BANDELLO, Matteo - BOISTEAU, Pierre - BELLEFOREST, François - Lot 116

BANDELLO, Matteo - BOISTEAU, Pierre - BELLEFOREST, François de. XVIII histoires tragiques, extraictes des œuvres Italiennes de Baudel, mises en langue Françoise. Les six premières, par Pierre Boisteau, surnommé Launay natif de Bretaigne. - The next twelve, by Franc. de Belle-Forest, Comingeois. Turin, Cesare Farina, 1570. 5 vols. in-16. Contemporary full vellum, title and tomes handwritten on spine. 436ff, [3]ff tables; This is the first French translation of Romeo and Juliet: Boaistuau and Belleforest preserved only a small part of Bandello's 214 short stories, including the story of Romeo and Juliet, which makes its first appearance in French under the title Histoire troisième de deux amans, dont l'un mourut de venin, l'autre de tristesse, p38 of Volume I. Volume II contains a further 18 stories, translated and enriched in addition to the author's own invention. The third volume printed in Lyon, by Pierre Rollet, 1574. 4th volume: Turin, Jerome Farine, 1571. 5th volume: Lyon, Besnoit Rigaud, 1576. Set of 88 tragic stories, extracted from Baudel's Italian works: 80 stories in four volumes, then 8 stories in the last volume. Good copies in contemporary vellum. Brunet I, 638.