HISTORIA FIORENTINA, by DOMENICO BUONINSEGNI.

FLORENCE: Giorgio Marescotti, 1581 - with the date 1579 printed on the colophon page, as it is many 1581 copies. This is a well known printer's mistake (or misdirection) as the book was first printed in 1580, not 1579. Because the 1579 date is often printed on the colophon of the 1581 printing, the book is occasionally mistakenly offered as a 1579 printing.

1867 PROVENANCE of ALFONSO CERQUETTI, with his SIGNATURE, DATE and PLACE in the bottom corner of the rear endpaper "Alfonso Cerquetti / 21 November 1867 / Forli". Alfonso Cerquitti, b.1830 d.1905, was an important Italian philologist, lexicographer, author and teacher (including at Forli, Italy, in 1867). He was known to be brilliant, but also infuriatingly pedantic (especially when it came to Italian linguistics), and sometimes ran afoul of religious authorities. Cerquetti is now, sadly, mostly forgotten. There is a wonderful article about Cerquetti online, search with the key words - Montecosaresi Alfonso Cerquetti - and you are bound to find it.

1906 PROVENANCE of PROFESSOR GEORGE BENSON WESTON, with his SIGNATURE, PLACE and DATE on the front free endpaper: "George B. Weston / Rome July 1906", and his BOOKPLATE on the front pastedown. George B. Weston, b.1874 d.1959, was a Professor Emeritus of Romance Languages at Harvard University, and a noted scholar of early Italian literature. He donated his library to Harvard in the 1950s. The Morgan Library holds a copy of his bookplate.

Professionally rebacked, resewn, and conserved, likely in the 19th or early 20th century. Hardcovers, vellum spine and marbled paper covered boards, 4to. 6x9 inches (15.5x23 cm). Manuscript title written on the vellum spine and bottom page edges. Pagination: [40], 829, [1], plus a front and rear endpaper. Illustrated with a woodcut printer's device on the colophon page and several engraved vignettes and decorative initials within the text.

LACKING THE TITLE PAGE (facsimile title page laid-in), otherwise complete. Collated page by page with a 1581 digitized copy in the Bavarian Library and a 1581 copy in the Austrian National Library. The pages in THIS copy are in much better condition (whiter and cleaner) than in either of those copies.

Condition: Lacking title page as noted above, otherwise this copy is one of the best preserved copies I have seen. The conserved covers and resewn binding make the book remarkably solid and well bound. Internally, the front endpapers have some recent relevant notes in pencil and ink, there is slight toning to the page edges, a bit of scattered foxing, mostly to the margins, and some light general signs of age and use. There are also a number of early, iron gall ink, additive marginalia notes and a bit of associated underlining, which I think adds to this copy (e.g. In the Tavola there are some names added in their proper alphabetical order, beside which are written the page numbers where the added names can be found). Overall the pages are tight, bright, and still look and feel fresh.

Solid, attractive copy, with the provenance of two notable linguistic scholars, and a bit of interesting early marginalia (perhaps by Alfonso Cerquetti?). Yes, this copy is lacking the title page (facsimile laid-in), but it is still one of the most well preserved copies I have seen. Thank you Alfonso Cerquetti, George Benson Weston, and all other previous owners who, since 1581, took excellent care of this book.