Tasso - La Gerusalemme Liberata - 1673

THE EPIC OF JERUSALEM IN IMAGES: A RICHLY ILLUSTRATED VENETIAN EDITION
Elegant Venetian illustrated edition of La Gerusalemme Liberata, one of the great masterpieces of Italian epic poetry. Published in Venice in 1673, the work is enriched by an architectural engraved frontispiece, by the portrait of Torquato Tasso, and by twenty full-page copper engravings, one for each canto. The images transform the poem into a spectacular visual narrative of the battles, the loves, and the chivalric episodes of the First Crusade. The copy also features rich borders, initial capitals, and endpieces in woodcut. A beautiful 17th-century illustrated edition, complete with its important iconographic apparatus.

ABSTRACT
La Gerusalemme Liberata tells the Christian conquest of Jerusalem during the First Crusade in epic form, weaving historical events, fantastical elements, and famous love stories. At the center of the work is Godfrey of Bouillon, commander of the Christian army, accompanied by figures already firmly rooted in European literary imagination such as Rinaldo, Tancredi, Clorinda, Erminia, and Armida. Tasso combines the model of classical epic with the Christian and courtly sensibility of the Cinquecento, alternating battles, magic, duels, and romantic passions. In the 1673 edition, each canto is accompanied by a large engraving that visually synthesizes the main episodes, making the volume particularly significant also from an iconographic standpoint.

WHY TO BUY
Edition of particular interest to collectors of Italian literature, 17th-century illustrated books, and Tasso iconography. The major strength lies in the presence of the 20 full-page copper engravings, one for each canto, in addition to the architectural engraved frontispiece and the author’s portrait. The figurative apparatus is ample, homogeneous, and tightly integrated with the text. The Venetian printing, the rich typographic decoration, the completeness of the illustrations, and the 19th-century binding make this copy aesthetically very pleasing and of strong collecting interest.

MARKET VALUE
17th-century illustrated editions of La Gerusalemme Liberata show highly variable values depending mainly on the completeness of the plates, the quality of impressions, the condition of the frontispiece, and general conditions. A complete copy with all 20 plates, frontispiece engraved, and portrait holds higher interest than copies lacking parts of the iconographic apparatus. For the described copy, considering the complete presence of the illustrations but also slight traces of oxidation and dirt, provenance notes, and the 19th-century binding with normal signs of wear, an antiquarian price range around €600–800 can be placed, with possible higher results in specialized contexts dedicated to Tasso or 17th-century Italian illustrated books.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
19th-century half-leather binding with paper-covered boards marbled, spine with gilded ornaments and titles; abrasions, wear to corners and ends of spine, consistent with age. Decorative apparatus with headbands, large initials, and woodcut tailpieces. Present are 20 full-page copper engravings, one for each canto, distinguished by the anagram formed by a T set inside an O. Internally, slight oxidation traces, small stains, and occasional signs of use. Manuscript annotations and marks of former owners on preliminary and final leaves. In ancient books with a multiyear history, some imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description. This listing contains AI Visualizations. Refer to the original photographs to verify the object’s actual condition. The images are an integral part of the description. Pp. (2); 16nn; 244; (2).

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
La Gerusalemme Liberata.
Venice, published under the sign of Sapienza, 1673.
Torquato Tasso.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
La Gerusalemme Liberata is one of the foundational texts of Italian and European literature. Composed in the second half of the 16th century, it addresses the theme of the First Crusade through an epic structure modeled on classical tradition, but enriched with chivalric, religious, and sentimental elements. The work is distinguished by a constant balance between history and invention, heroism and passion, religious discipline and inner conflict. The poem’s success was immediate and extraordinary, and already between the 16th and 17th centuries the text became one of the most reprinted and illustrated of Italian literature. The stories of Tancredi and Clorinda, Rinaldo and Armida, Erminia and the other protagonists inspired for centuries painters, engravers, musicians, and librettists.

BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Torquato Tasso was born in Sorrento in 1544 and died in Rome in 1595. Son of the poet Bernardo Tasso, he received a high-level humanistic and literary education and was active at important Italian courts, especially the esteemed Ferrara court. His life was marked by great literary success but also by deep personal crises and long periods of instability. La Gerusalemme Liberata, his masterpiece, established him as one of Europe’s greatest poets of the late Renaissance. In addition to the epic poem, Tasso composed lyrics, dialogues, dramas, and treatises. His figure became almost legendary in the following centuries and was often interpreted as a symbol of the gifted and tormented poet.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
La Gerusalemme Liberata circulated initially in manuscript form and in partial and unauthorized prints, before the complete editions of the early 1580s. The work’s editorial fortune was enormous and continued uninterrupted in the 17th century, when illustrated editions for an educated and aristocratic audience multiplied. The Venetian edition of 1673 belongs to this tradition and stands out for the presence of a full-page copper plate for each of the twenty cantos. The figurative frontispiece, Tasso’s portrait, and the richness of the decorations attest to the aim of presenting the poem not only as a literary text but as a truly fine editorial object.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
Venetian edition of 1673 of La Gerusalemme Liberata, published under the Sapienza imprint and characterized by an extensive illustrative apparatus consisting of the architectural engraved frontispiece, the portrait of Torquato Tasso, and twenty full-page copper engravings, one per canto. The edition belongs to the long 17th-century tradition of illustrated versions of the poem and is of particular interest for its completeness and continuity of the iconographic program.