Eduardo Blanco - Venezuela Heroica - 1883

Eduardo Blanco - "Venezuela Heroica" (Caracas, c. 1883) - Very Rare Signed Autograph from the Era Addressed to the Wife of a Belgian Diplomat (1884)

Exceptional copy of high patrimonial value for the history and literature of Latin America, bearing a long autograph inscription (A.S.) by the hand of Eduardo Blanco (1838-1912), considered one of the founding fathers of Venezuelan letters.
This volume of Venezuela Heroica — the major Romantic epic celebrating the independence wars of Simón Bolívar — constitutes a testimony of cross-diplomatic history between Venezuela and Belgium at the end of the 19th century.
The historical dedication:
The author wrote this inscription in black ink, dated and signed directly on the commemorative page printed to honor the Liberator Simón Bolívar:
« To Mrs Jenny de Bruyssel. If this book can make you remember Caracas and the friends to whom your absence afflicts, it will be very pleasant, even just to imagine it, to your ever devoted. Eduardo Blanco. Caracas, February 15, 1884. »
(« À Mme Jenny de Bruyssel. Si ce livre peut vous faire vous souvenir de Caracas et des amies que votre absence afflige, ce sera très agréable, ne serait-ce que de l'imaginer, pour votre toujours dévoué. Eduardo Blanco. Caracas, 15 février 1884. »)

The recipient, Jenny de Bruyssel, was the wife of Ernest de Bruyssel (1828-1896), eminent diplomat, resident minister and Belgian consul, who represented Belgian and European interests in several Latin American republics at that time. This work comes directly from the historical library of this notable family.

Author: Eduardo Blanco (1838-1912)
Title: Venezuela Heroica
Year of publication: Circa 1883-1884 (Dedication dated February 1884)
Place of printing: Caracas (Venezuela)
Binding: Prestige publisher's binding in full green percaline. Front cover richly adorned with a large blind-stamped design and raised lettering. Spine smooth.
Language: Spanish
Exterior condition: Very good. The green percaline remains particularly vivid; the blind-stamped decoration is clear and without major rubbing. Slight wear to the headcaps and corners, overall excellent condition.
Interior condition: Good. Some scattered age-toned foxing typical of 19th-century South American papers. The text of the handwritten dedication is beautifully legible, contrasted, and perfectly preserved.
Special features: Very early edition enriched with a major author’s dedication, signed on site in Caracas.