Mazzinelli - Uffizio della Settimana Santa - 1794

3 VOLUMES WITH LARGE FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS – GILT BINDINGS COEVE
RED AND BLACK PRINT ON BLUE PAPER – MASTERPIECE OF ROMAN TYPOGRAPHY OF THE 18th CENTURY
refined Roman edition from the end of the eighteenth century of the Office of Holy Week, published in 1794 by Luigi Perego Salvioni and curated by Alessandro Mazzinelli. The work gathers in three volumes the texts for the solemn celebrations of Holy Week according to the Roman rite, accompanying them with rubrics in vernacular language to facilitate consultation and correct execution. Of particular elegance is the typographic realization, with text printed in red and black according to the great tradition of liturgical books and copper-engraved plates. An additional charming element is the original use of blue paper, still recognizable in some fascicles. The present set is enhanced by refined leather bindings in hazelnut color richly decorated in gold, with gilt edges, and by preservation within an elegant pocket case decorated. More than a simple prayer book, a true liturgical object of representation, conceived for high-level personal use.

WHY TO BUY
THREE VOLUMES – ROME 1794! An elegant eighteenth-century liturgical ensemble dedicated to Holy Week.
RED AND BLACK + ENGRAVINGS! Refined Roman printing according to the great ecclesiastical tradition.
GOLDEN BINDINGS AND GOLD EDGES! A striking decorative and collectible ensemble.
WITH CASE! The preservation of the elegant container greatly enhances the charm of the specimen.

MARKET VALUE
Roman liturgical books of the eighteenth century gain notably higher interest when preserved in a uniform multi-volume set, enriched by red-and-black printing, engravings, decorated bindings and a case. For this three-volume set, a realistic retail value is in the range of €800-1,200, with potential for a higher quote for particularly fresh conservation of bindings, blue paper and the case.

PHYSICAL / CONDITION
Three volumes with contemporary cases. Volume I: pp. (4), 72, 90, (4). Volume II: pp. (4), 2 nn., 268, (4). Volume III: pp. (4), 2 nn., 202, (4). Text printed in red and black and illustrated with copper-engraved plates. Some fascicles still retain the characteristic blue hue of the original paper. Refined later leather bindings in hazelnut color, decorated in gold with borders, ornamental motifs and central inlays on the boards; gilt edges. The three volumes are preserved within an elegant pocket case decorated in blind and in gold, with light abrasions and normal signs of use. Papers may show slight browning, foxing and time traces. As with all antique volumes, slight defects or restorations not expressly mentioned are possible.

FULL TITLES & AUTHORS
Alessandro Mazzinelli.
Office of Holy Week.
In Rome: at Luigi Perego Salvioni, 1794.
Three volumes.
Text in red and black.
Engraved plates.
With rubrics in vernacular language.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Alessandro Mazzinelli was an ecclesiastic and compiler of liturgical texts active in the second half of the eighteenth century. His name is mainly linked to the revision and organization of works destined for Roman ritual practice, in which special attention was paid to the clarity of rubrics and the correct sequence of ceremonies. In a period in which liturgical uniformity represented a fundamental element of ecclesiastical life, collections like the Office of Holy Week constituted indispensable tools for the clergy. The presence of vernacular indications also made the text more immediately usable during particularly complex and solemn celebrations.

RARITY
eighteenth-century Holy Week Offices are not exceptionally rare as a text, but copies of particularly high material quality belong to a clearly superior collectible category. In this set, the three-volume structure, red-and-black printing, copper-engraved engravings, elegant uniform bindings with gilt decorations and especially the case, an element easily dispersed over centuries, take on special importance. The survival of the entire set thus allows us to appreciate the liturgical book not only as a text but as an authentic luxury devotional object.

HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE
Holy Week represents the culmination of the Christian liturgical year, and its celebrations were for centuries among the most solemn and complex of the Roman rite. Books like this guided the clergy through offices, readings, prayers, rubrics and ceremonies, offering a precise structure for performing the rites. The alternation of red and black has a practical as well as aesthetic function: the black contains the text to be recited, while the red signals rubrics and liturgical instructions. The engravings and the quality of the bindings reveal how these volumes could become true objects of personal representation. The blue paper, the gold decorations, the gilt edges and the case show the level of refinement achieved by Roman religious publishing at the end of the eighteenth century.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
ICC U – National Library Service, catalogs of Italian liturgical editions of the eighteenth century.
Bibliographic catalogs dedicated to Roman liturgical books and to Holy Week.
Studies on religious typography and Roman book production of the eighteenth century.
Studies on Italian artistic binding and luxury devotional books of the modern era.