METAMORPHOSIN CUM LUCULENTISSIMIS RAPHAELIS REGII ENARRATIONIBUS

(POST-INCUNABLE). (MORRIS, WILLIAM, His Copy). OVID

Published by Giorgio Rusconi 2 May 1509, Venice, 1509

310 x 206 mm. (12 1/4 x 8"). 8 p.l., CLXIX, [1] leaves.Edited and with commentary by Raffaele Regio. 17th century sheep, raised bands, spine panels with gilt floral sprig, top spine panel with a lion rampant bearing a flag atop an earl s coronet and surmounted by a duke s coronet, gilt lettering. In a recent purpose-built folding cloth box. With woodcut of St. George slaying the dragon on title page signed "F V," verso of A8 with a large compass rose, and WITH 59 LARGE (approximately 1/3 page) WOODCUTS, the first five (Creation of the World, Creation of Man, the Flood, Deucalion and Pyrrha, Apollo and Daphne) from the 1497 Venice edition of Ovid, the remaining 54 from the first edition and the 1505 Parma edition; printer's device in colophon. Front pastedown with book label of William Morris, printed at the Kelmscott Press; ex-libris of Edouard Rahir; engraved bookplate with initials C B and crest of three ostrich plumes (likely the Cavendish-Bentinck family; see below); front free endpaper with bookplate of Mary S. Collins, and 19th century inscription "From the library of the Marquis Wellesley" with modern pencilled notation that this was the brother of the Duke of Wellington. Sotheby's, "Catalogue of a portion of the valuable collection of manuscripts, early printed books, &c., of the late William Morris," December 5-10 1898, lot 927 (this copy); Hôtel Drouot, "La Bibliotheque de feu Edouard Rahir," May 1931, lot 617 (this copy); Essling I, 228; Sander 5316; EDIT16 CNCE 29989; USTC 845620. Boards a bit soiled and chafed, some wear to joints and spine bands (with a one-inch crack at head of front joint), spine uniformly darkened, but a solid and pleasing binding. First and last couple of leaves a little soiled, but except for that, A FINE COPY INTERNALLY, the text and cuts exceptionally clean and fresh. This is William Morris' copy of a richly illustrated early Venetian edition of Ovid's "Metamorphoses," a pleasing volume which has belonged to several additional important owners. Featuring the commentary of humanist scholar Raffaele Regio (ca. 1440-1520), first published in Venice in 1492 or 1493, the present adaptation became the most popular version of Ovid's epic mythological poem through the 16th century. Our printer, Rusconi (fl. 1500-21), produced both Latin and Italian editions of the work, using woodcuts copied from several earlier editions. These illustrations are striking, populated with animated figures in a charming mixture of 15th century dress and Roman armor, who pose, fight, and writhe alongside a cast of inventively depicted mythical beasts. The artist used the medium of the woodcut to great effect, creating movement and texture with simple but strong linework. Although the aesthetic achievement of the work speaks for itself, our copy's distinguished provenance indicates that the work's artistic merit continued to be recognized some 400 years after its publication. At the time of the founding of his Kelmscott Press, William Morris began building a large library of books he found inspiring; Sydney Cockerell wrote that he assembled it "with the definitive purpose of studying the type and methods of early printers," and his daughter May wrote that he had started buying early printed books to "serve as models" for his own productions. It is easy to see how this work fit into that collection and that goal. It is visually compelling, with many characteristics that also appear in the works Morris printed. This copy was auctioned in the Sotheby's sale of Morris' library in December of 1898. Morris was not the only notable owner of this copy, which has graced the shelves of multiple noble libraries. The earliest owner whose inscription appears here is Anglo-Irish nobleman Richard Colley Wellesley (1760-1852), the first Marquess Wellesley, who served as colonial governor-general of Bengal in India and British foreign secretary. Apparently, he commissioned the present binding, since the Wellesley crest appears in the t. Seller Inventory # ST20717

Bibliographic Details

Title: METAMORPHOSIN CUM LUCULENTISSIMIS RAPHAELIS ...
Publisher: Giorgio Rusconi 2 May 1509, Venice
Publication Date: 1509