A DESCRIPTIVE TOUR OF THE ESCORIAL’S ART COLLECTIONS, WITH LOSSES AND RESTITUTIONS DUE TO NAPOLEON’S ARMIES. 8vo. XII pp, 400 [i.e. 401] pp, (3). Bound in contemporary tree calf with gilt title and ornaments on spine. Occasional slight foxing, but mainly an excellent, unsophisticated copy. Sole edition of this guidebook to the war-ravaged painting and sculpture collections of the Escorial, composed in the aftermath of the Napoleonic invasion which saw the confiscation and dispersal of many of the museum’s treasures between 1808-1814. The present work was written just a few years later by a monk resident in the monastery-cum-art gallery, who presumably experienced the seizures first-hand. In his dedication to Ferdinand VII, Bermejo expresses to hope that by pressing France for the recovery of the “precious originals which the furious turbulence of the most unjust war has dispersed to such distances”, he can restore the site to its former glory. Founded by Philip II in 1567, the Escorial served not only as a monastery but as a ‘royal pantheon’ for the art collection of the Spanish Crown. Based on Philip’s own predilections, the collection housed an exceptional array of 15th and 16th century paintings of the Flemish and Italian schools (Titian, Bosch, Tintoretto, etc.); in the 17th century a procession of Spanish artists also took up residence in the monastery in order to contribute to its decoration including Luis de Carvajal and El Greco. The collection swelled under Philip IV, and in 1656 Velázquez was personally in charge of the selection and installation of paintings. Dramatic change came to the collections with the French invasion of Spain under Napoleon. “In 1807 the French troops stormed the Monasterio, which was defended by the priest Ruiz, who lost his life in the assault. The monks were expelled by the French, but allowed to occupy an adjacent building. Terrible pillage succeed the capture of the Escorial, and much of its treasure was looted and sent to France.” (Calvert, The Escorial: A Historical and Descriptive Account, pp. 19-20). In 1814, efforts began to repatriate much of the Escorial’s lost art, but not all were successful. Some, like Rafael’s La Virgen del pez and La Visitación, as well as Reni’s La Virgen de la silla, had formed part of the ‘baggage’ of Joseph Buonaparte and were successfully repossessed. Others, such as Veronese’s Circumcision and Guercino’s San Jerónimo, were lost forever. The final category of confiscated Escorial paintings include those which were presented as private gifts to Napoleon’s generals: for example Fernández de Navarrete’s Abraham y los tres ángeles (now at the National Gallery of Ireland) and Velázquez’s Retrato de Felipe IV, en marrón y plata (National Gallery, London). A handy table at the rear (pp. 393-396) records the number of oil paintings by each artist still remaining at the Escorial in 1820 (Velázquez and Rubens: just 6 each; Lucas Jordan and Titian: 27 each!); another catalogue summarizes the frescoes by each artist still preserved. The main body of the text itself is a guide through each of the buildings, pointing out elements of architecture and history as well as a full description of all artwork; pages 198-205 for example detail the “Cuadros de la Sala Vicarial ó de Poniente con respect al Atrio” including works by Guercino, Jordan, Veronese, José Ribera, etc., while pages 271-301 guide the visitor through the treasures of the Royal Library. OCLC shows two copies in US libraries, at the Getty and Johns Hopkins. * Palau 28012.