- Dono d'Amore -
Book of Hours from 1500
Ms 483, Biblioteca Riccardiana, Florence.
Deluxe facsimile edition with introductory study by Giovanna Lazzi.
Vallechi: Florence, 2007. 464 pp, 5 x 6.6 cm.
ISBN 88-7096-158 €1,700 / c.$2,530
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| | This beautiful MS was probably commissioned by the Capponi family for the wedding, in 1500, of Niccola di Andrea di Niccola Capponi and Antonia di Battista di Luigi Ridolfi. The Capponi and Ridolfi were aristocrats by birth and politicians by vocation, two historical families of Florence whose destinies were innumerable times interlaced with the history of the city, from medieval times until the end of the Ottocento. They belonged to the group of moderate liberals summoned by Leopold II di Lorena to administer the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. It seems that the book, according to the style of the decorations, was created during the last decade of the 15th century, a belief that refutes a previous one that gave a date around 1462 and which was linked to the wedding of Caterina di Niccola Capponi e Tommaso di Luigi Ridolfi. The mature and advanced style of the miniatures does not seem to concord with the earlier date. It is one of the smallest prayer books that has come down to the present day, only a few centimeters each side and yet of exquisite workmanship. An extreme synthesis of an art by then at its dusk, as was the miniature in the late 15th century, this manuscript was commissioned to Monte di Giovanni, one of the greatest Florentine masters of the time. In special parchment paper, on which hot tooled gold has been applied, using the reverse procedure compared to typographical printing to give it all of the worn and vibrant naturalness of the backgrounds and the very subtle design of the highlights. Entirely bound and sewn by hand and lined in velvet like the original while the cut of the pages has gilt embossing, following the original. It comes in an elegant case with tooled silver and a commentary by Giovanna Lazzi, director of the Biblioteca Riccardiana of Florence. Limited edition of 483 copies. |
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