BECCARIA (Cesare). Dei delitti e delle pene. Nuova edizione Corretta e Accresciuta. Harlem, Paris: Molini, 1780 - In-12, 140 x 80: frontispiece, engraved title, 24, 190 pp. Marbled calf, cold fillet framing the boards, ornate smooth spine, red edges, in slipcase (contemporary binding, modern slipcase). New edition of this work on crime and punishment by Italian Enlightenment philosopher and jurist Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794). First published anonymously in 1764, this treatise is considered the master book on criminal law. Drawing in particular on the works of Diderot, Helvétius, Hobbes, Hume and Montesquieu, Beccaria protests against torture, secret charges, the inequality and notorious ugliness of the traditional legal and penal system, and the widespread use of capital punishment, which he describes as "public murder". This text, translated into French, German, English, Swedish, Polish and Spanish, inspired judicial reforms in several countries, notably France and the United States. By criticizing criminal law under the Ancien Régime, Beccaria laid the foundations for modern law. The edition is illustrated with a frontispiece that repeats that of previous editions, and an engraved title. A good copy in contemporary binding, very well preserved. Some light wear.