La Fontaine - Favole di La Fontaine - 1886

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DORÉ: LE FAVOLE. GRANDE EDIZIONE ILLUSTRATA - TRADOTTO IN ITALIANO DA EMILIO DE MARCHI
Elegant and monumental Italian edition of the famous Fables of Jean de La Fontaine, illustrated by Gustave Doré and translated into verse by Emilio De Marchi. Published in Milan by Edoardo Sonzogno in 1886 in the “Biblioteca Classica Illustrata,” it is one of the most spectacular Italian nineteenth-century editions of the work, enriched by Doré’s vast iconographic apparatus. The edition comprises XII, 712 pages, for a total of 724 pages, and is illustrated by numerous in-text vignettes and 85 large full-page plates.

ABSTRACT
La Fontaine’s Fables constitute a pinnacle of seventeenth-century French literature. Through animals, humans, divinities, and allegorical figures, La Fontaine transforms the traditional fable tradition of Aesop and Phaedrus and the ancient authors into a vast theater of human society, governed by intelligence, vanity, greed, prudence, strength, and weakness. In this edition, the text takes on a particularly spectacular dimension thanks to Gustave Doré’s illustrations. The grand plates turn the fables into theatrical and visionary scenes: monumental forests, anthropomorphized animals, romantic landscapes, and scenes of strong chiaroscuro accompany the narration, while numerous minor vignettes punctuate the text. The verse translation is by Emilio De Marchi, who in the prologue explicitly addresses the difficulty of rendering in Italian the lightness and rapidity of La Fontaine’s poetry. Sonzogno’s publication also achieved significant popular diffusion through the “Biblioteca Classica Illustrata.” The fortune of this translation and its apparatus of illustrations are also remembered in modern studies devoted to De Marchi.

WHY TO BUY
1. GUSTAVE DORÉ
Edition enriched by the famous illustrations of Gustave Doré, with 85 large full-page compositions and countless vignettes in the text.
2. FIRST ITALIAN EDITION
First Italian edition of the verse translation by Emilio De Marchi and published by Sonzogno in 1886.
3. LARGE ILLUSTRATED FORMAT
Monumental folio volume, designed to enhance the imposing iconographic apparatus and the high quality of the engravings.
4. DE MARCHI AND SONZOGNO
An important meeting between Doré’s illustrative art, Emilio De Marchi’s poetic translation, and the editorial fortune of the Biblioteca Classica Illustrata.

MARKET VALUE
Estimated market value: €350–550 for a complete copy, thanks to the elegant contemporaneous binding and the rich illustrative apparatus by Gustave Doré.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Contemporary half-leather binding with boards covered in marbled paper; spine with raised bands, with title and embellishments stamped in gold. Normal signs of use to the binding, with some abrasions at the ends and edges. Internally, uniformly browned paper and occasional physiological foxing. The large engravings retain good sharpness and contrast. Frontispiece, introduction dedicated to Jean de La Fontaine, translator’s prologue, numerous full-page plates and in-text vignettes. In old books with a long history, a few imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description. This listing contains AI visualizations. Refer to the original photographs to verify the actual condition of the item. The images are an integral part of the description. Pp. XII, 712.

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Le favole di La Fontaine.
Milano, Edoardo Sonzogno Editore, 1886.
Jean de La Fontaine.
Illustrator: Gustave Doré.
Traduzione in versi: Emilio De Marchi.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
La Fables by La Fontaine, originally published from 1668, belong to the small group of European literary works that have entered the collective imagination. The poet revived the classical tradition of the moral fable, transforming it into a tool for observing contemporary society. The encounter with Gustave Doré gave the Fables a new visual identity. Doré does not merely illustrate the episodes literally: he builds environments, landscapes, and characters capable of amplifying the moral and psychological meaning of the stories. The Sonzogno edition is particularly interesting in the Italian publishing context because it pairs these images with the new poetic translation by Emilio De Marchi. The translation was published with Doré’s illustrations in the “Biblioteca Classica Illustrata” and supported by a significant editorial campaign.

BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF THE ILLUSTRATOR
Gustave Doré (Strasbourg, 1832 – Paris, 1883) was one of the most important and prolific European illustrators of the nineteenth century. His international fame is linked to the monumental graphic interpretations of Dante, Cervantes, Milton, Rabelais, La Fontaine, and the Bible. His language, characterized by strong light contrasts, spectacular perspectives, and an extraordinary narrative capacity, contributed decisively to the formation of the nineteenth-century visual imagination.

EMILIO DE MARCHI
Emilio De Marchi (Milan, 1851–1901), novelist, poet, and translator, is a central figure of Lombard fiction in the late nineteenth century. His verse translation of La Fontaine’s Fables was destined for notable diffusion precisely through the Sonzogno illustrated edition. Studies devoted to the author specifically remember this translation, published with Doré’s illustrations.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
Milan, Edoardo Sonzogno, 1886. The publication belongs to the series “Biblioteca Classica Illustrata.” A copy held in the historical collections of the Genoa Libraries is described with the same title, illustrator, translator, publisher, and date. The complete edition is bibliographically described as XII, 712 pages, with numerous illustrations and 85 full-page plates, and is indicated as the first Italian edition.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
La Fontaine, Jean de, Le favole di La Fontaine illustrate da Gustavo Doré. Traduzione in versi di Emilio De Marchi, Milano, Edoardo Sonzogno, 1886. Biblioteca Classica Illustrata, Edoardo Sonzogno, Milano. Biblioteche di Genova, Fondo di conservazione, ex. Sonzogno 1886 edition copy. Modern bibliography on Emilio De Marchi: documentation of the verse translation of the Fables published by Sonzogno with Gustave Doré’s illustrations.