Ariosto - Orlando Furioso - 1572

THE ORLANDO FURIOSO BY VALGRISI, AMONG DAMES, HORSES, BATTLES, AND BETRAYALS
Rare and fascinating Venetian edition of Orlando Furioso printed by Vincenzo Valgrisi in 1572, belonging to the great illustrated tradition of the Ariosto poem. Although it arrives in fragmentary condition with numerous lacunae, the work preserves notable historical and collector interest thanks to the presence of 33 large wood engravings attributed to the famous series derived from Dosso Dossi’s models, among the most important figurative cycles devoted to the poem in the sixteenth century. This exemplar testifies to the extraordinary editorial fortune of Ariosto in Renaissance Venice and still allows today to appreciate the dialogue between literature, art, and typography that contributed to the dissemination of the chivalric masterpiece across Europe.
MARKET VALUE
The Valgrisi edition of 1572 is sought after by both Ariosto collectors and scholars of Venetian illustrated printing. Complete and well-preserved copies with the full iconographic apparatus can reach several thousand euros on the international market. The presence of 33 original full-page engravings and the edition’s historical interest allow attributing to this copy an indicative value between 500 and 1,500 euros.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Hardcover binding with a back cover featuring a calligraphic title. Surviving pages 23-558. The frontispiece with the author’s portrait, the initial fascicles croce8, A8, B1-3 and the final fascicles n-u8 are missing. Also missing is paper M7. 33 full-page wood engravings survive out of 51 original, belonging to the famous figurative series linked to Dosso Dossi’s iconographic tradition. On sheet l3r is present the autonomous frontispiece of the Five Cantos of Lodovico Ariosto with rhymed topics and Luigi Groto d’Adria’s discourses. Rich woodcut decoration comprising decorative initials, friezes, borders, vignettes, and ornamental cartouches. This is an incomplete copy with some conservation defects: restorations, foxing, stains, tears, wear, and lacunae. In old books with a multi-century history, some imperfections may be present and not always noted in the description. Pp. (2); 536; (2).
FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Orlando Furioso by M. Lodovico Ariosto, all corrected, and adorned with new figures.
Venetia, at Vincenzo Valgrisi, 1572.
With: The five cantos of M. Lodovico Ariosto, which follow the matter of the Furioso.
Ariosto, Lodovico.
CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
Orlando Furioso represents one of the absolute peaks of European Renaissance literature. Published in its definitive form in 1532, the poem radically transformed the medieval chivalric tradition, blending adventure, irony, politics, love, and fantasy into a narrative structure of remarkable complexity. The Valgrisi edition belongs to one of the more fortunate editorial periods of the Furioso. In the second half of the sixteenth century, Venetian publishers grasped the enormous commercial potential of illustrated editions and invested in monumental iconographic apparatuses designed to guide the reader through the adventures of Orlando, Angelica, Rogero, Bradamante, and Astolfo. The large full-page wood engravings constitute one of the most significant aspects of the edition. They serve not only a decorative function but represent a true visual interpretation of the poem, contributing to the construction of the Ariostean imaginary among readers of the sixteenth century. Even in its incomplete form, the presence of a substantial portion of this illustrated cycle makes the copy a valuable testimony to the figurative fortune of the work.
BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Lodovico Ariosto (1474-1533), born in Reggio Emilia and active at the Este court of Ferrara, is regarded as one of the greatest poets of European Renaissance. A diplomat, official, and man of letters, he devoted much of his life to revising Orlando Furioso, a work that profoundly influenced Italian and European literature. The poem was admired by authors such as Cervantes, Voltaire, Goethe, and Byron, becoming one of the most read and illustrated books of the modern era.
PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
Vincenzo Valgrisi was one of the most important Venetian publishers of the sixteenth century. His editions of Orlando Furioso are among the most famous in the illustrated Ariostan tradition. The 1572 edition sits in the mature phase of the poem’s reception, when the text had already firmly entered the European literary canon. The numerous reissues attest to extraordinary demand and a wide diffusion that made Furioso one of the Renaissance Europe’s great bestsellers.
BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
EDIT16, CNCE 3564 (Orlando Furioso, Venice, Vincenzo Valgrisi, 1572).
ICCU / OPAC SBN, census of Valgrisi editions of the Furioso.
WorldCat, Orlando Furioso, Venice, Valgrisi, 1572.
British Library, illustrated editions catalogs of Ariosto.
Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana, Venetian Ariosto holdings.
Agnelli-Ravegnani, Annali delle edizioni ariostesche.
Albert Ascoli, Ariosto's Bitter Harmony.
Peter Marinelli, Ariosto and Boiardo.
Giovanni Ponte, Studies on the illustrated tradition of Orlando Furioso.
Catalogue of Illustrated Italian Books of the Sixteenth Century.