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Four plays by Antwerp rhetoricians wrongly under the name of Johan Baptiste Houwaert

[HOUWAERT, Johan Baptista].
Den handel der amoureusheyt inhoudende vier poetische spelen, 1. Van Aeneas ende Dido. 2. Narcissus ende Echo. 3. Mars ende Venus. 4. Leander ende Hero. Poetelijck geinventeert ende rethorijckelijck ghecomponeert.

With engraved ornamental title-page with the title in an oval cartouche and 4 roundels in the corners with scenes from the four plays; four full-page engraved plates with similar scenes in the preliminaries of each play. Each of the four parts starts with a printed title with the printer's device of Van Waesberghe.

Rotterdam, Jan van Waesberghe III, 1621. 4 parts in one vol. 8vo. Contemporary calf, spine richly gilt in compartments with red title lable lettered in gold, gilt binding edges. With engraved ornamental title-page with the title in an oval cartouche and 4 roundels in the corners with scenes from the four plays; four full-page engraved plates with similar scenes in the preliminaries of each play. Each of the four parts starts with a printed title with the printer's device of Van Waesberghe. 237 lvs.

Original and only edition of these four rhetoric moral plays or dialogues wrongly attributed to the famous Antwerp rhetorician Jean Baptiste Houwaert (1533-1599). In fact the book contains four plays by Antwerp rhetoricians written in ca. 1550. The work has nothing to do with Houwaert's Den handel der Amoureusheyt. Begrepen in dry boecken (Brussels 1583), of with the present work often is considered to be the second edition (see Bibl. Belg. III, p. 538, H 189bis).
After four preliminary poems, on 3 lvs. pages, by a poet calling himself 'Niet Snel Al-be-recht', four plays follow:
1. Verscheyden schoone spelen van zinnen van Aeneas ende Dido (f. A1-F3; 43 lvs.). This is a play written by the rhetorician Jacob de Mol of the Chamber of rhetoric 'De Goudsblom' from Antwerp, performed for the first time in 1552 (cf. Vinck-Van Caeckenberghe in her book on Cornelis van Ghistele (1996), who attributes this play to Van Ghistele).
2. Verscheyden schoone spelen van zinnen van Narcissus ande Echo, &c. (f. F4-P7; 76 lvs.): three separate plays, together 2193 verses, by Colyn Keyart. The entr'actes are perhaps by Johan Baptiste Houwaert.
3. Verscheyden schoone spelen van zinnen van Mars ande Venus, &c. (f. Q1-Z1; 57 lvs.): three separate plays, together 1128 verses, probably by Smeecken.
4. Vier schoone spelen van zinnen van Leander ende Hero (f. Z2-Gg2; 57 lvs.): this play, according to Knuttel also by Colyn Keyart, is preserved only in this edition.
The book is a very important source for the history of the rhetoricians in the Southern Netherlands.

Good copy.- (One plate shaved).

Bibl. Belg. III, p. 538-9, H 26; G. Kalff, in: Tijdschrift Ned. Letterk., 8 (1888), p. 231-5; W. de Vreese, in: Tijdschr. Ned. Letterk., 12 (1893), p. 206-11; F. van Veerdeghem, in: Tijdschr. Ned. Letterk., 12 (1893), p. 202-5, 320; J.A. Worp, in: Tijdschr. Ned. Letterk., 20 (1901), p. 27-9; Te Winkel, Ontwikkelingsgang, 2nd ed., II, p. 395.

Related Subjects: Dutch Literary History Low Countries

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