[Post Incunable] - Boccaccio - Ameto - 1521

THE A METO OF GIOVANNI BOCCACCIO IN THE RARE FIRST GIUNTINE EDITION OF 1521: A MILESTONE IN RENAISSANCE PROSA
ABSTRACT
AMETO – ALLEGORY, LOVE AND VIRTUE – FIRST PRINTING WITH “BOCCACCIO” ON THE FRONTISPIECE
Rara first Giuntine edition of Boccaccio’s Ameto, printed in Florence in 1521 by the heirs of Filippo Giunta. Also known as Comedia delle ninfe fiorentine, the work belongs to Boccaccio’s youth and constitutes one of the most significant moments in his narrative development, poised between medieval allegory, classical culture, and a new humanistic sensibility. Of particular interest is the presence of the features of the first printing: on the title page the form “Boccacio” appears, while on page 2, line 21, one reads “ceneri accese il disio,” readings later corrected. These typographical peculiarities allow precise identification of the first issue and confer on the specimen a specific bibliographic and collector’s interest. The edition also belongs to the prestigious Giunta family’s production, a central figure of Renaissance Florence printing and essential in disseminating the great authors of Italian literature in print.

WHY TO BUY
FIRST GIUNTINE EDITION – FIRENZE 1521! One of the most important Boccaccio cinquecentines.
FIRST PRINTING IDENTIFIABLE! The famous errors “BOCCACIO” and “CENERI ACCESE IL DISIO” are present.
ONE OF THE FATHERS OF ITALIAN LITERATURE! A fundamental work of the young Boccaccio before the Decameron.
GIUNTA! A prestigious edition from the great Florentine printing house of the Renaissance.

MARKET VALUE
The fifteenth- and sixteenth-century editions of Boccaccio printed by the Giunta family maintain solid collectible interest, especially when belonging to early printings and characterized by recognizable bibliographic variants. For a complete and well-preserved specimen a retail value in the range of €1,500-2,500 is realistic, with possibilities for higher bids for copies particularly fresh, with wide margins, in contemporary binding, or with significant provenance.

PHYSICAL / CONDITION
Pp. (4), 188, (2), 2 nn., (4). Printer’s device of the heirs of Filippo Giunta at the end of the volume. Later half-leather binding in hazelnut color with corners, spine with title stamped in gold. Some foxing, brownings, and normal signs of use compatible with the age. Overall an interesting example of the rare first Giuntine printing. As with all antique volumes, slight defects or restorations not expressly mentioned may be present.

FULL TITLES & AUTHORS
Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375).
Ameto del Boccacio.
Fiorenza: per gli Heredi di Filippo de Giunta, 1521.
PRIMA EDIZIONE GIUNTINA.
First recognizable printing by the form “Boccacio” on the frontispiece and by the reading “ceneri accese il disio” on page 2, line 21.
Pp. (4), 188, (2), 2 nn., (4).

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375) was one of the three great fathers of Italian literature, along with Dante Alighieri and Francesco Petrarca, and a decisive figure in the birth of modern European narrative. Born in Tuscany and educated in the cosmopolitan milieu of the Angevin court in Naples, he developed at an early stage a deep knowledge of classical culture, courtly poetry, and new vernacular narrative forms. His youthful production includes works such as Filocolo, Filostrato, Teseida, and Ameto, in which he experimented with narrative, allegorical, and poetic forms that would find full maturity in the Decameron. With the latter, Boccaccio produced one of the absolute masterpieces of Western literature, exerting enormous influence on the novella and European storytelling. He was also a humanist, a student of Dante, and a promoter of the recovery of classical authors. Ameto occupies a particularly interesting position within his path because it shows the young Boccaccio engaged in the fusion of prose and poetry, classical myth, moral allegory, and amorous experience.

RARITY
The Florentine edition of 1521 holds particular bibliographic interest because it belongs to the prestigious production of the heirs of Filippo Giunta and represents one of the earlier sixteenth-century impressions of the work. Even more significant is the identification of the first printing through two typographic features subsequently corrected: the form “Boccacio” on the frontispiece and the reading “ceneri accese il disio.” The contemporaneous presence of these elements allows one to distinguish the original emission from later corrections and increases its appeal for a specialized collection. Early Giuntine editions of great Italian vernacular authors are particularly valued because they document the process by which Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio entered the Renaissance editorial canon.

HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE
Ameto, also known as Comedia delle ninfe fiorentine, was probably composed around 1341-1342 and constitutes one of the most original narrative experiments of the young Boccaccio. The protagonist Ameto, a rustic shepherd, meets seven nymphs who embody different virtues and, through their tales and the experience of love, undertakes a path of moral and spiritual elevation. The structure alternates prose and poetry and fuses pastoral tradition, medieval allegory, classical mythology, and the culture of courtly love. In this complex narrative architecture, some elements already recognizable would find full development in the Decameron: the centrality of storytelling, the variety of human experiences, psychological insight, and the ability to unite erudite culture with the pleasure of narration. The 1521 Giuntine edition also bears witness to the strong interest of Florentine Renaissance in the rediscovery and editorial stabilization of the great texts of the Italian vernacular tradition.