A highly decorative book of the region from Nice to the Swiss border. Joan Blaeu’s famous townbooks of Italy were first published in three volumes (Vatican, Rome, and Naples and Sicily) in 1663. Two further volumes were added by his heirs in 1682, those of Piedmont and Savoye. The last two volumes were republished in 1693 by P. & J. Blaeu, 1697 and 1700 by A Moetjens, in 1704 and 1705 by Pierre Mortier and finally by Rutgers Alberts, 1725 and 1726. It is this last but one edition offered here. Unlike the town books of the Netherlands the Italian volumes not only contain maps and bird’s-eye views, but also many engravings and plans of the towns, palaces, churches, statues and other architecture. It is one of the most visually appealing and highly prized of all illustrated books on Italy.

Following the editions of Mortier in 1705 Alberts added plate numbers. The first volume covering Piedmont bore roman numerals, the second of Savoy contained Arabic numerals. Indeed closer examination of Koeman reveals that the Mortier editions were only of Piedmont and that the Savoye volume had not been published since that of Moetjens in 1700 (see Koeman Bl 82). In 1724 Alberts published the initial three Blaeu townbooks leaving the remaining volumes of Piedmont and Savoye until 1725. This volume bears no text indicating an issue in which possibly the text was placed in a separate volume, or one in which the plates were issued alone. In either case such an issue could not be traced.

Our example covering the region of Savoye differs from Koeman’s description (Bl 108) in having the plates bound in numerical order. In their regular publication with text they are not in order, quite why is unclear. This possibly indicates that we have an early issue, or at the least one issued as he initially intended. Another indication of a possible early issue is the inclusion of plate 64* of Casale at the end, and not in its logical place. This plate is a last minute transfer from the first volume of Piedmont in 1724 (see Koeman 87 plate M 5) where it was unnumbered. Similarly plate 15, the dedication to Carolus Emanuel II, is found in the volume of Piedmont in the Utrecht example cited in Koeman despite being numbered in Arabic. The large double page panorama of Andurni, one of six in this work, missing in the Utrecht example is present here. Provenance: manuscript ownership mark on the upper boards of ‘Willem Hendrik Leuring’. A gentleman of that name can be traced to the Netherlands c.1800. Koeman I Bl 108 pp. 332-3; Phillips Atlases 3055 (French edition) & 8944 (Dutch edition).