RÉPERTOIRE ENCYCLOPÉDIQUE DE PHOTOGRAPHIE: COMPRENANT PAR ORDRE ALPHABÉTIQUE TOUT CE QUI A PARUS ET PARAIT EN FRANCE ET À L'ÉTRANGER DEPUIS LAS DÉCOUVERTE PAR NIEPCE ET DAGUERRE, DE L'ART D'IMPRIMER AU MOYEN DE LA LUMIÈRE, ET LES NOTIONS DE CHIMIE, PHYSIQUE ET PERSPECTIVE QUI S'Y RAPPORTENT.

Paris: [Vol. 1-4] Bureau de la rédaction; [vol. 5-6] Amyot, 1866. First editions. 6 volumes. 8vo., [Vol. 1] viii, 508 pp.; [Vol. 2] [iv], 488 pp.; [Vol. 3], [iv], 376 pp.; [Vol. 4] [iv], 390 pp.; [Vol. 5] [iv], 389 pp.; [Vol. 6] [iv], 411 pp.; hundreds of b&w wood engravings. Engraved seal vignettes on each title page. Contemporary binding of quarter morocco and marbled paper over boards with four raised bands with title and decorations in gilt on the spine. A few slight scuffs to the spines; there is scattered foxing in Vols. 1 & 2, and to a much lesser degree in the others. There is a dampstain at the margin of the last few leaves of Vol. 3, and a faint tidemark to the margin of the first few leaves of Vol. 6. Affixed to the front pastedown of the first volume is the label of a Parisian bookseller. A very good to near fine, complete set. Pierre-René-Marie-Henri Moulin du Coudray de la Blanchère, commonly known as Henri de La Blanchère, was born at La Flèche, 1821. His first studies were in forestry, then natural sciences. In 1848, he adopts photography as an aide to his scientific work. By 1856, he has opened a photographic studio in Paris, perfected a waxed paper process based upon that of Gustave Le Gray, and became a member of the Société Francaise de Photographie. He was a prolific writer and experimenter, and exhibited his photographs until his death in 1880.

An outstanding encyclopedia of all the photographic materials, formulas, apparatuses and applications known to date, including photomechanical reproduction, with a generous number of illustrations. This is referred to as the first encyclopedia of photography; it is an exhaustive text book of photographic and photomechanical processes. The first two volumes constitute 1538 alphabetically arranged subject articles with an index. The next four volumes were serially issued monthly over a four year period, with each part alphabetically arranged, with each volume indexed.

Uncommon, with Worldcat locating full sets at only these United States libraries: Columbia University, Eastman House, Harvard Fine Arts, University of Michigan, New York Public, and the Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas-Austin. Roosens and Salu No. 3541.