Il Solimano Tragedia.

4to. Illustrated, engraved title by Jacques Callot, (10), 162, (2) pp. With 5 folding, etched plates by Callot and woodcut printer’s device. Contemporary limp vellum. Wants ties. First edition. The magnificent engravings count among the most beautiful of Callot’s theatre and ballet illustrations. "The play [about the murder of young Mustapha by his father, the Turkish Sultan Soliman II (1596–1666)], which is dedicated to Cosimo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany, was a great success as a book; by 1636 it had gone through six editions […] The artistic significance of this work lies especially in its swift dramatic action, the well-differentiated characterisations, the skilful metre, and last but not least in its lyrical passages […]" (cf. KNLL II, 892). "Tragedia in cinque atti, una delle più importanti ed interessanti del secolo XVII, assai ricercata per la bella veste tipografica" (Libr. Vinciana). - Some foxing and browning in the blank margins; spine imperceptibly restored. - Cicognara 1086. Gamba 1536. Kat. d. Ornamentstichslg. Berlin 4112. Libreria Vinciana 3870. Slg. Schäfer, Sotheby's Cat. 8/XII/1994, lot 38 (USD 6000). Lieure 363-368. Brunet I, 1089. Graesse I, 483. Ebert 2725.