[Rarebooks] FA: 1832 Boston, American traveler's Italian phrase guide

[Joslin Hall Rare Books, ABAA]

Recently listed on Ebay-

<http://tinyurl.com/nlnlx>

   An uncommon early American traveler's phrase book for a
   popular 1830s destination of American writers and artists-

"De Porquet's Italian Phrases; or, Il Fraseggiatore Toscano. A Copious 
Choice of Italian Sentences to facilitate a complete knowledge of the 
formation of the verbs and syntax of that elegant tongue"

By Carlo Alfieri, "Professor of the Italian language, London". Published in 
Boston by S. Burdett & Co., in 1832. Third Edition, revised and corrected. 
"Revised and Improved by the American Editor".

"With familiar and easy dialogues in Italian and English, and rules on the 
different forms of addressing persons, used by the Italians".

An interesting and early American edition of a traveler's guidebook to that 
favorite destination of American artists, writers and art lovers of the 
day- Italy. Entire books have been written on the exodus of Americans to 
the Continent in general, and Italy in particular, in the 1830s and 40s. 
Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, and sculptors Hiram Powers and 
Horatio Greenough all sojourned there. American artist Rembrandt Peale 
wrote his own guide to traveling in Italy, and sculptor Thomas Crawford 
settled down in Rome and became a leading figure in the American expatriate 
community there for several years.

Charleston, South Carolina artist James DeVeaux loved Italy so much that he 
lived there for several years before his tragic early death in 1844. In 
fact, although he loved Rome and Venice and Florence, DeVeaux did not enjoy 
the excess of visiting Americans very much. While staying in Florence he 
wrote- "There are American painters and sculptors here of all sorts. I find 
nothing in their society to please me, and so keep to myself. Strange that 
so much venom should exist among professors of a liberal art -but the truth 
is, that envy and jealousy are our (painters) besetting sins, and the first 
thing I heard of here was a flare up at Rome 'mongst the American artists, 
and now they are all in Florence for the summer, so I keep housed."

And yet, the warm Italian sun and pretty signoras and centuries of art and 
monuments would draw the visitor out again. DeVeaux continued a few months 
later-

"Whilst looking down from the steeple of the Campodoglio upon Rome, my 
companion warmed into a classic fit, and bringing up from the bottom of his 
pockets notes and memoranda of history gathered from Goldsmith and others, 
he would glance from one scene to another, till I was deluged in 
declamation, -flinging his arms into the air and stretching himself so far 
over the railing, as to induce me to wrap the skirt of his coat around my 
hands to ensure his safety, -he pointed to the spot where "Ceasar's body 
lay", -passed to Lucrezia the chaste, and Virginia the innocent, -Camillus 
pausing to look back upon the city, from whence he was issuing a banished 
man; and had got as far into his story as to be busily engaged with the 
Goths and Vandals in sacking Rome over again, when the old attendant cut 
short the oration by declaring that the "Signore" had detained him too 
long, as his wife waited his presence for dinner."

But we have strayed far from our charming little phrase book. Or perhaps 
not, because this is just the sort of book any of these American travelers 
would have picked up when preparing to take the "The Tour", or join the 
expatriate community there. An interesting little piece of Americana and 
not all that common- a search of internet sources failed to turn up another 
copy, and the OCLC database of institutional library holdings (which is an 
imperfect tool, but still gives some indication of scarcity) locates only 3 
copies.

Low opening bid. No reserve.

<http://tinyurl.com/nlnlx>
Ebay user id: joslinhall

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