Du Culte des Cabires chez les anciens Irlandais. (bound with) La Religion des Indoux, selon les Védah, ou analyse de l’Oupnek’hat.
Geneva; Paris: Dondey-Dupré and Sons, 1823; 1823. Two works in one. 8vo. [iv], ix, 154; 107 pp. FIRST EDITIONS. First work with a folding typographic table. Contemporary gild calf-backed marbled boards. Old description label mounted on the front pastedown. In excellent condition. Item #19839
First editions of these two uncommon treatises on ancient cult religions. The first explores Druidism and its mythology in ancient Ireland and attempts to draw parallels with Greek cult of Cabiri. Couched in comparative philology, the text reconciles pagan deities across premodern cultural lines.
The second imprint traces Persian cult worship in the context of the Hindu holy books, the Vedas and the Oupkenhat (Book of the Secret). The text classifies Hindu ideology according to Christian dogma, seeking out the concordances for notions like angels, the soul, afterlife, and creation.
Both books are rare: OCLC locates four copies of Pictet in the U.S. (NY Public, Yale, Boston Pub, Harvard) and no copies of Lanjuinais.
I: Caillet 8652.
II. Quérard, La France littéraire IV: 536.
Price: $2,200.00