First edition of this influential textbook on pharmacy by Antoine Baumé (1728-1804), master apothecary and pharmacist of Paris. It is the original edition of 9 successful editions to follow till 1818. He established his pharmacy in 1752, together with a laboratory that eventually marked him as one of the founders of modern pharmaceutical industry. The special hydrometer designed by Baumé still finds use in industry. His textbook gives various explanations of these pharmaceutical operations by chemical principles: how to choose, prepare, and mix medicines, as well as recipes for medicines such as smelling salts and table liqueurs and other uses.
With a contemporary ownerships entry on the title page ("C. Willebois 1764 ..."). The corners are bumped, the spine is damaged. The leaves are slightly browned and one plate is detached, but otherwise in good condition. R. Dary, Lapothecaire Baumé, les origins de la drogerie pharmaceutique ... en France (Thesis Strasbourg; 1955); R. Weitz & P. Julien, Les "Élémens de Pharmacie" de Baumé: éditions connues, meconnues, inconnues, in: Rev. dhistoire de la pharmacie, 26 (1979), pp. 33-56.