CORTE, Claudio

by Claudio Corte

£17,500 · Offered by Sokol Books

Rare first edition of one of the most important and influential equestrian treatises of C16th England, a partial translation of of Claudio Corte s Il Cavalerizzo. The work is of particular interest as it takes from Corte what is essential for the English rider. As the translator, Thomas Bedingfield, states in his preface I haue heere brieflie collected the rules of horsse_manship, according to Claudio Corte in his second booke. I haue not Englished the author at large, nor medled with his manifold digressions; neither haue I spoken of all things con_teined in the said second booke: but onelie those that concerne the making of horsses for seruice. I haue also left that part vntouched, which intreateth of bitting the horsses, bicause the same hath beene long since verie substantiallie handled by Mai_ster Blundeuile. During the 16th century, riding evolved from its martial origins into an art form practiced by noblemen and kings. Instead of the medieval jousts and melees, horsemen began to display their skills in carousels, ballets, and individual performances, and riding masters, included in their riding manuals, instructions essential to the comportment of the horse and rider, as well as an overview of the figures used in the 16th century menage. By the time of Elizabeth I s reign, not only had the manège become an actively promoted component of a young courtiers education, but the art had entered into a veritable golden age exemplified by widespread practice and the marked in

• Binding: Hardcover

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