Lettres cabalistiques ou correspondence philosophique, historique et critique, entre deux cabalistes, divers esprits elémentaires, & le seigneur Astaroth… Nouvelle édition.

A la Haye: Pierre Paupie 1769-1770, 1769. Hardcover. See Description. 12mo. 7 volumes. Title pages printed inside a decorative border. Bound in full period calf with gilt spines. All text block edges are dyed red. Rubbing and wear is present to the bindings; the outer joints on several volumes are neatly and professionally restored. Volume II is slightly leaning in the binding. The head cap and the bottom panels of the spine to volume III are carefully repaired with some loss of gilding; the spine label to volume III is lacking and the board edges also contain spots of restoration. The interior pages of this set are generally crisp with minimal age-toning, foxing, spotting etc. An occasional minor marginal chip or tiny tear is present. Volume II reveals faint damp staining on the lower inner margins. Volume V contains a short worm track in the upper margins of the first 30 pages; two tiny worm holes (or on some leaves a small worm track) are present in the bottom margins, near the outer corners throughout. Jean-Baptiste de Boyer d’Argens (1704-1771) was a French writer and an opponent of religion. He spent much of his career in the court of Frederick the Great. His "Lettres cabalistiques," similar to his other works, contains anti-religious sentiments (particularly regarding the Jesuits) along with commentaries on the politics, philosophies and manners and customs of his times. He discusses various esoteric topics such as Kabbalah, Freemasonry, The Knights Templar, etc. "…le marquis d'Argens se montre, comme du reste dans la plupart de ses écrits, ennemi déclaré de la relgione et décrit, d'une façon parfois un peu libre, les travers et les ridicules des diverses confessions, en visant particulièrment les Jésuites" [Dorbon-Ainé]. [Caillet 1605; Yve-Plessis 868; Casanatense, Bibliotheca Magica 118 and Dorbon-Ainé 985 – both listing 1737-38 edition; De Guaita 109 – listing the 1766-67 edition].