A selection of volumes, true milestones of literature, are the protagonists of the auction sale of September 20th 2022 by the Books and Manuscripts Department.
From the dawn of printing to the artistic experiments of the 20th century, precious editions from prestigious collections follow one another in the catalogue. Venetian typographic excellence is evident in one of the last incunabula editions of the Divine Comedy richly illustrated by Landino and printed by Pietro Quarenghi in 1497 (estimate € 5,000 - 8,000), in the Comoediae Novem by Aristophanes (estimate € 18,000 - 25. 000) and in the edition of Dante's Terze rime (estimate € 3,000 - 5,000) both in the edition by the famous Aldo Manuzio (respectively dated 1498 and 1502), up to the delightful copy in splendid binding of Boccaccio's Decameron printed by Gabriel Giolito de Ferrari (estimate € 3,000 - 5,000). The illuminated art of the 16th century stands out in a rare libro d’ore printed on parchment in Paris by Germano Hardouyn (estimate € 4,000 - 6,000), whose meticulous attention to detail can also be seen in the hand-colouring of the magnificent Dutch Lutheran Bible of 1702-1703 (estimate € 5,000 - 8,000).
Lot 524 DANTE ALIGHIERI (1265-1321)
Danthe alighieri fiorentino. Venice: Pietro Quarenghi, 11 Ottobre 1497.
An important and the last of the incunable editions of the Divine Comedy richly illustrated and edited by Landino.
Estimate: € 5,000 - 8,000
Lot 510 BOCCACCIO GIOVANNI (1313-1375) - BRUCIOLI ANTONIO (1487-1566) (1313-1375)
ll Decamerone nuovamente corretto per Messer Antonio Bruccioli.
Venice: Gabriel Giolito de Ferrari, 1542. A delightful copy in 17th-century red calf in perfect condition of this
rare and precious edition, considered by many to be the most beautiful of Boccaccio's Decameron among those in small format.
Estimate: € 3,000 - 5,000
Lot 568 [LIBRO D'ORE]
Hore Beate Marie Virginis secundum usum Romanum totaliter ad longum
sine require com multis suffragiis & orationibus de novo additis.
Paris: Germano Hardouyn, [s.d., ma 1529 con almanacco per gli anni 1529-1545].
One of the rare examples of books of hours printed on vellum in Paris in the early 16th century by Germano Hardouyn
and decorated with 16 miniatures and numerous initial.
Estimate: € 4,000 - 6,000
The ambassador of the art of cartography is Marco Boschini with his illustrated volume dedicated to the former Venetian territory of Candia (estimate € 4,000 - 6,000), followed by his fellow countryman Vincenzo Coronelli with the last chapter of his work Atlante Veneto, dedicated to the islands and coasts of the Mediterranean Sea (estimate € 10,000 - 15,000) and by some splendid views of Vesuvius and Etna by the Dutch cartographer Willem Janszoon Blaeu (estimate € 6,000 - 9,000). Italy and its landscape splendours also return in the enchanting red morocco copy of the famous Voyage pittoresque ou Description des Royaumes de Naples et de Sicile by Jean-Claude Richard de Saint-Non (estimate € 6,000 - 9. 000), while offering a rich ethnographic repertoire is Giulio Ferrario with his 18 volumes on the customs and traditions of ancient peoples around the world (estimate € 5,000 - 8,000), just as emblematic of the voracity for knowledge in the Enlightened Age is the 'Encyclopédie' by Diderot and d'Alembert (estimate € 6,000 - 9,000).
Lot 663 VINCENZO CORONELLI (1650-1718)
Prima parte dello specchio del mare. Venice: Vincenzo Coronelli, 1698.
A fascinating copy with a fresh and strong impression of the plates of this reissue
of the renowned work by Coronelli dedicated to the islands and coasts of the Mediterranean.
Estimate: € 10,000 - 15,000
Lot 658 WILLEM JANSZOON BLAEU (1571-1638)
Nouveau theatre d'Italie [solo tome troisieme]. L'Aia: Rutgert Christophle Alberts, 1724.
A good copy of only the third volume of Blaeu's famous work dedicated to Italy.
This volume portrays the main areas of Naples and Sicily with some splendid views of Vesuvius and Etna.
Estimate: € 6,000 - 9,000
Lot 673 JEAN CLAUDE RICHARD DE SAINT-NON (1727-1791)
Voyage pittoresque ou description des royaumes de Naples et de Sicile.
Paris: Clousier, 1781-86. A splendid copy in contemporary red morocco
of the first edition of one of the most celebrated illustrated books of the 18th-century.
Estimate: € 6,000 - 9,000
An increasingly important space is reserved to the avant-garde of the 20th century within the section called "artist's books" where we find the master Salvador Dalì with a Bible illustrated by 105 lithographs and accompanied by an original gouache (estimate € 35,000 - 45,000). This is followed by 26 woodcuts by the Czech abstract artist Frantisek Kupka (estimate € 3,800 - 4,500) and a large group of works by Enrico Castellani, Guido Ballo, Lucio del Pezzo, Agostino Bonalumi, Arnaldo and Giò Pomodoro, Ugo Nespolo, Piero Dorazio, Mimmo Paladino, Enrico Baj and Bruno Munari. Art, poetry and pleasure: a sought-after edition of Eugenio Montale's work La casa dei doganieri e altri versi published in Florence by Vallecchi in 1932 (estimate € 3,000 - 5,000) and, from the same year, an exceptional fragment of Italian "pop" culture, La Settimana Enigmistica, of which the first uncompleted issue is proposed (estimate € 3,000 - 5,000).
Lot 776 SALVADOR DALÌ (1904-1989)
The ad personam copy which contains as an original gouache
the representation of an episode from the life of St. Jerome, corresponding to the first lithograph in the first volume of the work:
"Sanctus Hieronymus doctor maximus - ad Scripturas Sacras interpretandas divinitus excitatus".
The work comprises the 5 volumes richly illustrated with 105 lithographs and this copy was printed for Luigi Lincei.
Estimate: € 35,000 - 45,000
Lot 792 FRANTISEK KUPKA (1871-1957)
Quatre histoires de blanc et noir. Paris: Marcel Baque, 1926.
Copy n. 110 of 300 complete of the 26 full page woodcuts and in excellent condition.
It is an important illustrated work by the Czech artist Františeck (Frank) Kupka, one of the founders of abstract art.
Estimate: € 3,800 - 4,500
Lot 640 LA SETTIMANA ENIGMISTICA
Periodico di giuochi - enigmi - parole crociate - scacchi - dama - bridge - sciarade ecc.
Anno 1 - N. 1. Milan: 23 Gennaio 1932 - X.
An extraordinary uncompiled copy of the first issue and probably an example of the first edition
of the very popular Italian magazine founded by Giorgio Sisini (1901-1972).
Estimate: € 3,000 - 5,000