Justiniani - Rerum Venetarum - 1610

BOOK-MONUMENT OF THE SERENISSIMA: THE POLITICAL MYTH OF SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY VENICE
A work of wide historical and celebratory scope, the Rerum Venetarum ab Urbe Condita by Pietro Giustiniani emerges as one of the most ambitious seventeenth-century attempts to fix the memory of the Republic of Venice in a systematic form. Through a narrative that interweaves chronicle, civil rhetoric, and identity construction, the author offers a compact, almost mythical vision of the Serenissima, elevating it to a political and moral model. The volume stands as a true cultural instrument: not only history, but legitimization; not only an archive, but a typographic monument destined to perpetuate Venetian greatness through time.
MARKET VALUE
The original copies of this 1610 edition are notably rare on the antiquarian market, especially in contemporary binding. Auction records and recent availability indicate a valuation range generally between €1,000 and €3,000, with higher figures for well-preserved, complete copies with significant provenance. Copies with structural defects, as in the present case, fall into the middle-lower range, but retain interest due to the intrinsic rarity of the work.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Full leather binding, signs of wear, losses and loose hinges. Red edges. Foxing and physiological browning. Presence of an initial woodcut and a typographic vignette on the title page. In old books with a multisection history, a few imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description. Pp. (2); 12nn; 354; 60nn; (8).

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Rerum Venetarum ab Urbe Condita.
Argentorati, Lazari Zetzneri, 1610.
Petri Justiniani.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
The work fits within the tradition of great civic humanist histories, alongside models such as Sabellico and Paruta, but it stands out for its chronological breadth and systematic ambition. Giustiniani builds a continuous narrative of the Venetian Republic from its mythical origins to the contemporary era, combining chronicle, documentary, and literary sources. The text alternates political annals, military reports, descriptions of magistracies, and portraits of the doges, contributing to a cohesive and idealized image of the State. In this sense, the volume is not merely a history, but a tool of political self-representation: a work aimed at strengthening Venetian identity through the celebration of civic virtues, institutional stability, and historical continuity. The print at Zetzner, an important publisher active in Strasbourg, places the work within an European circuit of knowledge diffusion, broadening its reach beyond the borders of the Serenissima.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Pietro Giustiniani, belonging to one of the most illustrious Venetian patrician families, was a historian and man of letters active at the end of the 16th and the beginning of the 17th century. His humanistic education and his rooting in the Venetian political tradition emerge clearly in his principal work, where erudition, civic spirit, and celebratory intent are combined. His production reflects the post‑Renaissance era’s need to consolidate and transmit the historical memory of republican institutions.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
The 1610 edition represents the first and most significant printed appearance of the work, produced by Lazarus Zetzner, a publisher known for disseminating erudite and historical texts across Europe. The presumably limited print run and the specialized nature of the content contributed to the relative scarcity of copies that have come down to us. The circulation of the work was likely confined to scholarly and institutional circles, making it today a valuable testimony of early Seicento Venetian historical culture.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
ICCU/OPAC SBN: identification of the present edition in Italian catalogs (check entry on a specific exemplar)
WorldCat: record for the Argentorati, 1610 edition (consult for institutional holdings)
Graesse, Trésor de livres rares, vol. III, p. 123 (entry Justiniani)
Brunet, Manuel du libraire, III, col. 586 (mention of Venetian histories)
Cicogna, Delle iscrizioni veneziane, for the historical context of Venetian sources
Arnaldi – Pastore Stocchi, Storia della cultura veneta, vol. IV (for historiographical context)