DENIS (Ferdinand) - Lot 47

DENIS (Ferdinand) Ferdinand Denis Paris, 1798 - Saint-Germain-en-Laye, 1890. Historian, bibliographer and administrator of the Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève, renowned specialist in Brazil and French bibliographical studies. Set of 2 autograph pieces addressed to Édouard-Benjamin Frère: a L.A.S. signed "Ferdinand Denis" and an autograph draft reply, Paris and Rouen, November 1866; approx. 3 pp. in-8. Fine scholarly correspondence concerning bibliographical and liturgical research. The signed autograph letter, written on Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève letterhead and dated "November 28, 1866", accompanies the dispatch of a "small note" concerning bibliographical documents sought by Frère. Ferdinand Denis indicated that he had entrusted this research to "M. Pierre Pinçon", who had been asked to examine several liturgical works for "Mgr Mathieu" and "M. de Saint-Vincent". He modestly points out that these investigations have yielded "very little", adding however this characteristic remark of the bibliophile spirit of the 19th century: "In bibliography, everything is worth collecting. Denis then warmly recalls the letter he received from Édouard-Benjamin Frère's son, whose intellectual disposition and ability to appreciate "the importance" of his father's work he admires. The letter thus bears witness to the scholarly and family networks gravitating around the great works of regional and historical bibliography of the Second Empire. The autograph draft of the reply, abundantly corrected and annotated, includes several references to English works and research into early literature, with bibliographical citations and critical remarks. This lively preparatory state perfectly illustrates the working methods of 19th-century bibliographic scholars, and the meticulous exchanges between Denis and Frère. An interesting blend of liturgical research, early bibliography and scholarly relations between two important figures in the French scholarly world. Bends and slight traces of use; very good overall condition.