of Vulson, many  engravings, mainly of coat-of-arms, in text, and numerous coat-of-arms and heraldic devices on 130 mostly full-page engraved plates, probably by Bernard Samuel (1615-1687).

With richly engraved allegorical frontispiece by Greg, Huret Jr (1606-1670), large  engraved printer's device by Charles Audran (1594-1674) after Chauveau on title, engraved allegorical portrait of a knight confronting a Cerberus, full-page coat-of-arms of the author, a full-page plate of the hatching table of Vulson, many  engravings, mainly of coat-of-arms, in text, and numerous coat-of-arms and heraldic devices on 130 mostly full-page engraved plates, probably by Bernard Samuel (1615-1687).

With richly engraved allegorical frontispiece by Greg, Huret Jr (1606-1670), large  engraved printer's device by Charles Audran (1594-1674) after Chauveau on title, engraved allegorical portrait of a knight confronting a Cerberus, full-page coat-of-arms of the author, a full-page plate of the hatching table of Vulson, many  engravings, mainly of coat-of-arms, in text, and numerous coat-of-arms and heraldic devices on 130 mostly full-page engraved plates, probably by Bernard Samuel (1615-1687).



Seconde Edition, Reveüe, corrigée, & augmentée des Armes de plusieurs illustres Maisons. Paris, Seb. Mabre-Cramoisy, 1669. Folio. Contemporary red morocco, with triple fillet borders on sides, spine richly gilt and lettered in gold, gilt binding edges and inner dentelles, g.e., blue end-papers. With richly engraved allegorical frontispiece by Greg, Huret Jr (1606-1670), large  engraved printer's device by Charles Audran (1594-1674) after Chauveau on title, engraved allegorical portrait of a knight confronting a Cerberus, full-page coat-of-arms of the author, a full-page plate of the hatching table of Vulson, many  engravings, mainly of coat-of-arms, in text, and numerous coat-of-arms and heraldic devices on 130 mostly full-page engraved plates, probably by Bernard Samuel (1615-1687). (12), 540, (20) pp.

Second, best and enlarged edition of an interesting work on heraldry. The first edition had been pubished in Paris with Tavernier. The author, Marc Vulson, or Wilson, Lord of La Colombière, and Knight of the order of Saint Michel, was a famous heraldist, historian, poet, and minion of the royal court, who died in 1658. The noble family Vulson claimed to be of Scot origin, but was established since the end of the sixteenth century in the Dauphiné at France. Grandson of a Huguenot, the author fought in the cavalry at the side of Henri IV, and was several times wounded and twice taken prisoner. Afterwards he settled at Paris and devoted himself to historical research in the field of heraldry. He published several highly successful books on symbols, prophecies, heraldry, dreams etc. and put together all the available knowledge and traditions associated with chivalry. His works are still of interest for its numerous curious details and systematic treatment of heraldry. Vulson is generally considered the inventor of hatching system of tinctures.
Included in the plates are numerous etchings of crowns and coronets (secular and religious), several full-page engravings of noblemen on horseback (Le duc de Bretagne, Le duc de Bourbon, and Aymon de Salvaing, Sr de Boissieu; pp. 475-77) in full regalia; plates of coats-of-arms.
In the preliminaries the author notes that the frontispiece and preliminary engravings were by Gregoire Huret (1610-1670) while the extensive etchings of arms and related plates were by Samuel Bernard (1615-1687).

Vulson had wide-ranging correspondence with the most renowned heraldists of his time. For this reason, it could perhaps be concluded that Colombière was right in claiming the title of the inventor of the hatching system, and accusing Silvester Petra Sancta of copying his method and incorrectly publishing it. On page 37 of the first edition of La Science Heroïque (1644), Colombière maintains that Petra Sancta simply copied his system without any changes. Colombière also maintains that he showed to Petra Sancta his hatching system  in the past. In his citation, de la Colombière also mentions the book publishers and copperplate engravers as the users of the hatching system, thus emphasizing that by using this method on the illustrations, engravers can always designate the tinctures of the copperplates in the same coherent manner.

Fine copy, with the bookplate of "Liechtensteinianis".
Brunet V, col. 1390; Graesse VII, p. 404; Guigard 35; Bernd 1881.

Related Subjects: 17th Century  French  Heraldry 

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