A collection of 9 engrs.

9 (of 11) engrs printed in colours "en manière de pastel": 21,5 x 35 cm (pl. 5 "Bar" and 7 "Rouville" missing).

Under passe-partout.

Beautifully produced plates extracted from Charles-Louis François de Fossé's "Idées d'un militaire pour la disposition des troupes confiées aux jeunes officiers dans la défense et l'attaque des petits postes" (Paris, F.-A. Didot l'ainé / A. Jombert, jeune, 1783). The engraver Bonnet, a pupil of J.C. François who invented a crayon manner technique for reproducing chalk drawings in three-colour prints, extended his master's technique in using additional colours in 1769. The production process became very demanding as such, but the final result was unparalleled. Bonnet's new colour-printings in a pastel manner engraving, or "gravure en maniere de pastel" to put it in his words, excel in subtle and sophisticated shades. Bonnet used his technique only once for book illustrations, i.e. here after drawings by de Fossé. Our set includes: "Plan d'un chateau escarpé", "Plan d'un projet de défense dans un chateau et dans un moulin escarpé", e.g. all showing fortifications and their surroundings, including the positions of troops. Ref. Brunet II:8621.