MOLÉ, Joseph.
Épreuves de caractères Arabes, gravés et fondus par Molé Jeune, sous la direction de M. L. Langlès.
Paris, (back of title-page: Imprimerie d'Éverat), 1823. 4to. Modern boards. 14 ll.
€ 12,500
Type specimen of 2 Arabic types cut by the leading Paris punchcurtter Joseph Molé (1775-1841?), known as Molé jeune. Molé cut 2 sizes of Arabic (Saint-Augustin and Petit-Romain), including sorts for Turkish, Persian, Hindustani, Malay, Pashto (Afghani), also included in the present specimen. The work consists of a title-page, a brief foreword and 12 leaves of specimens to show passages in all six languages for each of the two types. The types were cast on the named bodies (about 14 and 10 point) , but were set with separate vowel points, the type with vowel points measuring about 161 mm/20 lines or about 24 point (Grand Parangon) and about 118 mm/20 lines or about 17 point (Gros Romain). Molé cut them under the guidance of the orientalist Louis-Mathieu Langlès (1763-1824) and they first appeared in the present work.
Title-page with some faint water stains, last leaf slightly foxed, otherwise in very good condition. Binding only slightly rubbed along the extremities. For Molé: "Joseph Molé", in: Journal für Buchdruckerkunst, ..., 1841, no. 10 (October), cols. 145-147.
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