"Plan de Paris commencé l'année 1734. Dessiné et gravé, sous les ordres de Messire Michel Etienne Turgot [...] Achevé de graver en 1739 [...] Levé et dessiné par Louis Bretez, gravé par Claude Lucas et écrit par Aubin".

Folio (55 x 44 cm): 21 pl. (pl. 18 and 19 pasted together to form a large folding plate, occ. some foxing and spotting, edges sl. browned, 2 pl. sl. folded).

Contemp. gilt red morocco, arms of the city of Paris on covers ruled by a roll-stamped fleurdelysed border and corner pieces, orn. spine with raised bands and label, gilt inside dentelles (rubbed, corners, head and tail bumped, covers with tears and spotting, label part. removed, a few sm. wormholes in joint). Good copy, also very nice inside copy.

First edition of the so-called "Turgot map of Paris" containing 20 bird's-eye views (at a scale of approximately 1:400) oriented toward the southeast and 1 general map. It covers an area approximately corresponding to the first eleven of the modern-day arrondissements and shows the city, its streets, its buildings down to the smallest houses, its gardens and their flowerbeds with fascinating precision. Louis Bretez (d. 1736), an architect specialising in perspective, took two years to complete this survey (1734-1736), with a special pass that allowed him to enter the courtyards of the houses. The maps were superbly engraved by Claude Lucas (1685-1765), member of the Royal Academy of Sciences. Intended by the provost of merchants Turgot (1690-1751) to promote the magnificence of Paris and printed in 2600 copies, the plan was offered to the king, princes, members of the French Acad. and various personalities both in France and abroad. This map offers a unique state of the city of Paris for the years 1734-1736.
Ref. BnF. - Berlin Katalog 2506. - Millard, French Books, 39.