Joost van den Vondel - Palamedes, of Vermoorde Onnozelheit. Treurspel - 1707

Joost van den Vondel – Palamedes, or Murdered Innocence. Tragedy
Amersfoort, Pieter Brakman, 1707.
An attractive early 18th-century edition of one of Vondel's most famous and politically charged plays, bound together with his Hekeldigten and Vertroosting.
The volume is textually complete and contains:
Palamedes, of Vermoorde Onnozelheit – 82 pp.
Hekeldigten, met aantekeningen, uit ’s digters mondt opgeschreven – 154 pp.
Vertroosting voor de onnosele en bedroefde ingezetenen van Hollandt – 14 pp.
Bladwijzer – 4 pp.
The volume is particularly attractive for its extensive series of engraved illustrations and portraits. A total of 11 engraved plates/illustrations are present, in addition to the engraved title/frontispiece, including portraits and several large historical and allegorical engravings.
Of particular interest is the impressive large folding engraving depicting the execution of Johan van Oldenbarnevelt at the Binnenhof in The Hague on 13 May 1619.
Remarkably, this engraving still retains both of its original movable engraved flaps/overlays. When carefully lifted, these reveal additional hidden engraved scenes. Both movable elements are present and functional — a particularly attractive and fragile feature which is often damaged or lost.
Among the other illustrations are engraved portraits with captions including Hugo de Groot, Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, Prince Willem II, Cornelis de Witt and Johan de Witt, together with several historical and allegorical plates.
Palamedes was Vondel's famous dramatic treatment of the fate of Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, presented through the classical story of Palamedes. This richly illustrated 1707 edition is especially interesting for the close relationship between the text and the historical and political engravings bound with it.
Bound in an old red leather binding with raised bands to the spine. The binding shows age and wear, as visible in the photographs. Interior with the usual signs of age and use; occasional spotting, browning and small imperfections may occur. The large folding plates show folds consistent with their construction and age.
The book has been carefully checked page by page and is textually complete.
A particularly attractive copy because of the extensive engraved illustration, and especially the survival of both movable parts of the large Oldenbarnevelt execution plate.
1707 – complete text – 11 engraved plates/illustrations + engraved title – large folding plates – Oldenbarnevelt execution engraving with both original movable flaps.