![64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
*** A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).](https://am-s3-bucket-assets.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/forum/prod/lot_images/xlarge/55a93e33-9b90-ee11-b864-d4548b6f1f2f/a7856218-0391-ee11-817a-6045bdfc47ac.webp "64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
*** A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).")
![64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
*** A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).](https://am-s3-bucket-assets.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/forum/prod/lot_images/xlarge/55a93e33-9b90-ee11-b864-d4548b6f1f2f/b0856218-0391-ee11-817a-6045bdfc47ac.webp "64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
*** A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).")
![64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
*** A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).](https://am-s3-bucket-assets.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/forum/prod/lot_images/small/55a93e33-9b90-ee11-b864-d4548b6f1f2f/a7856218-0391-ee11-817a-6045bdfc47ac.webp "64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
*** A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).")
![64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
*** A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).](https://am-s3-bucket-assets.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/forum/prod/lot_images/small/55a93e33-9b90-ee11-b864-d4548b6f1f2f/b0856218-0391-ee11-817a-6045bdfc47ac.webp "64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
*** A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).")
Description
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
⁂ A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).
Lot 64
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, Florence, [Lorenzo Morgiani], [?1505] or possibly, 1496-99.
Estimate: £40,000 - 60,000
Description
Asia.- Mandeville (Sir John) Tractato bellissimo delle piu maravigliose cose & piu motabile che sitrovino nelle parte delmondo, collation: a-k8, 80ff., double column, 39 lines, Gothic type, woodcut to title depicting a group of horsemen meeting Mandeville (holding a book) at the edge of a wood, 3 woodcut printer's devices at foot of final verso, lightly washed, traces of dust-soiling to title, one minute wormhole, a few marginal repaired tears, later red morocco, gilt, by Bedford, g.e., 8vo (199 x 129mm.), Florence, Appetitione di P. de Pescia, [?1505] or possibly [Lorenzo Morgiani], [c.1496-99].
⁂ A superb, clean and complete copy of this key Renaissance travel book in the Italian vernacular. The work influenced much of the travel and exploration undertaken in the late middle ages and beyond, and was one of the most popular books of its kind at the time. It takes in the Holy Land, Levant, Persia, India and Far East. In 1625 Samuel Purchas stated that Mandeville 'was the greatest Asian Traveller that ever the World had', next, 'if next', to Marco Polo (Pilgrimes III/i p. 65).
Little is known of Sir John Mandeville himself. He tells us that he was an English knight, that he travelled from 1322 to 1356, and that he had served with the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan. This is one of seven Italian incunable editions - the first being Milan 1480. It would undoubtedly have influenced Columbus (himself an Italian) and other travellers from northern Italy heading both east and west. 'When Leonardo da Vinci moved from Milan in 1499, the inventory of his books included a number on natural history, the sphere, the heavens - indicators of some of the prime interests of that unparalleled mind. But out of the multitude of travel accounts that Leonardo could have had, in MS or from the new printing presses, there is only the one: Mandeville's Travels. At about the same time... Columbus was perusing Mandeville for information on China preparatory to his voyage; and in 1576 a copy of the Travels was with Frobisher as he lay off Baffin Bay. The huge number of people who relied on the Travels for hard, practical geographical information in the two centuries after the book first appeared demands that we give it serious attention if we want to understand the mental picture of the world of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance' (C. Moseley, ed., The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, 1983, p. 9).
A report undertaken by Dr. Martin Davies (former curator of incunabula at the British Library), in which he closely examines the type and compares with other works by the two printers in question concludes that 'it seems most likely that the book was printed by Lorenzo Morgiani, c. 1496-99'. The full report is available upon request.
Literature: BM STC Italian p.408, G6701; GW M20444; ISTC im00176500; Howgego M39; IGI, 6109; Lach Asia in the Making of Europe, I, pp. 77-80; Lowendahl China Illustrata Nova, 2 (1480 edition).
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