Lot 45: SERLIO, SEBASTIANO.

Est: £2,000 GBP - £3,000 GBP

Sotheby'sLondon, United KingdomJuly 13, 2006

Item Overview

Description

[THE FIRST BOOKE OF ARCHITECTURE, MADE BY SEBASTIAN SERLY, ENTREATING OF GEOMETRIE. TRANSLATED OUT OF ITALIAN INTO DUTCH, AND OUT OF DUTCH INTO ENGLISH.] (THE SECOND BOOKE...) (THE THIRD BOOKE...) (THE FOURTH BOOKE) (THE FIFT BOOKE). ROBERT PEAKE, 1611

SERLIO, SEBASTIANO.

[THE FIRST BOOKE OF ARCHITECTURE, MADE BY SEBASTIAN SERLY, ENTREATING OF GEOMETRIE. TRANSLATED OUT OF ITALIAN INTO DUTCH, AND OUT OF DUTCH INTO ENGLISH.] (THE SECOND BOOKE...) (THE THIRD BOOKE...) (THE FOURTH BOOKE) (THE FIFT BOOKE). ROBERT PEAKE, 1611

folio, five books in one volume, first english edition, woodcut illustrations engraved by Pieter Coecke van Aelst (?) and Cornelis Bos (?) after Sebastiano Serlio and Baldassare Peruzzi, extra-illustrated with engraved plates by Dall'Acqua and others (late eighteenth-century), black letter, woodcut ornaments, initials and head- and tail-pieces, new endpapers, modern quarter cloth, lacking (Book 1:) [PI] 1 (title), A², ²N1, many leaves stained, repaired, extended and silked, some headlines slightly cropped or shaved

LITERATURE

STC 22235; Fowler 331; BAL RIBA 2976

NOTE

The first complete work on architecture in English, "by far the most substantial English architectural book of its day..." (BAL RIBA, p.1825) and one of the rarest seventeenth-century works on the subject.

The text is a translation of the 1606 Dutch edition, itself translated from Coecke's Flemish and French editions of 1539-1553. The woodcut blocks had originally been used in these same editions, published in Antwerp and reprinted in the 1540s and 1550s. They were also used in a 1606 edition published in Amsterdam by Cornelis Claesz, and the Basel edition of 1608-09. The earliest part of Serlio's work had first been published in Italy in 1537, and set a new standard for architectural illustration which was widely influential. Inigo Jones, for instance, made use of the woodcuts in his stage designs for court masques.

Artist or Maker

Sebastiano Serlio

Auction Details

English Literature, History, Fine Bindings, Private Press and Children?s Books, Including the First Folio of Shakespeare

Sotheby's

July 13, 2006, 12:00 AM EST

34-35 New Bond Street, London, LDN, W1A 2AA, UK

Explore This Auction

Get Invaluable on Your Phone

Download the app via text link to get instantly notified if you’re outbid and receive auction reminders so you never miss out!

Bid On-the-Go!

Download the Invaluable app and never miss an auction from your iOS or Android device.

As the world's leading online auction marketplace, thousands of auction houses use Invaluable to deepen relationships with millions of clients around the world. Stay connected to the things you love with curated items and auctions sent to your inbox.

You can unsubscribe at any time. View ourPrivacy Policy.