Il Ponte Casa d'Aste auctions first issue of La Settimana Enigmistica

Il Ponte Casa d'Aste in Milan launches its autumn auction season with three dedicated sales: philately on September 19, rare books and artist books on September 20, and fine wines on September 26. The philately auction features over 300 lots spanning from the mid-19th century to the 1980s, including two letters from the Italian wars of independence (estimated €1,200–1,800 and €6,000–8,000), a 1877 'talking envelope' from an unseen collection (€5,000–10,000), and an Apollo 15 'Moon Rover' cosmogram from 1971 (€2,500–3,500). The rare books session highlights Venetian typography from Pietro Quarenghi to Aldo Manuzio, including a 1497 incunable of Dante's Divine Comedy illustrated by Landino (€5,000–8,000), Manuzio's editions of Aristophanes (€18,000–25,000) and Dante's Terze rime (€3,000–5,000), and Vincenzo Coronelli's Atlante Veneto (€10,000–15,000). Artist books span from avant-garde to late 20th century, with a Dalì-illustrated Bible (€35,000–45,000) and works by Castellani, Ballo, Del Pezzo, Bonalumi, Arnaldo and Giò Pomodoro, Nespolo, Dorazio, Paladino, Baj, and Munari. A notable lot is the first unassembled issue of La Settimana Enigmistica (€3,000–5,000). The wine auction on September 26 offers over 300 bottles from Bordeaux, Burgundy Grand Crus, and Italian wines from Piedmont and Tuscany.