A rare 17th-century Corneille, where classical myth meets royal spectacle in an early Paris printing.

Author: Pierre Corneille.
Title: La Toison d'Or, Tragédie.
Publisher: A Paris, Suivant la Copie imprimée, 1662.
Language: Text in French.
Size: 5 x 3 inches.
Pages: 85 pages.
Binding: Very good contemporary reused vellum binding, with visible manuscript writing on both covers; an authentic and evocative survival of early binding practices; hinges intact; light wear and scuffing consistent with age; housed in a removable protective mylar cover.
Content: Very good; bright, tight, and remarkably clean for the period, with only rare light toning; a well-preserved example.
Illustrations: Complete with an engraved frontispiece, finely detailed and depicting a scene from the play.

Estimate: (Scarce, with no or very few copies currently available on the market).

The book: An early and desirable edition of Corneille’s La Toison d'Or, first performed in 1660 and inspired by the classical myth of Jason and the Argonauts in their quest for the Golden Fleece. Conceived as a grand theatrical spectacle, the play was staged in celebration of the marriage of Louis XIV and Maria Theresa of Spain, blending mythology with political symbolism. Rich in allegory and visual imagination, the work reflects both the artistic ambitions of French Baroque theatre and the cultural power of the monarchy at its height.

The author: Pierre Corneille (1606–1684) stands among the greatest dramatists of 17th-century France, alongside Molière and Racine. Often regarded as the founder of French classical tragedy, he shaped the dramatic language of his time through works of moral intensity and formal elegance. With La Toison d'Or, Corneille explores mythological narrative through the lens of royal grandeur, creating a work that bridges classical antiquity and the ceremonial world of Louis XIV’s France.