Tasso / Piazzetta - Gerusalemme Liberata - 1745

ART & PASSION: TASSO'S JERUSALEM IS REBORN IN THE SPLENDID ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE PIAZZETTA
An extraordinary copy of the first edition of Tasso's Gerusalemme Liberata, beautifully illustrated by the legendary Giambattista Piazzetta.
Poetry and pictorial art tell a timeless story of love and adventure.
Considered the most beautiful illustrated book ever printed in Venice with unpublished plates and portraits.
A twin copy of this book, coming from the prestigious Pompadur library, was auctioned for a value of £. 35,000.
COLLECTOR'S COPY

CONTENTS
Beautiful copy of the first edition of Gerusalemme Liberata by Tasso with illustrations by Piazzetta, the most important Venetian illustrated book of the 18th century. All the panels and the portrait of the empress are in the first state, with the dedications under each panel and the rococo volutes around the culs-de-lampes (omitted in the second state) .
The far-reaching ambition of the publisher is evidenced by a prospectus published by him, a copy of which, examined by Andrew Robison, is preserved in the Pierpont Morgan Library; there Albrizzi declares: 'Nothing will be missing, neither in the correctness of the text, nor in the quality of the characters, nor of the paper: but above all I have tried to distinguish my edition with the singularity and perfection of more than sixty plates, all of different designs , designed by the famous painter Piazzetta, and engraved in copper by the most talented engravers. This print will please not only poets, but also painters and sculptors; and I expect that so many and such beautiful ornaments will never again be seen in any book" (cit. in Knox) .

Albrizzi's patronage of Piazzetta reached its peak in the most famous of the Venetian books of the eighteenth century: Gerusalemme Liberata. . . For this book Piazzetta created around seventy drawings" (Haskell, Painters and Patrons, pp. 335-336) . At the pinnacle of Venetian book production, Piazzetta's Tasso stands out as one of the grandest examples and a paradigm of Venetian pastoral style. It is appropriate to consider the most beautiful illustrated book, Piazzetta's Gerusalemme Liberata.
Piazzetta proceeds from miracle to miracle, gives a bold proportion and transforms the cartoons into the first true decorative engravings, which occupy an entire page" (Morazzoni) . The cartoons are inspired by genre scenes with shepherds, animals, nudes and richly dressed Venetian ladies The 20 titles contain the topics of each Canto. George Knox, Piazzetta. A tercentenary exhibition of drawings, prints, and books (Washington, 1983) , p. 168; Lanckoronska 240; Morazzoni 256; Andrew Robison, "The Albrizzi-Piazzetta Tasso,” in: Non Solus I (Urban-Champaign, IL) , 1974.
An identical copy, coming from the Pompadur library, sold at auction for £. 35,000.

Copy in red morocco with good margins of the first edition with illustrations by Piazzetta of the most important Venetian illustrated book of the eighteenth century. All the plates and the portrait of the empress are in the first state, with personalized dedications on the lower margin and the coats of arms that change in each plate; there are also the rococo scrolls around the culs-de-lampes which were omitted in the second state.
Morazzoni, 256: "it is not wrongly considered the most beautiful Venetian book"; Brunet V, 666; Knox: "The publication of Torquato Tasso's epic poem, La Gerusalemme Liberata, by Giovanni Battista Albrizzi is the supreme achievement of Venetian eighteenth-century book production".

CONDITION REPORT COMPLETE - COLLECTOR'S COPY
Folio (445 x 302mm) . Eyelet, allegorical frontispiece, frontispiece printed in red and black with an intaglio vignette depicting the allegory of the city of Venice, portrait of Maria Teresa as a young woman, 20 intaglio plates within rich decorative frames, as many small heads within scrolls that contain the subject of the song , intaglio figurative initials at the beginning of each canto and endings, 6 of which are full page; Paper 14 is omitted in the numbering as in all copies, just as the cartulation at the end of cantos VIII, With 8. 5 cm of external white margin, 10 cm of lower white margin and 6 cm of white leading margin) . pp. [14] 103 [i. e. 102, 1] 104-126 [1] 127-137 [1] 138-172 [1] 173-253 [2] . Red morocco, titles and elegant decorations in gold on the spine, plates and on the dentelles, gilt cuts on previous red spray decoration, marbled glances and signs of wear on the front joint and on the plates.

FULL TITLES & AUTHORS
The liberated Jerusalem, with the figures of Giambatista Piazzetta.
Venice, Giambattista Albrizzi, 1745.
Torquato TASSO (1544-1595)
Giovanni Battista PIAZZETTA (1683-1754)