Iconologia

RIPA, Cesare Iconologia/ Nella quale si descrivono diverse Imagini di Virtu, Vitij, Affecti, Passioni humane, Arti, Discipline, Humori, Elementi, Corpi Celesti, Provincie d'Italia, Fiumi, tutte le parti del Mondo, ed'altre infinite material. Published: Siena, Appresso gli heredi di Matteo Florimi, 1613. Piero Niccolini signature in ink. Single volume with contemporary vellum binding, title and author on spine with 4 raised bands. 409 pages, 23x16cm, illustrated with numerous fine woodcut illustrations throughout. One of 9 Italian editions, text in Italian. Imprimatur granted by Alessandro Strozzi, canon of the Cathedral of Florence, and Pietro Niccolini, General Vicar of Florence in 1607 (final leaf). Niccolini, as General Vicar of Florence, also granted Galileo an imprimatur for his work Dialogue in 1630, as Galileo hoped to avoid Papal scrutiny by printing his work in Florence rather than Rome. Signatures in ink on imprimatur page including Peiro Niccolini. Appears to be the only Italian edition with imprimatur included. Famous book of emblems based on Egyptian, Greek, and Roman representations arranged in alphabetical order. Each entry consisted of a description of an allegorical figure depicted to embody the concept, which Ripa further explicated using references to classical literature. This collection came to be used by Renaissance artists, poets, and orators, to illustrate abstract concepts allegorically. It was particularly influential in the 17th and 18th centuries, quoted extensively. For example, Dutch painter Vermeer used the emblem for the muse Clio for his The Art of Painting. Ripa dedicated the work to Florentine Cardinal Antonio Maria Salviati, for whom he worked as a butler.