Filippo dell’Aquila - [Post-Incunable] Quinze Effusions Du Sang - 1520

Mysticism of the blood and finely colored miniatures - a unique copy
Magnificent and unique post-incunable specimen of The Fifteen Effusions of the Blood of Our Savior and Redeemer Jesus Christ, printed in Paris around 1520, with 15 woodcut engravings illustrating the Passion, finely hand-colored. Text in Gothic characters, with binding signed by Brugalla and featuring the Lorraine cross. A refined illuminated and watercolor devotional book, of the highest rarity and charm.
Market value
Illustrated books of this type, especially illuminated and in signed bindings, are extremely rare. A copy in similar condition can fetch values between €7,000 and €12,000, with strong interest from collectors of illuminated, Gothic, or signed bound books. The attribution to Jean Le Blanc and the connection with the Italian Franciscan tradition add significance.

Physical description and condition
Next binding in half leather with title engraved in gold on a red label at the spine. Gathering: A8, B8. Text in Gothic typography. Frontispiece with large woodcut of the Crucifixion; 15 illustrations in the text, hand-colored in muted tones, depicting scenes of the Passion. An incised initial, also colored. Almost all the woodcuts bear the initials "ILB" and the Lorraine cross. Light marginal spots on the first two pages. Modern half leather binding signed by Brugalla, with label, cords, and decorations in gold; Lorraine cross embossed between the cords; on the spine the inscription: “PARIS / VERS 1520”. Unidentified ex-libris. Pages (8); 32 numbered pages (8).

Full title and author
The Fifteen Effusions of the Blood of Our Savior and Redeemer Jesus Christ. At the end of which are added the Twelve White Fridays.
Paris
Filippo dell'Aquila

Context and Significance
This Gothic devotional work illustrates the fifteen effusions of Christ's blood, mystical symbols of the Passion, according to a spiritual tradition linked to Devotio Moderna and Franciscan preaching. The text, perhaps translated from a Latin original attributed to Philip of Aquila, aims to guide the reader through a visual and verbal meditative journey on the sufferings of the Redeemer. The woodcuts, signed ILB, may refer to the workshop of Jean Le Blanc, active in Paris in the early sixteenth century, although the identity of the engraver remains uncertain. The presence of the Lorraine cross indicates a specific symbolic context, perhaps related to penitential confraternities or urban Franciscan circles.

Author's Biography
Filippo dell'Aquila (15th century?), an Italian Franciscan friar, is mentioned as a possible author of the Latin original from which this French version derives. His work, if confirmed, belongs to the minorite meditative tradition centered on the Passion, widespread in Italy and France between the late Middle Ages and the early Modern Age.

Printing history and circulation
Printed in Paris around 1520, this edition does not contain typographical data but bears the initials ILB, which could refer to Jean Le Blanc or a member of his workshop. The woodcuts were likely engraved for this devotional series, produced for a bourgeois and monastic audience. The extreme rarity of illuminated copies and the quality of the print make it a remarkable case in late Gothic French religious typography.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
ISTC not identified; perhaps a copy corresponding to the one described in a private bibliographic reference attached to the specimen. See Illustrated Catalogue of Gothic Liturgical Books of Paris, Paris 1912, p. 134 (possible comparison); see also Delisle, Mélanges de paléographie et de bibliographie, for references to Jean Le Blanc. No copy listed in ICCU.