Lot 73: MARCOLINI DA FORLI, Francesco (c.1500-1559). Le Sorti intitolate giard

MARCOLINI DA FORLI, Francesco (c.1500-1559). Le Sorti
intitolate giardino di pensieri. Venice: Francesco Marcolini, 1540. 2° (316 x 214mm). Large woodcut on title depicting a group of
men and women in the ‘Garden of Thoughts’ by Giuseppe Porta
after Salviati, portrait of Marcolini on title verso within architectural
border, 100 woodcuts comprising 50 representing abstract qualities,
virtues and vices, 50 of philosophers, and numerous smaller woodcuts
of playing cards. (Occasional light soiling.) Contemporary calf,
covers with wide border composed of gilt and blind fllets enclosing
decorative corner pieces and side panels inflled with various gilt
foliate, star and dotted tools, enclosing central scalloped panel with
trefoils and very small feur de lis decorations, surrounding a central
device of intertwined strap work, edges gilt, gauffered and decorated,
modern box (rebacked preserving old spine).
first edition of tHe Most CeLeBrated BooK of GaMes of fortUne
of tHe siXteentH CentUrY. The source for the title scene, in which
the fgures in the foreground have a pack of cards and a copy of
Marcolini’s book, has been found in a design by Francesco Salviati
engraved by Marco Dente. Giuseppe Porta was a pupil of Salviati’s
and took his professional name from his master. Servolini suggests
that the portrait of Marcolini is by Titian, noting the resemblance
between it and the Titian portrait of Ariosto copied in Lena (Venice:
Francesco Bindoni and Maffeo Pasini, 1535). The answers of the
philosphers in the second part were put into terzine by Lodovico
Dolce. Brunet III, 1407-1408; Casali Annals 54; Mortimer Italian 279; Sander II, 4321.