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ALDE

142 - BUONAMICI (Castruccio). Commentariorum de bello italico.
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Estimate €3,000 - €4,000
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Description
BUONAMICI (Castruccio). Commentariorum de bello italico. First edition. Leiden [Genoa], n.p., 1750–1751. – [Preceded by]: De rebus ad Velitras gestis anno MDCCXLIV commentarius. Second edition. Leiden [Lucca], n.p., 1749. 4 parts in 2 small quarto volumes, red morocco, triple gilt fillet with fleurons at the corners, coat of arms in the centre, decorated spine, interior lace, blue silk endpapers and linings, gilt edges (contemporary binding). RARE FIRST EDITION. Castruccio Buonamici (1710–1761), a native of Lucca, is regarded as one of the most elegant Latin writers of the 18th century. He initially entered the clergy, but subsequently chose a military career and entered the service of Charles of Bourbon, King of Naples, who became King of Spain in 1759. A few years after his Latin account of the Battle of Velletri, between Neapolitan and Austrian troops, in which he had distinguished himself, Buonamici composed this ‘commentary on the War of Italy’ and had it published in Genoa under the false place of publication of Leiden. The work was subsequently reprinted in Naples, translated into English and French, and enjoyed great success, being “as remarkable for the beauty and elegance of its style as for the force and depth of its ideas, and finally for the accuracy of the information it contains”, wrote Michaud in his *Universal Biography*. Buonamici had dedicated the various parts of the work to the King of Naples, the Duke of Parma, and the Republic of Genoa. The first of these sovereigns had already rewarded him generously for his work on the War of Velletri; the Duke of Parma conferred upon him the hereditary title of Count; the Republic of Genoa also bestowed some gifts upon him; the Order of Malta awarded him a Cross of Honour, together with a suitable pension. The second edition of the chronicle of the War of Velletri by the same author, faithful to the original published three years earlier, has been bound at the beginning of the first volume. This work earned Buonamici the appointment as extraordinary commissioner of artillery and treasurer of the city of Barletta by the King of Naples, who also granted him a substantial pension. A RARE COPY ON HEAVY HOLLAND PAPER, BOUND IN RED MOROCCO LEATHER BEARING THE COAT OF ARMS OF CHARLES DE ROHAN-SOUBISE (1788, no. 6705) Charles de Rohan, Prince of Soubise (1715–1787), Marshal of France, Governor of Flanders and Hainaut, Peer of France and Minister of State, was a close friend of Louis XV and a great bibliophile. From his great-uncle, the Cardinal de Rohan, he had inherited the library of Jacques-Auguste de Thou, acquired in 1670 by Charron de Ménars. A handwritten ‘Nomenclature’ of 20 pp. has been added to the copy, preceded by a ‘Warning’, providing the French translation of the proper names Latinised by the author; the whole is carefully calligraphied in French. A small tear at the margin of the penultimate leaf. OHR, 2034/4.
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About the sale Fine antique books – A library in the Languedoc
Auction location
Auction time 10/20/2026 at 2:00 PM
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