Tassoni - La Secchia Rapita - 1766

12 FULL PAGES ON A SINGLE PAGE - THE WAR OF THE LADLE: THE ENLIGHTENMENT RIDICULES THE EPIC
The 1766 Paris edition of The Laid-in-Lock? Wait: Secchia rapita by Alessandro Tassoni, published by Prault and Durand, represents one of the highest and most refined outcomes of the European fortune of the heroic-comic poem. In this French guise, Tassoni’s masterpiece is translated into an editorial object of extraordinary elegance, where the satire of traditional epic dialogically engages with a sumptuous iconographic apparatus perfectly integrated into the Enlightenment taste. The work unfolds as a book of representation, where cultivated laughter, parody, and the art of engraving cooperate to build an ironic and visually orchestrated reading.
MARKET VALUE
In the international antique market, the illustrated Parisian editions of the 18th century of The Laid-in-Lock, complete in two volumes with an integral iconographic apparatus, typically fall within a value range of 1,000 to 4,000 euros. The quality of the engravings, the presence of leading artists such as Gravelot and Jacques Le Roy, and the contemporary sheepskin binding all contribute decisively to the evaluation, while stains and signs of wear have a limited impact on the final price.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Two volumes in octavo. Contemporary sheepskin binding with a triple border impressed on the boards, spines with phytomorphic ornaments and titles in gold; red edges. Two engraved frontispieces; engraved frontispiece by Jacques Le Roy on a design by Gravelot; header with the author’s portrait; twelve engraved headers framing the topic and twelve vignettes by Jacques Le Roy, Marillier, Huet, and Quevedo. Twelve plates out of text drawn by Gravelot and copper-engraved by Pasquier, Jacques Le Roy, Simonet, and Duclos. Presence of some stains and browning. In old books with a centuries-long history, a few imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description. Pp. (6); 4nn; 108; 128; (6). (6); 2nn; 240; (6).

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
La secchia rapita. Poema eroicomico.
Paris, Appresso Lorenzo Prault e Pietro Durand, 1766.
Alessandro Tassoni.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
Written in the early 17th century, The Laid-in-Lock is one of the foundational texts of the heroicomic genre, capable of subverting the models of knightly epic through the systematic use of irony, paradox, and disproportion. The Paris edition of 1766 translates this spirit into a visual language coherent with French Enlightenment culture: Gravelot’s engravings and his collaborators do more than illustrate the text; they amplify its satirical dimension, transforming the poem into a narrative and pictorial machine of great modernity.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Alessandro Tassoni was born in Modena in 1565 and died in 1635. A poet, writer, and polemicist, he is remembered especially for The Laid-in-Lock, a work that earned him European fame and marked a turning point in the Italian epic tradition. His production is distinguished by the use of irony and by a critical stance toward the literary and ideological models of his time.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
The Paris edition of 1766, printed by Prault and Durand, sits at the height of the French vogue for illustrated editions of Italian classics. Intended for an educated and aristocratic audience, the work circulated as a luxury book, enhanced by a high-level engraving program and elegant bindings, often commissioned specifically.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
ICCU/OPAC SBN and major international bibliographic catalogs for the 18th-century editions of The Laid-in-Lock. Brunet, Manuel du libraire et de l’amateur de livres. Cohen-De Ricci, Guide de l’amateur de livres à gravures du XVIIIe siècle. Studies on Gravelot and on 18th-century French book illustration.