Tutte le Opere di Nicolo Machiavelli cittadino et secretario fiorentino. Divise in V. Parti et di nuovo con somma accuratezza ristampate al santissimo et beatissimo Padre Signore Nostro Clemente VII. THE SINCLAIR 'TESTINA' MACHIAVELLI IN CONTEMPORARY VELLUM

5 parts in 1 vol., 8vo., text in Italian, with fine engraved woodcut portrait of the author on title; contemporary full vellum, backstrip lettered and dated in MS with Sinclair family stamp in gilt, yapped fore-edges, blue sprinkled edges, some light and largely uniform age-stoning else a remarkably bright, clean, crisp copy. A SINCLAIR FAMILY COPY OF THE 'TESTINA' MACHIAVELLI, WITH FINE NINETEENTH CENTURY ENGRAVED ARMORIAL FAMILY BOOKPLATE ON FRONT PASTE-DOWN, MS SIGNATURE 'SINCLAIR' ON TITLE, AND FAMILY CREST WITH MOTTO STAMPED IN GILT ON BACKSTRIP. The bookplate carries the Sinclair press-mark in MS and the front paste-down several (cancelled) earlier press-marks. With a nineteenth century bookseller's printed cataloguing mounted facing front free endpaper. The collection comprises: Part I: Historie Fiorentine; Part II: Il Principe. La vita di Castruccio Castracani. Il modo che tenne il Duca Valentino per ammazzare Vitellozzo Vitelli. I ritratti delle cose di Francia e di Alamagna; Part III: Discorsi sopra la prima Deca di Tito Livio; Part IV: Dell'arte della Guerra; Part V: L'Asino d'oro. With the Index and Privilege of Clemente VII. The dating is false; several editions of Machiavelli carry nominally earlier dates following their proscription by the Pope in the 1550s. General James St. Clair-Erskine, 2nd Earl of Rosslyn (1762-1837) was educated at Edinburgh High School and Eton, and commissioned in 21st Light Dragoons (one of the several early manifestations of the regiment; disbanded 1783) after which he pursued a distinguished military and political career. He succeeded his uncle to the Earldom in 1805, and was in the following year a member of the Mission to Lisbon which resulted in Wellington's Peninsular Campaign. He was appointed General in 1814, Lord Privy Seal (1829-30) and Lord President of the Council under Peel (1934-5). The Geneva 'testina' editions take their name from the 'little head' of the author carried on titles. Brunet, III, 1274; Gamba 623 (recording several variant printings).