PAVLISHCHEV MIKOŁAJ, HERBARZ RODZIN SZLACHTCKICH KRÓLESTWA POLSKA NAJWYŻEJ ZATWIERDZONY = GERBOVNIK DVORJANSKICH RODOV CARSTVA POL’SKAGO. CZ. I-II W 1 WOL. [1853].

Description

Nikolai Pavlishchev, Herbarz rodzin szlacheckich Królestwa Polskiego najwyżej zatwierdzony […]
Warsaw 1853, S. Orgelbrand.

25 cm; [2] p., VI, [4], 236, [2] p.; [4] p., 237, [1] p. Total 246 woodcut images of coats of arms hand-colored in watercolor in the period.

The first edition of the Official Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Poland, compiled by Nikolai Pavlishchev, is one of the most important nineteenth-century heraldic publications of an official nature. The work had normative rank in terms of the recognized noble families of the Kingdom of Poland and was noted in Karol Estreicher’s Polish Bibliography , which confirms its place in the canon of 19th century sources. Of particular collector value is a set of 246 woodcut representations of coats of arms, hand-colored in watercolor in the period. Copies with preserved authentic coloring are clearly more valued than uncolored or secondary colored versions. The object was subjected to a bibliophilic leather binding made in the workshop of the Polish Antiquarian. Careful, classical binding not only emphasizes the prestige of the volume, but also ensures its structural durability and conservation security for generations to come. In the segment of heraldic books, a stable binding is important for the long-term maintenance of market value. The combination of the official nature of the publication, the completeness of the hand-colored coats of arms and the professional bibliophilic binding makes the copy an object of high collector rank and stable investment potential within the heraldic literature of the 19th century.