DANTI, TRATTATO DELL'USO ET DELLA FABBRICA DELL'ASTROLABIO, FLORENCE, 1569

FIRST EDITION, 4to (220 x 150mm.), woodcut device on title with the Medici arms on a globe depicting Asia and Africa, woodcut initials and diagrams, old vellum, new endpapers, modern folding cloth box

J: Delphinus, early inscription on title, deleted; Antonio Santini (1577-1662, the merchant and mathematician, a friend of Galileo's who is mentioned in the Difesa, and who later became a monk of the Somaschan order and was buried at Montecitorio), title-page inscribed: Ex libris Antii Santinii; Chiesa di San Biagio a Montecitorio, Rome, title-page inscribed: Sancti Blasii Montis Citorii de Urbe Cong[regation]is Som[asch]ae; bought from Luigi Gonnelli & figli, Florence, 1993, Catalogue 33, item 336

Tomash & Williams D5; Edit16 15995; Riccardi i, 389; USTC 825459

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."

One of the earliest astronomical treatises in Italian, subsequently expanded and reissued by the Giunta press in 1578. Danti worked in Florence under the patronage of Cosimo de' Medici, for whom he painted frescos of maps of the different regions of the world, following Ptolemy, in the Palazzo Vecchio. He later taught mathematics in Bologna and became papal cosmographer.