CERVANTES SAAVEDRA, Miguel De. El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quixote de la Mancha ... Nueva edicion por la Real Academia Espanola. Madrid, Joaquin Ibarra, 17804 volumi in folio piccolo, 239x215 mm. Legatura coeva in pelle marmorizzata coeva, dorsi con titoli su tasselli e decorazioni in oro, sguardie marmorizzate, tagli dorati.<br
Vol. I: Antiporta allegorica incisa dal Selma, Frontespizio, pagine XIV, 2, ritratto del Cervantes inciso da Manuel Salvador y Carmona, pp. CCXXIV, Carta geografica ripiegata fuori testo, 199, 1 bianca, 6 tavole fuori testo incise in rame da Carmona, Gil. Selma e Moles. Vol. II: Antiporta incisa dal Selma, pp. 4, 418, 9 tavole fuori testo incise da Fabregat, Ballester, Carmona e Selma. Vol. III: Antiporta incisa dal De la Cruz, pp. 2, XIV, 306, 7 tavole fuori testo incise da Barcelon, Selma, Ballester e Fabregate. Vol. IV: Antiporta incisa dal De la Cruz, pp. 4, 346, 9 tavole fuori testo incise da Ballester, Muntaner, Fabregat e Selma. Testatine, iniziali e finalini calcografici. Complessivamente, 4 antiporte, 1 ritratto, 31 tavole fuori testo e una mappa geografica più volte ripiegata, tutto inciso in rame. Monogramma RM inciso in oro sui dorsi. Tracce d’uso alla legatura, piccole perdite alla cuffia del volume quarto, internamente sporadico foxing e qualche traccia d’uso, lievi velature d’umidità al primo e al quarto volume, complessivamente buon esemplare nella sua legatura originale.La più celebre edizione del Don Chisciotte in lingua spagnola, vero capolavoro di arte tipografica. Stampata da Ibarra per la Real Academia, questa edizione rappresenta il più alto esempio dell’artigianato spagnolo profuso nella più grande opera letteraria della nazione. Palau: “magnificent, superior in artistic beauty to all others produced in Spain or abroad.” Updike: “"the finest edition of Don Quixote that has ever been printed”." L’opera eccelle per la bellezza dei caratteri, della carta, della veste grafica, dell’apparato iconografico, e presenta un testo accuratamente corretto. Le illustrazioni e i raffinati ornamenti incisi nel testo sono prodotti dai migliori artisti spagnoli dell’epoca: tanto la carta quanto i caratteri sono stati creati appositamente per questa edizione. Le illustrazioni, disegnate da Carnicero, Barranco, Brunette, Del Castillo, Ferro e Gil, sono incise da Ballester, Barcelon, Fabregat, Gil, Mol, Muntaner, Salvador y Carmona and Selma. Contiene la prima mappa che descrive il percorso intrapreso da Don Chisciotte e Sancho Panza attraverso la Spagna. Questa edizione fu scelta dai Padri di Siviglia come simbolo della riconoscenza dopo la sconfitta di Napoleone da parte degli inglesi. La scelta di questa edizione come regalo di ringraziamento per il salvataggio della Spagna dall’assalto di Napoleone è della massima importanza e testimonia la stima di cui godeva presso il popolo spagnolo.<br
IL bibliofilo inglese William Davis scrisse nel 1821:” the celebrated Ibarra edition is so well known, that I need only refer to M. Paris's sale, 1791, where a copy sold for £16, 16 shillings, and Col. Stanley's, where a copy sold for £17, 6 shillings, 6 pence.”Brunet, I, 1749.. Cat. Salvà, 1564. Cat. Heredia, 1208. Ruiz Lasala, Juaquin Ibarra y Marin, p. 162; Palau III.52024; Cohen Ricci 218-19 ; Updike, Printing types, II, p. 73. William Davis, A Journey Round the Library of a Bibliomaniac.

4 volumes in small folio, 239x215 mm. Contemporary binding in marbled leather, spines with titles on labels and gold decorations, marbled endpapers, gilt edges. Vol. I: Allegorical Frontispiece engraved by Selma, Titlepage, pp XIV, 2, portrait of Cervantes engraved by Manuel Salvador y Carmona, pp. CCXXIV, Geographical map folded out of text, pp. 199, 1 blank, 6 copper plates engraved by Carmona, Gil. Selma and Moles. Vol. II: Allegorical Frontispiece engraved by Selma, pp 4, 418, 9 plates engraved by Fabregat, Ballester, Carmona and Selma. Vol. III: Allegorical Frontispiece engraved by De la Cruz, pp 2, XIV, 306, 7 plates engraved by Barcelon, Selma, Ballester and Fabregate. Vol. IV: Allegorical Frontispiece engraved by De la Cruz, pp 4, 346, 9 plates engraved by Ballester, Muntaner, Fabregat and Selma. Engraved Initials, Head and Tailpieces. Overall, 4 Frontispiecess, portrait of the author, 31 plates after Carnicero, Barranco, Brunette, Del Castillo, Ferro and Gil, engraved by various artists, and 1 double-page map, all engraved in copper. RM monogram engraved in gold on the spine. Traces of use on the binding, small losses on the cap of the fourth volume, sporadic foxing internally and some traces of use, slight dampness on the first and fourth volumes, overall a good copy in its original binding.
The most famous edition of Don Quixote in Spanish, a true masterpiece of typographic art. Printed for La Real Academia Española (the Spanish Royal Academy) by Joaquín Ibarra y Marín, this edition was prepared at great expense over the course of seven years for the Real Academia, printed on deluxe paper in a specifically-designed typeface and illustrated by the foremost Spanish artists of the time. To this day it remains a monument of Spanish printing, and a fitting tribute to what many regard as the first modern novel in the Hispanic tradition. Palau: “magnificent, superior in artistic beauty to all others produced in Spain or abroad.” Updike: “"the finest edition of Don Quixote that has ever been printed”." This edition excels in beauty of type, design, paper, illustration and printing, as well as incorporating a carefully edited and corrected text. The illustrations and delightful ornaments were designed by the best Spanish artists of the day, the paper was milled expressly for this edition, and the type was specially cut. The 31 plates after Carnicero, Barranco, Brunette, Del Castillo, Ferro and Gil, are engraved by Ballester, Barcelon, Fabregat, Gil, Mol, Muntaner, Salvador y Carmona and Selma. The edition chosen by the Fathers of Seville for presentation after the defeat of Napoleon by the English. The choice of this edition as a gift in thanks for rescuing Spain from Napoleon's onslaught is of the greatest importance and suggests the esteem in which the edition was held by the people of Spain. The English bibliomane William Davis wrote in 1821: “the celebrated Ibarra edition is so well known, that I need only refer to M. Paris's sale, 1791, where a copy sold for £16, 16 shillings, and Col. Stanley's, where a copy sold for £17, 6 shillings, 6 pence.”