17th Century Illustrated Vellum Book, Ulisse Aldrovandi's Serpentum Et Draconum Historiæ Libri Duo

Description

Title: Serpentum et draconum historiæ libri duo Bartholomæus Ambrosinus in patrio Bonon Gymnasio simplicium med.
Author: Aldrovandi, Ulisse.
Publication: Bononiae, … more Title: Serpentum et draconum historiæ libri duo Bartholomæus Ambrosinus in patrio Bonon Gymnasio simplicium med.
Author: Aldrovandi, Ulisse.
Publication: Bononiae, apud Clementem Ferronium.
Place: Bologna, Italy.
Editon, date: First edition, 1640.

Description: First Edition. Latin text. Folio (14.25 H x 9.75 D x 2 W inches/362 H x 248 D x 51 W millimeters). pp. (8), 427, (1), Index (28), woodcut title head and foot vignettes, illustrated chapter initials, numerous woodcut illustrations throughout (Illustrated title page, 48 full page, 2 half page, 6 quarter page). Original vellum, spine with 5 banded spine and brown ink stamped/lettered title at head. This is a beautifully and profusely illustrated early work on snakes and dragons. This work is an exceptional volume of Aldrovandi's 'Opera' that comprises a total of 13 books.

About the author: Ulisse Aldrovandi (1522-1605) was an Italian naturalist, the moving force behind Bologna's botanical garden, one of the first in Europe. Carl Linnaeus and the Comte de Buffon reckoned him the father of natural history studies. His vast collections in botany and zoology he willed to the Senate of Bologna; until 1742 the collections were conserved in the Palazzo Pubblico, then in the Palazzo Poggi, but were distributed among various libraries and institutions in the course of the nineteenth century. In 1907 a representative part were reunited at Palazzo Poggi, Bologna, where the 400th anniversary of his death was memorialized in a celebrate exhibition in 2005. Of the several hundred books and essays he wrote, only four were published during his lifetime.

See my listings for other Ulisse Aldrovandi works; Ornithologiæ. Hoc est, De Avibus Historiæ Libri XII (Second edition, 1610) & De Quadrupedibus Solidipedibus (First edition, 1616).

Note: Like item, incomplete copy, recently sold at Cheffins, Cambridge, UK; Oct 13, 2024, hammer price £4,400 ($5752US). less