Diorama anglais ou Promenades pittoresques à Londres, renfermant les notes les plus exactes sur les caractères, les moeurs et usages de la nation anglaise, prises dans les différentes classes de la société [...].

8vo: [4]-235 pp.; 24 pls. protected with tissue-guards (heavy foxing except on pls, closed tear at last p., 1 tissue-guard torn).

Cont. calf-backed light brown, marbled paper on boards, gilt tooled flat spine with black leather labels (bumped corners, sl. worn).

First edition of Sauvan's free translation of Pierce Egan's "Life in London" (1st Engl. ed.: London, 1821) ill. with 24 numb. hand-coloured aquatints (complete) chosen among the 36 pls. of the English ed., but unsigned and captioned in French. With some woodcuts in text. "Described as "a faithful Portraiture of High & Low Life" from the West End to the East End, Pierce Egan’s comical monthly publication Life in London was one of the popular sensations of its day. The central characters - Tom, Jerry and Logic - were well-heeled young men about town, keen to see "a bit of life" in the poorer districts of London. Their escapades and misadventures were largely autobiographical, being drawn from the lives of Egan himself and his illustrators, George and Robert Cruikshank [...]. As a result of the success of Life in London, the names Tom and Jerry became proverbial for young men causing disorder, though there is no solid evidence to suggest that they influenced the creation of the cartoon cat and mouse duo of same name" (British Libr.). Ref. Cohen 263. - https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/pierce-egans-life-in-london Prov. [Georges Petit].