Montemayor, Jorge de (1520?-1561) Diana of George of Montemayor.
London: Printed by Edmund Bollifant, Impensis G.B. [George Bishop], 1598.
First edition, folio, title page printed within elaborate woodcut compartment with bull's head at the foot, bound in full modern calf, 11 1/4 x 7 1/2 in.
An early romance originally written in Portuguese, The Seven Books of Diana was first published in its original language in 1559. It popularized the theme of shepherd and shepherdess romances and was followed by many imitators. Shakespeare is thought to have been a reader, as the plot involving Proteus, Julia, and Silvia from Two Gentlemen of Verona was borrowed from "Felismena's Tale" in Diana. This particular edition includes translations of the second part of Diana by Alonso Pérez, and of Gaspar Gil Polo's Diana Enamorata, all by Bartholomew Yong (1560-1621?).
