Gråberg af Hemsö, Jacob: Saggio istorico su gli Scaldi o antichi poeti scandinavi.
Pisa, Molini, Landi e Comp co' caratteri di Didot, 1811. 8vo. xvi + 254 pp. Notes and observations from p. 129. With a chronological table of the kings of Scandinavia on pp. 197-200, "La tavola dei sovrani che hanno governato i tre regni del Settentrione dal 377 della nostra era fino all'epoca dell'estinzione dell'arte scaldica verso la fine del secolo XIII” [=377-1299 A.D.], and a catalogue of famous men and skalds on pp. 201-206.
Attractive half smooth calf, spine gilt in compartments, marbled sides. Insignificant wear, two leaves (pp. 49-52) with minimal marginal paper loss to upper edge.
Bookplate and ownership inscription of Eugène Lewenhaupt (purchase at the O. E. Fåhréus sale, 1884).
Beautifully printed in just 525 copies (plus 6 on blue paper).
A historical work on the ancient skalds of Scandinavia (skáld, skault), i. e. the poets who composed at the courts of Scandinavian and Icelandic leaders during the Viking Age and Middle Ages. In this volume Gråberg seeks to make the rest of Europe aware of skaldic poetry and mythology, to show that they were by no means inflluenced by European troubadours in the south, and to prove that the view of medieval Scandinavia as barabaric is erroneous, and that in fact Europe owes the spirit of chivalry to the ancient Scandinavians.
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Gråberg begav sig till sjöss vid 15 års ålder, blev senare handsekreterare åt den svenske beskickningschefen i Italien J.C. Lagersvärd och kopist vid beskickningen i Genua. 1801 gifte han sig med Louise Marie Jeanne Hugues, dotter till en arkitekt från Lyon men född i Genua. Gråberg blev ledamot av Italienska akademien i Florens 1806, utnämndes till svensk vicekonsul i Genua 1811 och avlade magistergrad vid Genuas universitet 1816. Han var därefter svensk konsul i Tanger och generalkonsul i Tripolis 1822-1828, kammarherre och överbibliotekarie vid det Pittiska biblioteket hos storhertigen av Toscana, riddare av Påvliga Gyllene sporrens orden och även upphöjd till "comes palatinus", det vill säga greve, med predikatet "di Hemsö". Redan tidigare hade han inspirerad av italienska adelsmän börjat skriva sig "af Hemsö" eller "di Hemsö". Ortnamnet är en språklig förändring av det gotländska sockennamnet Hemse, tillrättalagt för det italienska språket. Han var en äregirig och produktiv författare och hans arkiv är bevarat i Biblioteca Nazionale i Florens.
ENGLISH:
Gråberg af Hemsö, Jacob: Saggio istorico su gli Scaldi o antichi poeti scandinavi.
Pisa, Molini, Landi e Comp co' caratteri di Didot, 1811. 8vo. xvi + 254 pp. Notes and observations from p. 129. With a chronological table of the kings of Scandinavia on pp. 197-200, "La tavola dei sovrani che hanno governato i tre regni del Settentrione dal 377 della nostra era fino all'epoca dell'estinzione dell'arte scaldica verso la fine del secolo XIII” [=377-1299 A.D.], and a catalogue of famous men and skalds on pp. 201-206.
Attractive half smooth calf, spine gilt in compartments, marbled sides. Insignificant wear, two leaves (pp. 49-52) with minimal marginal paper loss to upper edge.
Bookplate and ownership inscription of Eugène Lewenhaupt (purchase at the O. E. Fåhréus sale, 1884).
Beautifully printed in just 525 copies (plus 6 on blue paper).
A historical work on the ancient skalds of Scandinavia (skáld, skault), i. e. the poets who composed at the courts of Scandinavian and Icelandic leaders during the Viking Age and Middle Ages. In this volume Gråberg seeks to make the rest of Europe aware of skaldic poetry and mythology, to show that they were by no means inflluenced by European troubadours in the south, and to prove that the view of medieval Scandinavia as barabaric is erroneous, and that in fact Europe owes the spirit of chivalry to the ancient Scandinavians.
Jacob Gråberg of Hemsö (1776-1847) was born in Hemse, Gotland, Sweden. He went to sea at the age of 15, later became secretary for the Swedish Head of Mission in Italy J. C. Lagersvärd and in 1801 married Louise Marie Jeanne Hugues, daughter of an architect from Lyon but born in Genoa. Gråberg became a member of the Italian Academy in Florence in 1806, was appointed Swedish Deputy Consul in Genoa in 1811 and earned a master's degree at the University of Genoa in 1816. He was then Swedish consul in Tangier and general consul in Tripoli 1822-1828, chamberlain and chief librarian of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, and knighted to "comes palatinus", adding the nobiliary particle ”di” to his surname based on his birth parish of Hemse / Hemsö. He was a very productive writer and his archive is preserved in the Biblioteca Nazionale in Florence.