Thank you for checking out this book by Theophania Publishing. We appreciate your business and look forward to serving you soon. We have thousands of titles available, and we invite you to search for us by name, contact us via our website, or download our most recent catalogues. Poliphilo's Strife of Love in a Dream, is a romance said to be by Francesco Colonna. First published in Venice, 1499, in an elegant page layout, with refined woodcut illustrations in an Early Renaissance style, Hypnerotomachia Poliphili presents a ...
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Thank you for checking out this book by Theophania Publishing. We appreciate your business and look forward to serving you soon. We have thousands of titles available, and we invite you to search for us by name, contact us via our website, or download our most recent catalogues. Poliphilo's Strife of Love in a Dream, is a romance said to be by Francesco Colonna. First published in Venice, 1499, in an elegant page layout, with refined woodcut illustrations in an Early Renaissance style, Hypnerotomachia Poliphili presents a mysterious arcane allegory in which Poliphilo pursues his love Polia through a dreamlike landscape, and is at last reconciled with her by the Fountain of Venus. The text of the book is written in a bizarre Latinate Italian, full of words based on Latin and Greek roots without explanation. The book, however, also includes words from the Italian language, as well as illustrations including Arabic and Hebrew words; Colonna also invented new languages when the ones available to him were inaccurate. (It also contains some uses of Egyptian hieroglyphs, but they are not authentic, most being drawn from Horapollo's erroneous volume of symbolism.) Its story, which is set in 1467, consists of precious and elaborate descriptions of scenes involving the title character, Poliphilo ("Friend of Many Things", from Greek Polloi "Many" and Philos "Friend"), as he wanders a sort of bucolic-classical dreamland in search of his love Polia ("Many Things"). The author's style is elaborately descriptive and unsparing in its use of superlatives. The text makes frequent references to classical geography and mythology, mostly by way of comparison. The book has long been sought after as one of the most beautiful incunabula ever printed. The typography is famous for its quality and clarity, in a roman typeface cut by Francesco Griffo, a revised version of a type which Aldus had first used in 1496 for the De Aetna of Pietro Bembo. The book is illustrated with 168 exquisite woodcuts showing the scenery, architectural settings, and some of the characters Poliphilo encounters in his dreams.
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New. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 214 p. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Although at times the lengthy architectural descriptions can become dry if one is not as in tune with the terms of/and architecture itself as the narrator obviously is, this book has so much more for the imagination to latch onto. It is filled with pagan references to Greek and Roman storytelling, highly emphasizing the beauty all around Poliphilo in his adventures.It s fully iillustrated and illustrative.As mentioned in the many footnotes and references in this edtion, the rhetoric is cultivated and inspires the reader to think in this antique way. It truly is aptly named ,(the strife of love in a dream), and is genuinely good reading. You almost want to know latin in order to experience the original.
sea7788
Jul 15, 2007
great translation
This book isn't only for fans of the Rule of Four. The engravings are beautiful, the mystery behind it, intriguing; the translation (a difficult job) very good. This is the first English edition - not so incredible, when you consider that the author practically invented his own language. The woodcuts are the most accessible part of the book, and are the reason that the original is considered one of the most beautiful books ever printed. As for the text, it's not a quick read. It moves slowly and languidly...it is about a dream, after all. For the academic collection or dedicated reader.
