Pontano, Amorum libri II, Venice, Heirs of Aldo Manuzio & Andrea Torresano, 1518, contemporary brown marbled morocco

Pontano, Giovanni Gioviano. Ioannis Iouiani Pontani Amorum libri II. De amore coniugali libri III. Tumulorum II, qui in superiore aliorum poematon editione desyderabantur. Lyrici I. Eridanorum II. Eclogae duae Coryle, et quinquennius superioribus quatuor additae. Calpurnij Siculi Eclogae VII. Aurelij Nemesiani Eclogae IIII. Explicatio locorum omnium abstrusorum Pontani authore Petro Summontio uiro doctissimo. Index rerum, quae in his Pontani lusibus contineantur. Venice: Heirs of Aldo Manuzio & Andrea Torresano, February 1518

First and only Aldine edition. This second part of Pontano’s poems was to be paired with the first volume printed by Aldo in 1505 and reissued in 1513 (see previous lots).

8vo (158 x 98 mm). Italic and Roman type, 30 lines plus headline. collation: a-x⁸ y⁴ (s8 and x5 blanks): 172 leaves. Woodcut Aldine device on title-page and final verso. (First four and last four leaves wormed, dampstaining, scattered foxing.)

binding: Contemporary brown marbled morocco (163 x 103 mm), likely Venetian but possibly Roman, covers with outer frame of blind fillets, inner frame of blind rules, small gilt fleuron at outer corners, small gilt leaf at inner corners, central gilt rosette circled by eight small gilt leaves, traces of two pairs of fabric ties, spine with raised bands in four compartments, edges stained blue and speckled red. (Binding restored, including spine and corners, some rubbing with loss.)

acquisition: Purchased from Libreria antiquaria Mediolanum, Milan, 2011. references: UCLA 165; Renouard 85/10; Edit16 37595; USTC 850310