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JEAN-LOUIS MIÈGE — MOROCCOFirst English-Language Edition, 1952Signed Full Crushed-Morocco Mosaic Binding by “P. Berthet”Full Green Morocco Doublures and Striped Textile Endleaves
Paris and Grenoble: B. Arthaud, 1952
Translated from the French by O. C. Warden.
A particularly handsome first English-language edition of Jean-Louis Miège’s richly illustrated study of Morocco, preserved in an elaborate signed French fine binding.
The book is bound in warm reddish-brown crushed-grain morocco with matching geometric mosaic designs on both covers. Each central panel incorporates gilt tooling and numerous colored morocco onlays in blue, yellow, brown, and pale tones.
The binding is signed “P. Berthet” in gilt at the foot of the front turn-in.
The interior is exceptionally decorative, with full green morocco doublures framed by elaborate gilt and blind tooling, striped woven textile endleaves, marbled guards, and the original illustrated publisher’s wrapper preserved within the binding.
The photographs show an unusually clean and well-preserved example. The leather remains richly colored, the mosaic work is complete, and the gilt decoration is bright and sharply defined.
The Book
Jean-Louis Miège’s Morocco was published by B. Arthaud as part of the publisher’s celebrated Les Beaux Pays series.
This copy is the first English-language edition, translated by O. C. Warden and published in 1952, during the final years of the French Protectorate and only a few years before Moroccan independence.
Miège presents a broad visual and historical survey of Morocco, including its cities, architecture, monuments, landscapes, religious centers, commerce, agriculture, crafts, and regional cultures.
The principal sections include:
- Casablanca
- Rabat
- Atlantic Morocco
- Ouezzan and Fez
- Meknes and its surroundings
- The mountain regions
- Marrakesh
- Southern Morocco
The work is particularly appealing for its extensive photographic record of Moroccan cities, architecture, landscapes, and daily life during the early 1950s.
Illustrations
Illustrated with 170 black-and-white photogravures, many printed as full-page plates, together with a color frontispiece and folding map.
The photographs depict:
- Mosques, minarets, medersas, and religious monuments
- Kasbahs, city walls, gates, and courtyards
- Casablanca, Rabat, Fez, Meknes, Marrakesh, and other cities
- Markets and street scenes
- Mountain and desert landscapes
- Agricultural and rural life
- Crafts, clothing, ceremonies, and daily activity
- Historic ruins and architectural details
The photogravures possess the deep tonal range and rich surface characteristic of the process.
The original color-illustrated publisher’s wrapper, designed by Louis Berthommé Saint-André, has been preserved within the binding.
The Signed Binding
Bound in full reddish-brown crushed-grain morocco.
The leather has a fine, irregular pebbled texture characteristic of crushed morocco and retains a warm, softly lustrous color.
The binding is signed:
P. Berthet
in gilt at the foot of the front turn-in.
The signature is recorded exactly as it appears. No dependable identification of the binder’s full name, workshop, or wider career has been established, and no unsupported attribution is being made.
The binding is clearly the work of a skilled mid-twentieth-century French atelier. It combines full morocco covering, carefully executed gilt tooling, colored leather mosaics, raised bands, full doublures, textile endleaves, and preserved original wrappers.
Mosaic Decoration
Both covers carry matching central mosaic designs.
Each board features a large gilt diamond or lozenge enclosing an intricate arrangement of stylized floral, star-like, and geometric ornaments.
Selected elements are formed from individually applied morocco onlays in blue, yellow, brown, and pale contrasting tones.
Additional gilt ornaments extend from the points of the central design, while smaller corner elements and curved gilt lines complete the composition.
The decoration is repeated on the rear board, giving the binding a balanced and fully finished appearance.
The restrained geometric design and jewel-like colored onlays are particularly effective in relation to the Moroccan subject, while remaining firmly within the tradition of French mosaic binding.
Spine
The rounded spine is divided by raised bands and titled in gilt:
J.-L. MIÈGE
MOROCCO
A small gilt and colored mosaic ornament appears in the central compartment, echoing the decoration of the covers.
The spine remains attractive, with the gilt lettering, raised bands, and leather covering well preserved overall.
Full Morocco Doublures
The inside of each board is lined with a full panel of deep green morocco.
These full leather pastedowns are properly termed morocco doublures and represent one of the most luxurious and labor-intensive features of the binding.
Each doublure is framed with an elaborate arrangement of:
- Multiple gilt rules
- Decorative gilt rolls
- Blind-tooled borders
- Contrasting framing elements
- Carefully finished inner turn-ins
The vivid green leather provides a dramatic contrast with the reddish-brown exterior.
Textile Endleaves and Marbled Guards
The binding opens onto striking striped woven textile endleaves in red, gold, cream, and violet.
Additional marbled-paper guards follow the textile endleaves.
The combination of woven fabric, marbled guards, and green morocco doublures gives the interior an unusually rich and coordinated appearance.
Bibliographical Details
Author: Jean-Louis Miège
Title: Morocco
Translator: O. C. Warden
Publisher: B. Arthaud
Place of publication: Paris and Grenoble
Date: 1952
Edition: First English-language edition
Series: Les Beaux Pays
Language: English
Pagination: 231 pages
Illustrations: 170 photogravures, color frontispiece, and folding map
Wrapper design: Louis Berthommé Saint-André
Binding: Full reddish-brown crushed-grain morocco
Decoration: Gilt tooling and colored morocco mosaic onlays
Binder’s signature: “P. Berthet”
Doublures: Full green morocco
Endleaves: Striped woven textile with marbled guards
Original wrapper: Preserved within the binding
Height: Approximately 23 cm
Condition
Near Fine overall.
The binding is clean, square, and firmly attached. The reddish-brown crushed-grain morocco retains excellent color, and the gilt decoration remains bright and clearly defined.
The colored mosaic onlays are complete and securely attached. There is only minor rubbing and light age-related surface wear at the corners, board edges, raised bands, and spine ends. A few small superficial marks may be visible under angled light, but no significant leather loss is apparent.
The boards are firmly attached and the binding remains tight.
The full green morocco doublures are exceptionally attractive and well preserved. The gilt and blind-tool borders remain sharp overall. The woven textile endleaves and marbled guards are clean and bright.
The text and illustrations are generally clean and fresh. The color frontispiece, 170 photogravures, folding map, and original illustrated wrapper are present.
Please examine all photographs carefully, as they show the actual book offered and form an important part of the condition description.
Rarity and Collector Interest
The standard publisher’s edition of Miège’s Morocco appears periodically on the market in ordinary publisher’s bindings.
This copy is distinguished by its individually executed signed fine binding, including:
- Full reddish-brown crushed-grain morocco
- Matching mosaic decoration on both boards
- Colored morocco onlays
- Raised-band spine
- Full green morocco doublures
- Elaborate gilt and blind tooling
- Striped woven textile endleaves
- Marbled guards
- Original illustrated wrapper preserved within the binding
The binder’s wider career remains undocumented, but the workmanship and materials speak for themselves. This is a fully developed luxury binding rather than a merely decorative publisher’s binding.
The book will appeal to collectors of:
- French fine bindings
- Signed atelier bindings
- Mosaic morocco
- Full morocco doublures
- Decorative textile endleaves
- Morocco and North African history
- French colonial-era photography
- Travel and architectural books
- Arthaud’s Les Beaux Pays series
- Mid-century French book design
A handsome and unusually decorative French fine binding on a richly illustrated visual survey of Morocco.
