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STRADA, Jacobus de (c.1523-1588) and Octavius de STRADA. Desseins Artificiaulx de Toutes Sortes des Moulins a Vent, a l'Eau, a Cheval & a la Main. Frankfurt: Paul Jacobi, 1618. Two parts in one volume, 2° (303 x 190mm). Titles by Matthias Merian within engraved architectural border, 100 double-page engraved plates by B. Schwan and E. Kieser mounted on guards. (Lacking the heraldic decication on A1-A6, occasional browning, small wormtracks, mainly marginal but affecting approximately 30 plates at beginning and end, some staining.) Contemporary vellum, spine titled in gilt (light scuff marks, some staining, a few tiny wormholes, somewhat bowed). Provenance: Guido Uccelli (book label).
First French edition of Strada's work on engineering designs, mills, pumps, and other machinery, published simultaneously with a German language issue (see lot 81 in sale 1776 on June 12, 2013). A work rarely found complete with 100 engraved plates. Jacobus de Strada was a slightly older contemporary of Ramelli, whose own work on mechanical engineering was published in the year of Strada's death. It is clear that the two men's work was independent; Beck suggests that Strada may have been aware of Ramelli's publication and decided against publishing his own designs in deference to the Italian. Publication was posthumous, edited by his grandson Octavius, and the 30-year delay resulted in Strada's designs losing their innovative edge. Nonetheless, the work shows Strada's close attention to detail and illustrates a wide range of machinery and engineering. Cf. T. Beck Beitraege zur Geschichte des Mashinenbaues, chapter 23; Brunet V, 557.
First French edition of Strada's work on engineering designs, mills, pumps, and other machinery, published simultaneously with a German language issue (see lot 81 in sale 1776 on June 12, 2013). A work rarely found complete with 100 engraved plates. Jacobus de Strada was a slightly older contemporary of Ramelli, whose own work on mechanical engineering was published in the year of Strada's death. It is clear that the two men's work was independent; Beck suggests that Strada may have been aware of Ramelli's publication and decided against publishing his own designs in deference to the Italian. Publication was posthumous, edited by his grandson Octavius, and the 30-year delay resulted in Strada's designs losing their innovative edge. Nonetheless, the work shows Strada's close attention to detail and illustrates a wide range of machinery and engineering. Cf. T. Beck Beitraege zur Geschichte des Mashinenbaues, chapter 23; Brunet V, 557.