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Artist/Author: Cesare Vecellio (c.1521–1601); woodblock cut by Cristoforo Chrieger
Publication: Habiti Antichi et Moderni di tutto il Mondo, 2nd edition, Venice: Sessa, c.1598
Medium: Woodcut printed on laid paper; recto/verso leaf
Image size: Approx. 173 × 115 mm (6¾ × 4½ in.) within ornamental border
Sheet size: Approx. 8 × 5¼ in. (20 × 13 cm)
Subject: \"Nobili Cauallieri\" — a noble Venetian knight in full-length robes and winged cap, holding a book; set within an elaborate woodcut scrollwork border with grotesque masks
Recto: Italian and Latin text (pp. 60–61), \"Libro Primo de gli habiti d\'Italia\" — describing the ancient costume of the Lords of Carrara and noble Italians; historiated initial \"P\"
Condition: Good — clean impression; paper with light age toning; no tears or losses
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A remarkable leaf from one of the most important costume books of the Renaissance — Cesare Vecellio\'s Habiti Antichi et Moderni di tutto il Mondo (Ancient and Modern Dress of the Whole World), second edition, published in Venice by Sessa around 1598. Vecellio, a cousin of Titian, produced the most comprehensive and visually distinguished costume survey of the 16th century, documenting dress from Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas with woodcuts of exceptional quality.
This leaf presents the \"Nobili Cauallieri\" — the ancient costume of noble Venetian knights — a dignified full-length figure in sweeping robes and the characteristic winged cap, holding an open book, framed by a magnificently designed border of interlaced strapwork, scrolling acanthus, and grotesque mask ornaments. The woodblock was cut by Cristoforo Chrieger, described by the scholar Bliss as representing \"the peak of 16th-century Baroque wood-engraving,\" with designs so fine they were long attributed to Titian himself.
The recto carries the corresponding Italian and Latin text describing the dress of the Lords of Carrara and the noble families of Padua, Venice, and Lombardy — a bilingual layout characteristic of the second edition, which expanded the first (1590) edition for an international audience. Printed on period laid paper with a historiated initial. A genuine 16th-century document of European cultural history in very presentable condition.
Search Tags: Vecellio, Habiti Antichi, woodcut, 1598, Renaissance, costume history, Venice, Sessa, Sabin, Cristoforo Chrieger, 16th century, Italian, nobleman, knight, antique print, book leaf, laid paper
Original antique print, not a reproduction.
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