Added to your basket:
Code de religion et de morale naturelles, a l’usage des adorateurs de Dieu et amis des hommes; rédigé, publié et mis en ordre par J.-B. Chemin, adopté par les différens conseils de direction de la théophilantropie, et constamment suivi depuis l’origine de ce culte. Nouvelle édition.

Checkout now

A nice copy of this remarkable two-part handbook for members of the short-lived French Revolutionary deistic religious cult known as Theophilanthropy, compiled by its founder, the Parisian publisher and bookseller Jean-Baptiste Chemin-Dupontès (1760-1852).

Drawing inspiration chiefly from Voltaire and Rousseau, Chemin-Dupontès established Theophilanthropy in 1796 with his Manuel des Théophilantropes. While the cult had little appeal to the masses, it did attract a mix of scientists, politicians, and artists, and was supported by the Directory, sharing with other cults the use of Notre-Dame cathedral and numerous Parisian churches. By 1799 however it was in steep decline, and in 1802 the cult was prohibited.

The Code comprises three parts, Manuel des adorateurs de Dieu et amis des hommes, Instruction élémentaire sur la morale religieuse, and Rituel contenant l’ordre des exercices de la Théophilantropie, each of which had previously appeared separately. The Manuel sets out the Theophilanthropist creed (love God, cherish each other, serve the fatherland etc.); the Instruction is the cult’s catechism, arranged in question and answer format, covering morality, religion, duty, love, gentleness etc.; and the Rituel consists of hymns, devotions, and discourses, and includes a 24-page musical supplement of ‘Plain-chant’.

The Morale des sages which follows collects wisdom from, for example, the Bible, Zoroaster, Confucius, Socrates, Cicero, Jesus and his disciples, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, the Quran, William Penn, Fénelon, Voltaire, Benjamin Franklin, and Rousseau.

You may also be interested in...

[GRADUAL.]

Vast historiated initial ‘A’ cut from a Gradual.

A spectacular initial on the scale of a small panel painting. The verso includes the text ‘[neque] irrideant me inimici mei […] [un]iversi qui te expectant’ and the versicle ‘Vias tuas domine de[monstras]’, indicating that the initial would have introduced the introit ‘Ad te levavi animam meam’ (‘Unto thee I lift up my soul’) for the first Sunday in Advent (and thus the very first text of the liturgical year). As for the corresponding text for that day in the Antiphonal (‘Aspiciens a longe …’, ‘Seeing from afar, behold the power of God coming …’) the initial ‘A’ was often given lavish treatment by the illuminators of Italian choirbooks, and in both cases the iconography sometimes combined Christ in glory after the Ascension with the Last Judgment, as here. While the dead rising from their graves are sometimes depicted, our initial is unusual for its inclusion of tormented souls in Hell. The style may be compared to the oeuvres of the First Master of the Gubbio Choir Books and the Master of the Deruta-Salerno Missals. The decorated initials on the verso are characteristic of Umbrian illumination in the last quarter of the thirteenth century.

Read more

PRESENTING CHINA TO ENGLISH READERS NIEUHOF, Jan; Athanasius KIRCHER; and John OGILBY, translator.

An Embassy from the East-India Company of the United Provinces, to the Grand Tartar Cham emperour of China, delivered by their Excellies Peter de Goyer, and Jacob de Keyzer, at his imperial city of Peking. Wherein the cities, towns, villages, ports, rivers, &c. in their passages from Canton to Peking, are ingeniously described by Mr. John Nieuhoff, steward to the ambassadours … With an appendix of several remarks taken out of Father Athanasius Kircher …

First English edition, beautifully illustrated, recounting the Dutch traveller Jan Nieuhof’s journey as part of Peter de Goyer and Jacob de Keizer’s embassy to Peking between 1655 and 1657. Having previously been employed by the Dutch West India Company in Brazil, Nieuhof joined the Dutch East India Company (or ‘VOC’) in 1650 and was stationed for a number of years in Batavia (Jakarta), where he was eventually appointed steward of the embassy in 1654. The following year Nieuhof served on one of the embassies sent by the VOC to Peking (Beijing) with the intention of convincing the Qing emperor to open up trade relations on the south coast following the VOC’s failed attempt to end the Portuguese monopoly on trade to Macao. Leaving Canton (Guangzhou), the embassy travelled northwards through Jiangxsi, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Hebei provinces, reaching Peking in July 1656 before embarking upon their return trip in October of the same year: in total, the journey stretched over 2400 kilometres, and although the party was unable to discuss trade arrangements with the emperor, they did gain permission to visit the court every eight years. 

Read more