19 - DÜRER (Albrecht). COLLECTION OF THE THREE MAJOR WOODCUT SERIES. 1511 EDITIONS. *Apocalypsis c[um] figuris*, Nuremberg, Albrecht Dürer, 1511 – *Epitome in divae parthenices mariae historiam*, Nuremberg, Albrecht Dürer, 1511 – *Passio domini nostri Jesu*, Nuremberg, Albrecht Dürer, 1511. Set of three suites bound in a single folio volume

DÜRER (Albrecht). COLLECTION OF THE THREE MAJOR WOODCUT SERIES. 1511 EDITIONS. *Apocalypsis c[um] figuris*, Nuremberg, Albrecht Dürer, 1511 – *Epitome in divae parthenices mariae historiam*, Nuremberg, Albrecht Dürer, 1511 – *Passio domini nostri Jesu*, Nuremberg, Albrecht Dürer, 1511. Set of three suites bound in a single folio volume (415 x 295 mm), 20th-century binding in havana morocco leather, with intricate cold-stamped monastic-style decoration covering the covers, copper fasteners and clasps, and a cardboard slipcase. The collection is bound in the following order: 1) *Apocalypsis cum figuris*. Second edition. This famous series of fifteen woodcuts, *The Apocalypse*, was executed by Dürer between 1496 and 1498 and published by him that same year as a book, with text on the reverse side of the plates (except the last one) taken from the Koberger Bible. Two print runs were produced, one with Latin text and the other with German text; today, only a handful of copies of these print runs remain, almost all of which are held in public collections. This second edition, published alongside the other two major series (The Great Passion and The Life of the Virgin), was enhanced by Dürer with a new title page illustrated with the figure of Saint John on Patmos. Very fine proofs with margins (sheet dimensions: 410 x 295 mm), without any defects. 2) *Epitome in divae parthenices mariae historiam*. First edition. Collation: A8, B-C6 Title page adorned with an engraving and 19 plates. Most of the woodcuts in this series, known as The Life of the Virgin, were engraved between 1502 and 1505, the title page and the last two plates in 1510 and 1511, the year in which Dürer published the series in book form, adding a Latin text composed by the poet and humanist monk Benedictus Chelidonius to the verso of the plates. The work is dedicated to Caritas Pirckheimer, abbess of the Convent of St. Clare in Nuremberg and sister of the humanist Wilibald Pirckheimer, a friend of Dürer’s. Only a few very rare isolated proofs from an early print run preceding the text are known to exist. Very fine proofs with wide margins (sheet dimensions: 410 x 295 mm). A contemporary inscription in Latin in the upper part of the outer margin of folio A7, partially obscured by a paper restoration. Minor marginal foxing in B1, B2, and B6, with a handwritten note added in the outer margin of the latter sheet. A tiny repaired marginal tear in C2. 3) Passio domini nostri Jesu. First edition. A series of twelve woodcuts known as the Great Passion. It was produced in two phases. The first seven woodcuts were engraved between 1497 and 1499, before Dürer’s second trip to Italy, and were originally sold separately. Of this first print run without text, only a few extremely rare isolated proofs are known to exist. Dürer engraved the last four scenes—The Last Supper, The Arrest of Christ, The Descent into Limbo, and The Resurrection—whose dramatic impact is heightened by a new treatment of light—in 1510, then added the frontispiece in 1511, when the series was first published in book form. As with the *Life of the Virgin*, Benedictus Chelidonius composed a Latin text for the occasion, which was printed on the reverse side of the engravings. Very fine proofs with margins (sheet dimensions: 410 x 295 mm). Slight pinholes on the reverse of *The Flagellation*. Acquired by Émile Rossignol in 1983.