Benito Boccolari’s Illustrations to Tristano Shandy (1922–23) for Formiggini’s ‘Classici del ridere’: A Visual Edition

The first Italian translation of Tristram Shandy was not published until 1922–23. It was undertaken by Ada Salvatore as part of A. F. Formiggini’s ‘Classici del ridere’ series, remarkable for its ambitious aesthetic qualities. Formiggini’s edition of Tristano Shandy featured woodcuts designed by Benito Boccolari, which have received almost no attention in the long history of studies of illustrated editions of Sterne’s works. This article offers a detailed account of the publishing contexts in which Tristano Shandy appeared and an overview of Boccolari’s woodcuts, which it reproduces in their entirety for the first time.