CAZENAVE, Pierre Louis Alphée (1795-1877)

Cazenave’s ’Lessons on Skin Diseases’ in two parts was issued in twelve fascicules, or parts, from 1845 to 1856, with five plates in each. The exquisite colour plates vividly depicting various skin diseases surpass all their predecessors on the subject, both as regards the artistic quality and the fine engraving, printing and colouring. They are printed from copper plates in two colours with certain details finished by hand-colouring. Even if lithographed plates had superseded copper plates at this time Cazenave preferred engraving and colouring by hand in order to attain a perfect, true-to-nature representation. In a note Cazenave says that in his ’course’ the patients have been replaced by plates in which nothing has been neglected in order to achieve the best result. The plates were drawn d’apres nature by E. Bocourt under the supervision of Cazenave and his colleagues at the Ecole de Medecine. In just a few instances plates were taken from other works. The duty to take care of the engraving and printing was entrusted to a close friend of Cazenave, Henriquel Dupont, who employed a long run of able engravers: Choubart, Coupe, Viscot, Annedouche, Bougeard, Chardon, and others. One plate is signed by the colourist, as well as by the artist and engraver. Cazenave founded the first journal devoted entirely to dermatology, the Annales des Maladies de la Peau et de la Syphilis (1843-1852). In this journal the first description appeared of pemphigus foliaceus (Cazenave’s disease).

Collation: Vol. I: (1845) pp (4), 121, (1); Vol. II: (1856) pp (4), 123-233, (3). With 60 colour-printed engraved plates finished by hand, numbered 1-25, 25 bis, 26-59.

Binding: Two volumes. Contemporary half calf, marbled boards with clippings of the fascicules’ green wrappers with printed title pasted on the front covers.

References: Garrison-Morton 3992.1; Shelley & Crissey, pp 62-69;