In Folio: Rare Volumes in the Stanford University Libraries

Francesco Colonna, d. 1527.
Hypnerotomachia Poliphili ….
Venetiis: In Aedibus Aldi Manutii, accuratissime, mense Decembri M.ID. [Dec. 1499].

The Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (“The Strife of Love in a Dream”), with its virtually unpronounceable title and enigmatic text stands as the most celebrated illustrated book of the Renaissance, a masterpiece of book production with a remarkable blend of lovely woodcuts and fine printing. The book features Poliphilo and his quest for his beloved, Polia, a search that serves as a vehicle for a discussion on gardens, architecture, and aesthetics, among other things. The book was produced by Aldus Manutius (ca. 1450-1515), the most celebrated printer of his day. Aldus specialized in Classical texts (especially Greek, until very late in the 1490s), and the Aldine Press would be the first to issue the Greek printed editions of Aristophanes (1498), Euripides (1503), Aeschylus (1518), and Aristotle (1495), among others. As a scholar-printer renowned for his Classical texts, Aldus was criticized by some for printing this, his first vernacular text. The roman typeface used in Hypnerotomachia was cut by Aldus’ talented type designer Francesco Griffo (1450-1518) specifically for this book. The illustrations—woodcuts—number 170 and reflect both the events in Poliphilo's dream as well as the buildings and festivities seen therein. Aldus would gain fame for creating the italic type that revolutionized the look of the Renaissance book. The question of authorship of the Hypnerotomachia has vexed scholars for years; attribution to Francesco Colonna is based on the acrostic found in the beautiful woodcut capitals that begin each chapter.

 

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