[Herberstein, Sigmund von] Comentari della Moscovia et parimente della...

[Herberstein, Sigmund von] Comentari della Moscovia et parimente della Russia, et delle altre cose belle et notabili, first Italian edition, blank f. present, Herberstein’s woodcut coat of arms on title page, small historiated initials, lacking the folding map by Giacomo Gastaldi and the 6 full-page illustrations representing the Russians, occasional oil staining, tear to *2, marginal worm trail to O4-Q3, limp vellum soiled, title inked to spine, shelf mark inscribed on the upper board, [BM STC It., 325; Graesse, III, p. 245; Adams & Brunet list other editions], 4to, Nicolò Bascarini per G.B. Pedrezzano, 1550. *** Baron Sigismund von Herberstein’s ‘Rerum Moscovitorum Commentarii’ (1549) was the first Western account of Russia, which formed European impressions of the Muscovite Empire for several centuries. Herbesteins’s work is remarkable as being a rare first-hand account of early Muscovy and as containing considerable information not available elsewhere. Herberstein (1486-1566) reviewed the existing literature on Russia, including works by Paolo Giovio, Olaus Magnus and Sebastian Münster. He described Russian territory from the Carpathian Mountains and the Dniester River, down to the Black Sea, and drew an overview of trade, religion, customs, history and a theory of Russian politics.
Sold for £150
Includes Buyer's Premium