Divine Comedy - Banco Rari 215

Divine Comedy - Banco Rari 215

Italy — Ca. 1410–1415

With a portrait of Dante and personal glosses by Bartolomeo della Fonte: a unique copy of the cornerstone of Italian literature, decorated with full-page miniatures and beautiful initials

  1. Dante Alighieri (ca. 1265–1321) created his magnum opus between 1308 and 1320

  2. A portrait drawing at the beginning of the manuscript shows the influential writer

  3. The humanist, poet and translator Bartolomeo della Fonte (1446–1513) added numerous glosses to the codex

Divine Comedy - Banco Rari 215

  1. Description
  2. Facsimile Editions (1)
Description
Divine Comedy - Banco Rari 215

This extraordinary copy of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (ca. 1265–1321) features not only a full-page drawing showing the influential writer in profile, but also numerous glosses by Bartolomeo della Fonte (1446–1513). The Italian humanist, poet and translator was probably once in possession of the manuscript and immortalized himself here with annotations on the content and text variants as well as short summaries of the individual cantos, which make the codex unique. These traces of use testify to the great appreciation of this cornerstone of Italian literature and language, which Dante created between 1308 and 1320. In 100 cantos, the magnum opus describes the spiritual and philosophical journey of the first-person narrator through hell, purgatory and paradise and offers us an artistic insight into the medieval Christian worldview. The calligraphically consummate manuscript is also artfully decorated. Three full-page washed pen and ink drawings accompany the text, which is visually structured by beautiful white vine initials.

Codicology

Alternative Titles
Dante Alighieri - Göttliche Komödie: Banco Rari 215
Il Dante Fiorentino
Size / Format
468 Pages / 25.1 × 15.4 cm
Origin
Italy
Date
Ca. 1410–1415
Language
Script
Humanistic
Illustrations
1 portrait of Dante, 3 full-page miniatures, 3 large white vine initials, dozens of smaller initials
Content
Dante's Divine Comedy with glosses by Bartolomeo della Fonte
Artist / School
Previous Owners
Bartolomeo della Fonte
Francesco Sassetti
Lorenzo Bardi
Galeazzo Sassetti
Canon Michele Dati

Available facsimile editions:
Il Dante Fiorentino
Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana - Treccani – Rome, 2024
Limited Edition: 1999 copies (+ 8 copies in Roman numerals)
Facsimile Editions

#1 Il Dante Fiorentino

Limited Edition: 1999 copies (+ 8 copies in Roman numerals)
Commentary: 1 volume by Teresa de Robertis, Sonia Chiodo and David Speranzi
Language: Italian
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