Bibliomania; or Book-Madness: A Bibliographical RomanceDibdin, Thomas Frognall
History
Bibliomania; or Book-Madness: A Bibliographical Romance
Dibdin, Thomas Frognall
Bibliography; Bibliomania; Book collecting; Books -- Prices
Next to the bust of De Bure, consider those of the five Italian
bibliographers and literati, HAYM, FONTANINI, ZENO, MAZZUCHELLI, and
TIRABOSCHI; which are placed in the five consecutive niches. Their
works are of various merit, but are all superior to that of their
predecessor DONI. Although those of the first three authors should
find a place in every bibliographical collection, the productions of
Mazzuchelli,[149] and especially of the immortal Tiraboschi, cannot
fail to be admitted into every judicious library, whether vast or
confined. Italy boasts of few literary characters of a higher class,
or of a more widely-diffused reputation than TIRABOSCHI.[150] His
diligence, his sagacity, his candour, his constant and patriotic
exertions to do justice to the reputation of his countrymen, and to
rescue departed worth from ill-merited oblivion, assign to him an
exalted situation: a situation with the Poggios and Politians of
former times, in the everlasting temple of Fame! Bind his _Storia
della Letteratura Italiana_ in the choicest vellum, or in the stoutest
Russia; for it merits no mean covering!
[Footnote 149: We may first observe that "_La Libraria del_
DONI _Fiorentino_;" Vinegia, 1558, 8vo., is yet coveted by
collectors as the most complete and esteemed of all the
editions of this work. It is ornamented with many portraits
of authors, and is now rare. Consult _Bibl. Crevenn._, vol.
v., p. 275. Numerous are the editions of HAYM'S _Biblioteca
Italiana_; but those of Milan, of the date of 1771, 4to., 2
vols., and 1803, 8vo. 4 vols., are generally purchased by
the skilful in Italian bibliography. The best edition of
FONTANINI'S _Biblioteca dell' Eloquenza Italiana_ is with
the annotations of ZENO, which latter are distinguished for
their judgment and accuracy. It was published at Venice in
1753, 4to., 2 vols.; but it must be remembered that this
edition contains only the _third_ book of Fontanini, which
is a library of the principal Italian authors. All the three
books (the first two being a disquisition upon the orgin
[Transcriber's Note: origin] and progress of the Italian
language) will be found in the preceeding [Transcriber's
Note: preceding] Venice edition of 1737, in one volume 4to.
In the year 1753-63, came forth the incomparable but
unfinished work of COUNT MAZZUCHELLI, in two folio volumes,
[the latter vol. being divided into four thick parts]
entittled [Transcriber's Note: entitled]: _Gli Scrittori
d'Italia, cioe Notizie Storiche e Critiche intorno alle Vite
e agli Scritti dei Letterati Italiani_. The death of the
learned author prevented the publication of it beyond the
first two letters of the alphabet. The Count, however, left
behind ample materials for its execution according to the
original plan, which lay shamefully neglected as late as the
year 1776. See _Bibl. Crevenn._, vol.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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