Beschreibung:

MERIAN, Caspar (1627-1686), illustrator -- "WAHRMUND JOCOSERIUS." Wol-geschliffener Narren-Spiegel . Freystadt [but Berlin?]: "Gedruckt in diesem Jahr," [ca 1710].
MERIAN, Caspar (1627-1686), illustrator -- "WAHRMUND JOCOSERIUS." Wol-geschliffener Narren-Spiegel . Freystadt [but Berlin?]: "Gedruckt in diesem Jahr," [ca 1710]. 2 o (308 x 204 mm). 115 half-page engraved plates by Caspar Merian after Wilhelm Stettler of various fools, printed on rectos only. (Some occasional minor spotting.) Contemporary vellum; cloth folding case. Provenance : acquired from Marlborough Rare Books, 1990. FIRST EDITION of this series of engravings by Caspar Merian (1627-1686) after drawings by Wilhem Stettler (1643-1708), intended for a projected 17th-century edition of Sebastian Brandt's Ship of Fools that was never published. The preface states that the present work was printed because the "famous plates by Merian" unexpectedly came into the publisher's hands. New verses, adapted from earlier editions, were provided by "Jocoserius" as captions for each of the plates, but where when and by whom the project was undertaken is unknown. BMC suggests a Berlin, 1710 publication date; NUC suggests Augsburg, 170-; and Weller suggests that Monath may have published the book in Nuremberg in 1730. In this version of the work, the same variety of fools appear, with the bibliophile maintaining his position as the most egregious fool of all. The engravings are found in rich, dark impressions, highlighting their brooding and forceful nature. Brunet V:1399.