Dialogo nel quale si ragiona del modo di accrescere, et conservare la memoria

1562 · Venice
By Dolce, Lodovico (1508-1568); Johann Host von Romberch
$3000

Venice: Giovanni Battista e Marchio Sessa, 1562. First edition. Very Good. Octavo (14 cm); [4], 119, [1] leaves, signed A-P\8. Printer’s Pegasus device framed by breasty lions, grotesques, fruits, etc. on title page. Woodcut initials, and 23 woodcuts throughout text of mnemonic diagrams and charts, musical notation, and illustrations, which include a head labelled to show the areas responsible for different mental and sensory faculties (one of the earliest examples of phrenological illustration); and the buildings of a town labelled to indicate the businesses located within, such as “barbitonsor” (barbershop), “bovicida” (slaughterhouse), “abatia” (abbey), and “bibliopola” (bookstore displaying books in shop window). Bound in early full stiff vellum, label with title on spine.