One of the very few hand-coloured copies of this chronicle of Holland from its beginning until 1600. The work contains 57 large portraits of the counts of Holland, of which 56 have been vibrantly coloured and heightened with gold by a contemporary hand. The title page of both volumes and the portrait of the author are likewise coloured. Hand-coloured copies of the present work are exceptionally rare. We have only been able to trace three in institutions (of which one is only partly coloured), and none in sale records.
The plates were made by Christoffel van Sichem the Elder (1546-1624), a Dutch woodcutter and engraver. Most of the illustrations, as well as the title pages and portrait of the author, are signed by him. The only exception is the portrait of Theodorus Tertius (count Dirk III) on page 142 in the first volume. Curiously, although the other plates are copper engravings, this unsigned plate is a woodcut. It is stylistically nearly identical to the other illustrations, however, so it was most likely also made by Van Sichem. The reason it is unsigned is probably because it is very difficult to cut a signature into a woodblock. It is not known why only this one illustration was done in wood.
The work consists of two volumes. The first, which contains 40 plates, tells the history of Holland from the beginning until the year 1517. It is, in greater part, a translation of Die Chronyk van Hollandt, Zeelandt ende Vriesland (1517), also known as the Divisiekroniek, by the Dutch humanist Cornelius Aurelius (ca. 1460-1531). The second volume, which contains the remaining 17 plates, was written by the French historian and poet Jean François le Petit (1546-1614), and tells the history of Holland from 1556 until 1600. This part in particular is of significant historical importance. It is based on contemporary sources and the author's own experience, as he was living in the Low Countries at the time. According to the Bibliotheca Belgica, his work contains details not found elsewhere about the bloody conflict between the Northern Low Countries and Spain.
The edges and corners of the boards are somewhat scuffed, but many of the scuffmarks have been restored, the hinges are somewhat weakened, but the structural integrity of the binding is still intact. Some of the leaves are lightly browned, a water stain in the outer margin of the first 70 leaves of the second volume, slightly affecting the fore edge, occasional stains and spots throughout, some of which have been obscured with white chalk in the past. Otherwise in good condition. Bibliotheca Belgica III, L60; STCN 831704284 (23 complete copies); USTC 1505669 (vol. 1: 26 copies), 1037153 (vol 2: 43 copies).