Dante Alighieri

8vo (142 x 87mm.), woodcut printer's device on final verso, text in italic type, with blank leaf l2, crushed green morocco by Mercier (successor of Cuzin), gilt edges with marbling beneath gilding on foredge, matching cover and slipcase, inscription washed from title-page, small repaired wormhole in gutter of last few quires, spine of cover and slipcase slightly faded, slipcase slightly scraped

Maurice Baring (1874-1945, poet and author), bookplate

Aldo Manuzio tipografo 63; Censimento 16 CNCE 1144; Renouard 34/5; Texas 52; UCLA 59.5

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Second issue, with the dolphin and anchor on final leaf. This is the first and only time that Dante's Divina commedia is given the title Le terze rime, which was the decision of the editor, Pietro Bembo, whose father Bernardo was the owner of the Dante manuscript given by Boccaccio to Petrarch (now Vat. Lat. 3199).

This edition is important for the textual innovations found both here and in the Aldine Petrarch of 1501, also edited by Bembo. Bembo uses an apostrophe to indicate an elision, and the accented è to indicate the different meaning from e, both of which help clarify the meaning (B. Richardson, Printing, Readers and Writers in Renaissance Italy, Cambridge, 1999, p.153).