Tasso - Gerusalemme Liberata - 1771

INCANTESIMI, DUELLI, AMORI E TRADIMENTI : SPLENDIDE ILLUSTRAZIONI A TUTTA PAGINA
The Paris edition of 1771 of Jerusalem Delivered represents one of the highest and most aware moments in the transformation of the Tasso epic into a total aesthetic object, where word, image, and editorial craft converge into a eminently spectacular reading experience. In it, the Italian epic-knightly tradition is remixed through the French taste of the 18th century, giving life to a book that does not merely transmit the text but reinvents it as a visual and theatrical sequence. The illustrative cycle conceived by Gravelot goes beyond translation: it interprets, amplifies, dramatizes, and builds a true iconographic direction that dialogues with Rococo sensibility and pre-neoclassical style. The result is a prestigious editorial object, destined for a cultured, refined audience deeply immersed in the culture of the book as an art form.
MARKET VALUE
The 18th-century illustrated editions of Jerusalem Delivered, particularly the French ones with a complete and coherent calcographic apparatus, hold a stable and rising position in the international antiquarian market. Complete copies of the plates, with frontispieces present and in good condition, generally fetch between 1,000 and 2,000 euros, but particularly fresh copies, on strong paper, with margins and in a contemporary binding adorned, can exceed 2,500 euros, especially if accompanied by notable provenance or significant ex-libris. The engraving quality, the sharpness of the impressions, and the completeness of the iconographic cycle decisively influence the final valuation.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Contemporary goatskin binding with an elegant gilt frame on the boards, richly decorated spines with golden phytomorphic friezes and title impressed on a double roll; decorated edges and corners; gilded edges. Weak but still functional hinges. Complete and notably high-quality illustration corpus: 2 calcographic frontispieces with portraits of Torquato Tasso and Gravelot; calcographic vignettes on the title pages; engraved dedication; 20 large, finely executed calcographic plates out of text; 20 engraved heads depicting the poem’s protagonists with Italian names; decorative finials engraved in copper. Pages with light browning and scattered foxing, consistent with the age of the exemplar. Presence of ex libris of Pietro Volpato and a shelf tile from the antique bookstore Gay (Strasbourg), elements that add collecting and historical interest. Collation: pp. (4); 8 unnumbered; 332; (4). In old books with a multi-century history, some imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description.
FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Jerusalem Delivered.
Paris, Delalain, Durand, Molini, 1771.
Torquato Tasso.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
Jerusalem Delivered, first published in 1581, stands as one of the absolute peaks of European epic poetry, where the tale of the First Crusade becomes a pretext for a deep exploration of inner conflicts, love, faith, and the seduction of the marvelous. In the 18th century, and particularly in France, the poem is reinterpreted in light of a new sensibility, more inclined toward theatricality, formal refinement, and the aesthetic valorization of image. The 1771 edition sits precisely at this cultural crossroads: the engravings derived from Gravelot’s drawings are not mere illustrations but real narrative devices that isolate, emphasize, and reinterpret the poem’s key moments, building a visual rhythm parallel to the textual one. The duel scenes, Armida’s enchantments, the romantic and spiritual tensions are transfigured into elegant, dynamic, and deeply expressive images, in which Rococo taste intertwines with a growing tendency toward compositional clarity. The frontispieces with the portraits of the protagonists introduce each canto as a near-litteram cinematic sequence, strengthening the psychological and iconic dimension of the characters. This edition thus represents a true visual re-foundation of the Tassoan poem, where the word becomes image and epic becomes a refined, sensory spectacle.
BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Torquato Tasso (1544–1595), born in Sorrento, was one of the greatest poets of the Italian Renaissance. Trained at the major Italian courts, he found his ideal environment in Ferrara at the Este court, where he composed Jerusalem Delivered. His work is distinguished by the balance between formal rigor and emotional tension, between classical discipline and inner restlessness. His influence was vast, spanning centuries and profoundly shaping the European literary imagination, especially between the 17th and 18th centuries.
PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
Since the first edition of 1581, Jerusalem Delivered enjoyed extraordinary and continual diffusion, with hundreds of editions across Europe. In the 18th century, France became one of the main centers of editorial reworking of the work, favoring high-quality illustrated editions intended for an aristocratic and bibliophilic audience. The 1771 edition, with Gravelot’s drawings and engravings entrusted to masters such as Le Roy, Baquoy, Duclos, Le Veau, Lingée, and Patas, represents one of the culminating points of this tradition. It belongs to a publishing line that aims to transform the book into a luxury object of representation, where the visual component assumes a central and autonomous role.
BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
Brunet, Manuel du libraire et de l’amateur de livres, Paris, 1860–1865, vol. V, col. 658–660, entry “Tasse”.
Cohen, H. – De Ricci, S., Guide de l’amateur de livres à gravures du XVIIIe siècle, Paris, 1912, pp. 986–989, no. 1014.
ICCU/OPAC SBN: identification records for the Paris 1771 edition, with locations in Italian libraries (to be verified for individual copies).
Catalogue général de la BnF, département Réserve des livres rares, detailed notice of the 1771 edition.
USTC (Universal Short Title Catalogue), record relating to the Paris edition of 1771.
Antiquarian catalogs and sale catalogs (Sotheby’s, Christie’s, Librairie ancienne) relating to illustrated editions of Jerusalem Delivered in the 18th century.