COMMELIN, Casparus.
Beschryvinge van Amsterdam, zynde een naukeurige verhandelinge van desselfs eerste oorspronk uyt de huyse der heeren van Amstel, en Amstellant, haar vergrootingen, rykdom, en wyze van regeeringe, tot den jare 1691. Voor dezen uit verscheide oude historie-schryvers by gesteld, en uitgegeven; en nu uit een meenigte van oude schriften, authentyke stukken, en met kopere afbeeldingen verciert, nooit voor desen gedrukt geweest.
Amsterdam, widow of Aart Dirksz. Oossaan, 1726. 2 volumes. Folio (31 x 20 cm). Engraved title, two letterpress title-pages, each with the same woodcut coat of arms of the city of Amsterdam, 46 folding and double-page engravings, 11 full-page engraved plates, 77 engravings in the text and some woodcut illustrations of coat of arms and seals. Contemporary blind-tooled vellum. [20], 600; 601-1223, [1 blank], [40] pp.
€ 3,500
Second edition of an extensive description of Amsterdam, by the well-known Casparus Commelin (1636-1693), first published in 1693 in two volumes. Commelin incorporateds two earlier essays by his father Izaak Commelin, who had breifly described Amsterdam in a 1665 book about France, Spain and other countries. As a respected clergyman in Amsterdam, Casparus Commelin had access to the old letters and documents in the Amsterdam archives, which proved useful in completing his work. Commelin died in 1693 and the first edition was published posthumously in that year and reissued in 1694. The beautiful and very clear engravings in the text are all taken from the work of Van Domselaar, while some of the engraved plates were newly made for this work. These include 9 engravings by Luyken. Others are copies of illustrations in publications by Dapper, Brandt and Bor.
Bookplate of Vallis Dei, and some library stamps throughout. In good condition, with dark strong impressions of the plates. Nijhoff-Van Hattum pp. 22-23; STCN 171655095.
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