Engraving from Diderot's Encylopedia

 

"La Puce Vue Au Microscope"

Extraordinary large format 18th Century engraving showing a flea under the microscope from the Histoire Naturelle section of Encyclopedie published by Diderot and D'Alembert during the age of enlightenment in the second half of the 18th Century.

Engraved on beautiful watermarked handlaid chainlinked paper.

The Encyclopedie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonne des Sciences, des Arts et des Metiers was published in Paris between 1762-1777. A masterpiece of the enlightment, it set out all the knowledge of the day, and was a first attempt to document the techniques of mechanical production for objects used in everyday life. Scholars from around the world, including Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson submitted chapters.

Denis Diderot was a French philosopher, and man of letters, and the chief editor of the L'Encyclopédie, one of the principal achievements of the Age of Enlightenment. He was a a friend of the great minds of his age including Goethe, Rousseau, and Hume. A freethinker, Diderot challenged the authority of the Church and criticized the French system of government.

 

Condition: Excellent.

Dimensions: 20 X 16.5 inches

 

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