VOLTAIRE - Oeuvres complètes de Voltaire 86 volumes out of 9 - Lot 467

VOLTAIRE - Oeuvres complètes de Voltaire 86 volumes out of 91. Kehl, Imprimerie de la Société Littéraire Typographique (Beaumarchais et Condorcet), 1785; in-12, approx. 44,000 pp, bound in contemporary full marbled calf, 5-rib spine decorated with two fish turning each other's backs, heraldic symbol of the Principality of Salm, red morocco title-pieces, speckled edges. All 86 volumes. Edition incomplete, lacking volumes 2, 3, 10, 56 and 64. The first volume does feature a frontispiece by Moreau Le Jeune depicting Voltaire. François-Marie Arouet, known as Voltaire, 18th-century philosopher and man of letters, symbol of the Enlightenment, was the embodiment of a committed intellectual and the power of public opinion. Educated by the Jesuits, Voltaire excelled in rhetoric and versification. He soon went against the grain of this upbringing and moved into libertine society, shining in the salons, even joking about the relationship between the Regent and his daughter, which earned him 11 months in the Bastille. Voltaire soon achieved literary success with La Henriade. Following the Rohan-Chabot affair, he was again imprisoned, but soon released on condition of exile. Voltaire left for England, met Emilie Du Châtelet and was received at the court of Lunéville. Returning to Paris, he soon left to visit Frederick II in Berlin, before settling in Ferney near Geneva. Few writers were as prolific as Voltaire. As far as the present volume is concerned, the letters were written from the outset with a view to publication, highly critical of religion and in favor of science. The Société Littéraire Typographique printing house was founded by Beaumarchais and Condorcet, with the specific aim of publishing Voltaire's complete works. Beaumarchais had the idea of printing in Kehl to circumvent Louis XVI's censorship by placing himself under the protection of the Margraviate of Baden. Good condition. Expert : M. Philippe HENRY