Vitruvius, Architettura, con il suo commento et figure, Perugia, 1536, later mottled calf, Félibien's copy

VITRUVIUS POLLIO, MARCUS. Architettura, con il suo commento et figure. Vetruvio in volgar lingua raportato per M. Gianbatista Caporali di Perugia. Perugia: Giano Bigazzini, 1 April 1536

ANDRÉ FÉLIBIEN'S COPY OF VITRUVIUS; it was previously owned by another artist, Bartolommeo Almi of Siena.

The publisher of this edition, Conte Giano Bigazzini, is depicted in military dress; he had worked as a condottiere for the Republic of Venice before retiring to his native Perugia and immersing himself in literary and artistic pursuits. His private press produced just two works: this edition of Vitruvius's first five books prepared by the Perugian artist Giovanni Battista Caporali, and a volume of poems by Lodovico Dolce. The printer may have been Luca Bini who was in Perugia at this time.

Small folio (275 x 197 mm). Roman type, 71 lines plus headline. Collation: A¹² B-Q⁸ R²: 134 leaves. Woodcut architectural title-page with portrait and arms of the translator in the border, dedication leaf with full-length woodcut portrait of Giano Bigazzini, 81 woodcut illustrations, manuscript index at front of volume. (Occasional light spotting and staining, paper flaw to P8, R1 remargined at gutter, slight marginal worming in O7-R2.)

Binding: Later mottled calf (282 x 208 mm), rebacked with the new spine tooled in period style, retaining a gilt heron (perhaps the device of an early owner) at the foot of the spine, red morocco label to second compartment, speckled edges, marbled endpapers. (Rebacked, binding slightly rubbed.)

Provenance: Bartolommeo di Francesco Almi of Siena (ca. 1510-1574, painter), with his manuscript index and his arms in brown ink with wash on verso of A2 — André Félibien des Avaux (1619-1695, architect and art critic), ownership inscription on title-page (trimmed) and bookplate dated 1669 on final leaf — [presumably Arthur and Charlotte Vershbow, bibliographical notes in pencil in the same hand as their other books]. Acquisition: Purchased in 1988 from Bernard Quaritch, London. References: BAL RIBA 3536; Edit16 54111; Mortimer, Harvard Italian 546