PALATINO, GIOVANNI BATTISTA Libro... nel qual s'insegna a scriver ogni sorte lettera. Large woodcut portrait of Palatino on title; 81

full-page woodcut writing specimens, including various forms of secret writing, Hebrew, Arabic, and Syriac alphabets, decorative initials, etc.; printer's large woodcut device at end. [64] leaves, the last blank 4to, old boards; occasional marginal soiling. (Rome: Antonio Blado, September 1553) "The last of the three major Italian copy-books of the sixteenth century... In extent, Palatino's manual was a more ambitious effort than Arrighi's or Tagliente's... Palatino's models of chancery script are among the handsomest, but are nearly impossible to execute if the writer is a person of modest ability" --2000 Years of Calligraphy 65 (1540 original edition). Complete copy, but with 2 type pages incorrectly imposed in last gathering.