Torquato Tasso - La Gerusalemme liberata - 1827-1827

Two-volume set of the famous Renaissance epic “La Gerusalemme liberata” by Torquato Tasso. The volumes were printed in 1827 in Brescia (Italy) (Presso Bassano e Paolo Fratelli Uberti / Tipografia de Federico Nicoli-Cristiani).
The unique history of this book ( provenance & library exchange):
This set was owned for many decades by Anna Maria Porschen. She originally came from a very wealthy and cultured Dresden family, where a love for refined, international literature was probably in the cradle. Later she moved to Frankfurt am Main, where she completed an impressive 40-year service as a valued employee at the German Library (today the German National Library).
The volumes themselves had previously arrived directly from an official “dupe exchange” (or international manuscript exchange) from a historic specialized library in Brescia to Frankfurt. For her ceremonial farewell after 40 years of service, this bibliophile splendor piece was presented as a farewell gift from the institution’s holdings to the deserving employee. [Arrow] 1993
How the book came to me (personal note):
A few years ago I personally received this two-volume work as a gift from Mrs. Porschen. She lived on Haeberlinstraße in Frankfurt. I used to deliver high-quality foods and Hessian regional specialties weekly to her doorstep as part of my self-employed delivery service. As a token of deep gratitude for my faithful service and just before she moved into a retirement home, she entrusted me with this family heirloom, telling me it would be in good hands. Now this storied legacy seeks a new collector. [Arrow] 2008
The book bears the fine traces of its almost 200-year journey through European collections:
• Original owner & art expert: At the very top of the first volume’s title page sits the prominent handwritten ownership note of the notable Italian original owner “Costantini Emilio” (Emilio Costantini, 1842–1926). He was a Europe-wide renowned Italian painter, professor at the art institute in Florence, and a celebrated art dealer who maintained close contact with international top collectors. His signature makes the work a genuine contemporary document of the Italian art and collector elite of the 19th century.
• Other historical owners: On the inside of the second volume is the signature of “Collizolli Francesco” – a rare and historically documented surname from the origin and Alpine region Trentino/Lombardy, evidencing the book’s regional journey in Northern Italy before the exchange to Germany.
• Old library notes: Inside, old filing abbreviations from the historical section “Alcione” (Italian classical collection) with the original shelf sign “III 73 6” and the old archive verification note “Dato” at the end of the work attest to meticulous cataloging. A fine content note summarizes the work (“L'arrivo dei crociati a Gerusalemme”).
Condition & Features:
• Binding: Beautiful, contemporary half-leather bindings (originals circa 1827) with a dark brown genuine leather spine, splendid red leather title labels (TASSO / GERUSA.) and noble real gold tooling (fiolines).
• Illustration: Volume 1 contains a magnificent frontispiece with the laurel-wreathed portrait of Tasso, masterfully engraved and signed by the well-known northern Italian copperplate engraver Pietro Basaglia (“Basaglia P. Inc.”).
Interior: The text is complete and blends seamlessly between the pages (including a production-related blank unprinted verso page between pp. 16/17 in Volume 1).
• Patina of age: Authentic antique patina. Volume 2 shows the widespread age-typical, chemically harmless foxing. Volume 1 shows on the upper margins of several consecutive pages old, dried watermarks. These have historically hardened the paper slightly at the outer edges (which makes turning the pages feel somewhat stiffer), but do not affect the stability of the book block.
An absolutely collectible gem for bibliophiles that unites the traces of a famous art professor, the international exchange of major libraries, and a warm Frankfurt life story.