[144 large Engraved Plates] - Bonaventure - Ancienne Rome - 1780

144 PLATES IN IMPERIAL FOLIO - TO THE FIRST STATE, ON IMMACULATE PAPER - THE RUINS OF ROME
Mastodontic (535x435 mm) and spectacular archaeological collection devoted to the ruins of ancient Rome, published in Amsterdam in 1709 and considered one of the most fascinating testimonies of European antiquarian taste between the Seventeenth and Eighteenth centuries.
Bonaventura van Overbeke’s work transforms the Roman monuments into a true theater of imperial memory: the Colosseum, Castel Sant’Angelo, temples, arches, mausoleums and architectural fragments are depicted with a scenographic sensibility typically Baroque, suspended between archaeological document and the melancholy of ruins. The engravings are not mere views, but visually striking constructions of strong theatrical impact, where antiquity appears as a gigantic, fragmentary and almost metaphysical world. This volume had a huge influence on European antiquarian culture and helped spread the Romantic image of Rome in ruins well before the Enlightenment Grand Tour.
MARKET VALUE
The original editions of the “Restes de l’Ancienne Rome” by Overbeke are highly sought after on the international antique market, especially for the quality and number of copperplate engravings. Complete and well-preserved copies can generally reach values between 4,000 and 10,000 euros, with higher quotations for pristine copies or important bindings. Incomplete copies of some plates nevertheless retain considerable collectible interest for the decorative force of the engravings and for the work’s importance in the history of antiquarian archaeology.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Divided into three books with their own half-title. First French edition. Full calf binding with marbled cover, worn and lacking the back cover plate. The half-title of the first volume present. Title pages printed in red and black. Engraved portrait of the author. Preserved 144 copperplate plates, out of 146, of which one is a double-page plate. The engraved title page and the queen Anna’s portrait are missing. Woodcut initials in the text. Some foxing and natural browning of the leaves. In old books with a multigenerational history, a few imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description. Pages: (2); 28nn; 92; 86; 66.

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Les Restes de L’Ancienne Rome.
Amsterdam, Jean Crellius, 1709.
Bonaventura van Overbeke.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
Bonaventura van Overbeke’s work belongs to the great moment of the rediscovery of Rome’s antiquarian heritage in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Artist, engraver and Flemish antiquarian, Overbeke visited Rome at the end of the seventeenth century, collecting drawings, reliefs and studies of the principal ancient monuments. The result was one of the most spectacular archaeological publications of the Baroque period. Unlike purely technical or archaeological works, “Les Restes de l’Ancienne Rome” builds a true aesthetics of ruin. The monuments are not presented as cold artefacts, but as gigantic organisms worn by time, immersed in theatrical landscapes and suspended atmospheres. The Colosseum appears as a shattered architectural mountain; Castel Sant’Angelo as an almost unreal fortress; temples and arches become symbols of the empire’s transience. This sensibility profoundly influenced the culture of the Grand Tour and the European taste for classical ruins. The work partly anticipates the Romantic and sublime imagery of the eighteenth century, transforming Rome into a ghost city where the imperial past continues to live through its monumental ruins. The engravings also constitute an extremely important documentation of the state of the Roman monuments before the great modern urban transformations.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Bonaventura van Overbeke (1660-1705) was a Flemish painter, engraver and antiquarian. Trained in the Southern Netherlands’ artistic milieu, he stayed in Rome where he developed a deep interest in classical archaeology and the representation of antiquities. His main work, published posthumously in 1709, became one of the fundamental texts of European antiquarianism and contributed decisively to the diffusion of the taste for Roman ruin in the eighteenth century.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
The first French edition of 1709 was published in Amsterdam by Jean Crellius a few years after the author’s death. The work quickly gained popularity among aristocrats, antiquarians, architects and European travelers due to the exceptional quality of the engravings and the grandeur of the format.
Many copies were subsequently dismembered for the separate sale of the plates, especially valued as decorative elements. Complete copies are today relatively rare on the international antique market.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
ICCU / OPAC SBN: census of editions of “Les Restes de l’Ancienne Rome”.
WorldCat: Amsterdam, Jean Crellius, 1709.
Berlin Catalogue.
Brunet, Manuel du Libraire, IV.
Cicognara, Catalogo ragionato dei libri d’arte e d’antichità.
Fowler Architectural Collection.