103 - Virgil. A meticulously edited and refined edition. Venice, Lucantonio Giunta, 1537. One of the best-illustrated editions of Virgil from the early 16th century

Virgil. A meticulously edited and refined edition. Venice, Lucantonio Giunta, 1537. One of the best-illustrated editions of Virgil from the early 16th century Virgil. A meticulously edited and refined edition. Venice, Lucantonio Giunta, 1537. Folio (310 x 215 mm); [10], 143, [1 blank]; 47, [1] leaves. Title within an elaborate architectural frame, 45 beautiful woodcut illustrations in the text, various initial letters, and a large printer’s mark at the end (internal stitching loosened). Modern full-parchment binding. This copy features several ancient marginal notes and contains the priapic plates at the end—which are often removed due to censorship—but lacks the *Aeneid*. The illustrations are derived from woodblocks previously used in the 1519 edition. Although inspired by the woodcuts produced in Germany for the Strasbourg Virgil by Johann Grüninger (1502), they are conceived with great originality and remarkable vitality. The name of the artist who conceived the designs and engraved the blocks is unknown, but the quality of the execution reveals a hand of rare skill. Of particular interest for the history of costume, the scenes set Virgil’s episodes in the artist’s contemporary world, featuring cityscapes, ships, weapons, and numerous details of daily life in the early sixteenth century. Mambelli, *Edizioni virgiliane*, 179: “One of the most beautiful and valuable illustrated editions of the 16th century” One of the best-illustrated editions of Virgil from the early sixteenth century