1774 Scarce French Latin Easter Prayer Book – Office de la Quinzaine de Paques

Author: [Anonymous].
Title: Office de la Quinzaine de Pâques, à l'usage de Rome, en Latin et en François. Traduction Nouvelle. Dédié à la Reine.
Publisher: Paris, Chez de Hansy, Libraire, sur le Pont-au-Change, à Saint-Nicolas, 1774.
Language: Text in French and Latin.
Size : 8" X 5.5".
Pages: xxxii-669 pages.
Binding: Attractive and very good beautiful contemporary full red morocco leather binding, richly gilt-tooled on boards and spine. Raised bands on spine with black leather title label. Gilt dentelles (hinges fine, overall slightly worn and scuffed - as shown) under a removable protective mylar cover. All edges gilt. A very beautiful binding!
Content: Good content (bright and tight, some foxing and staining throughout - as shown, names of previous owners on the first blank page and the title page - as shown).
Illustrations: Complete with the three beautiful full-page engraved illustrations, including an engraved frontispiece depicting Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, rendered in fine detail and well preserved.. 

Estimate: (USD 300 - USD 350).

The book:A scarce and elegant 18th-century French devotional work, Office de la Quinzaine de Pâques is a bilingual Latin–French prayerbook specifically dedicated to the fortnight of Easter. This liturgical office was intended for private or communal devotion during this most sacred period in the Christian calendar. Its contents include meditations, reflections on the Mysteries and Gospels, and prayers for Confession and Communion, with ceremonial guidance appropriate for Holy Week and Easter. The volume is dedicated to the Queen (likely Marie Antoinette, given the date) and bears the royal privilege, underlining its prestigious intended readership. The exceptional morocco binding is consistent with presentation or aristocratic ownership, and the bilingual format reflects Enlightenment-era devotional trends bridging tradition and accessibility.