Magnificent Books by Sebastiano Serlio and Francesco Colonna Come to Sale With Sotheby’s

An Italian Mannerist architect, Sebastiano Serlio was part of the team instrumental in the building of the Palace of Fontainebleau. Well ahead of his time, Serlio worked on a series of books that contained illustrations along with text. He conceived and gave a numerical order to his books, which varied from the order in which they were published. Remarkable copies of Serlio’s Terzo libro and Regole generali di architecttura, printed on large blue paper, are key highlights of the upcoming sale from Sotheby’s. The copies were most likely carried by Serlio from Venice to France for binding and presenting to a patron. The paper stock is watermarked with an anchor inside a circle, surmounted by a star. It was printed by Francesco Marcolini, who produced special copies of Serlio’s publications on blue paper.

Another noteworthy publication in the catalog is Hypnerotomachia Poliphili by Francesco Colonna, an Italian Dominican priest and monk. It is considered an influential book of the French Renaissance era. The first edition of the first French translation of this famed work is elaborately illustrated with woodcuts and 14 new subjects. Visit Sotheby’s to view the complete catalog and register to bid in the upcoming Bibliotheca Brookeriana: A Renaissance Library. Magnificent Books and Bindings sale.