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Looking for rare book in North America

RichyRichy Registered User regular
in Help / Advice Forum
Hi everyone,

So a few months ago my girlfriend and I were in Rome, and in a small cafe we stumbled onto a book of gorgeous prints of Rome by a famous artist. We thumbed through it for a while, finished our drinks, and left. Fast-forward to today, and I figured that book would make a nice Christmas present. Except I spent all day on the Googles yesterday, and I cannot find a single place in Canada that carries it. In fact I cannot find it anywhere except on Italian websites, where they will charge me 2 to 3 times the value of the book in trans-Atlantic shipping costs. Seems like it's a pretty rare book.

So I'm wondering if anyone has some tips on finding rare books online in North America, so that I could get it before Christmas and at a reasonable shipping cost?

The book is "Le vedute di Roma di Giovanni Battista Piranesi" by Maurizio Marini, ISBN-10: 8854107506, ISBN-13: 9788854107502.

Thanks in advance!

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    XaquinXaquin Right behind you!Registered User regular
    Is this close?

    Fixer Restorations -/- Satan's Wish List!!!!
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    XaquinXaquin Right behind you!Registered User regular
    edited December 2017
    Got it

    Here you go!

    edit: still shipping from Italy, but it's not $texas

    Xaquin on
    Fixer Restorations -/- Satan's Wish List!!!!
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    FiendishrabbitFiendishrabbit Registered User regular
    That book in particular is pretty hardcore "Italy only".

    However, there are other books that feature the works of Giovanni Battista Piranesi. I think "Le Vedute di Roma di Giovanni Battista Piranesi" is based on an older early 19th century french work of the same name (translated it means "The Views of Rome by Giovanni battista Piranesi") that compiled his Roman work a few decades after the artists death. There are many different versions of this book, in many different languages. The Metropolitan Museum of Art features one version, there is a "Rome, Then and Now" which compares Giovanni Battista Piranesis illustrations with modern rome...just to mention a few.

    "The western world sips from a poisonous cocktail: Polarisation, populism, protectionism and post-truth"
    -Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
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    RichyRichy Registered User regular
    Fiendishrabbit wrote: »
    That book in particular is pretty hardcore "Italy only".

    However, there are other books that feature the works of Giovanni Battista Piranesi. I think "Le Vedute di Roma di Giovanni Battista Piranesi" is based on an older early 19th century french work of the same name (translated it means "The Views of Rome by Giovanni battista Piranesi") that compiled his Roman work a few decades after the artists death. There are many different versions of this book, in many different languages. The Metropolitan Museum of Art features one version, there is a "Rome, Then and Now" which compares Giovanni Battista Piranesis illustrations with modern rome...just to mention a few.

    The problem is that, since this is an art book, I want to make sure that we get one with the drawings reproduced large enough to be enjoyable. I found one "Giovanni Battista Piranesi : the complete etchings", but the drawings were printed small and several to a page, which made it less pleasant to read. I'm also seeing different versions of the book with different dust jackets, and I have no idea if they are different editions or different books altogether or just a collectible gimmick, and what the differences are (besides the cover).

    But you did mention a French version, and that sent me looking... I found "Piranèse : Les vues de rome, les prisons", which is available at my university library so I could look at it, and is being sold on eBay (slightly used) by some guy in France. I called my local bookstore to see if they could get it as well. I might go with that one.

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    GrisloGrislo Registered User regular
    Xaquin is using abebooks, which is probably your best bet, so if the shipping is reasonable on his link, consider going for it.

    This post was sponsored by Tom Cruise.
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    FiendishrabbitFiendishrabbit Registered User regular
    edited December 2017
    Richy wrote: »
    Fiendishrabbit wrote: »
    That book in particular is pretty hardcore "Italy only".

    However, there are other books that feature the works of Giovanni Battista Piranesi. I think "Le Vedute di Roma di Giovanni Battista Piranesi" is based on an older early 19th century french work of the same name (translated it means "The Views of Rome by Giovanni battista Piranesi") that compiled his Roman work a few decades after the artists death. There are many different versions of this book, in many different languages. The Metropolitan Museum of Art features one version, there is a "Rome, Then and Now" which compares Giovanni Battista Piranesis illustrations with modern rome...just to mention a few.

    The problem is that, since this is an art book, I want to make sure that we get one with the drawings reproduced large enough to be enjoyable. I found one "Giovanni Battista Piranesi : the complete etchings", but the drawings were printed small and several to a page, which made it less pleasant to read. I'm also seeing different versions of the book with different dust jackets, and I have no idea if they are different editions or different books altogether or just a collectible gimmick, and what the differences are (besides the cover).

    But you did mention a French version, and that sent me looking... I found "Piranèse : Les vues de rome, les prisons", which is available at my university library so I could look at it, and is being sold on eBay (slightly used) by some guy in France. I called my local bookstore to see if they could get it as well. I might go with that one.

    That one looks like it includes Piranesis "Carceri" drawings as well. Piranesis great hobbies were Rome and designing futuristic (for the time) prisons.

    Fiendishrabbit on
    "The western world sips from a poisonous cocktail: Polarisation, populism, protectionism and post-truth"
    -Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of the Church of Sweden
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    IcemopperIcemopper Registered User regular
    I don't know if this is the same one, but under a different ISBN (maybe different edition): Link

    If you're looking for great reproductions of etchings, you're probably going to be spending Texa$: Link

    His etchings are really quite wonderful though. Good luck in the search!

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    RichyRichy Registered User regular
    Alright, I have now purchased the French book on eBay. Shipping from France was much more reasonable (about $10 on a 40$ book). The book's dust jacket is a bit coloured, but otherwise the seller says the book is in perfect shape, and being a discontinued book I didn't have much options.

    Anyway, thank you all for the advice and help! I must say I'm pleasantly surprised by how many rare-Italian-art-hisotry-book experts we have on this board :D

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    GrisloGrislo Registered User regular
    Honestly, given the type of book, and the status of the book, a bit of wear and tear is part of the charm. It'll make for a great gift, which clearly shows some effort.

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