Serenissimi principis Ferdinandi Hispaniarum infantis S.R.E. Cardinalis triumphalis introitus in Flandriæ metropolim Gandavum auctore Guilielmo Becano S.I.
EXTRA-ILLUSTRATED FIRST EDITION OF CARDINAL-INFANTE FERDINAND’S ENTRANCE INTO GHENT
Broadsheet folio (20 ¾” x 15 13/16” 528mm x 401mm): *–****1 A–Nn1 [$1 signed]. 40 leaves, pp. [8] (title, blank, 2pp. dedication, 4pp. list of office officials), 1 2–68 [4] (plate list, 2pp. index of historical narrations, blank). With an engraved title-page and vignette and 43 engraved plates, of which 3 are folding.
Bound in half calf over marbled boards. On the spine, 6 raised bands.
Peripheral browning and dampstaining to the edges of the text-block throughout. Japanese tissue repairs to the edges of the engraved title-page, loss to the fore-margin infilled. Plate mark and number of 36 cropped and repaired loss to the fore-margin. Plate 41 bound prior to plate 40 and plate mark and number cropped. Ink ownership inscription of Joannes Bogaert to the letterpress title-page.
On January 26th, 1635, the Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand of Austria made his joyeuse entrée into the city of Ghent. He had made a number of triumphal entries around the territory as governor of the Netherlands following his victory in Nördlingen, but the Jesuits of Flanders vied for the title of most extravagant. With only 150 examples issued, the publication flaunts the entry processions with views of Ghent, and, in typical fête livraison fashion, scenes from a theatrical performance, allegorical floats, fireworks, and triumphal arches. The present example is extra-illustrated with a folding plate of the city of Ghent by Joan Bleau, inserted later as the first edition of the plan appeared in 1649.
The Jesuits were the primary pioneers of Counter-Reformation propaganda, and Guilielmo Becano (here Guillielmus Becanus, 1608–1683) typified the “Baroque Influencing” that mobilized the movement by commissioning a group of Flemish artists to illustrate Catholicism’s triumph over the combined Protestant armies of Sweden and their German allies. Executed in the style of Reubens — a close friend to the Jesuit Church of Antwerp — Serenissimi principis ensured the highest aesthetic standards available in Europe and the Stroppendragers were duly rewarded for it. The tome seamlessly blended the glory of the Habsburg Monarchy with the local pride of the region, and Ferdinand of Austria was flattered enough to provide continued support for the Jesuit Order and their expansive networks.
Brunet I:728; Landwehr 96; Lotz p.104; Splendid Ceremonies 96; Vinet 626. Festivities: Ceremonies and Celebrations in Western Europe 1500-1790, Brown University, March 1979, number 38.
Item #GRM0089
Price: $7,000