(4) Impressive signed Italian Murano, hand-blown art glass Don Quixote & Sancho Panza figures in custom bespoke lighted case. Circa 1970s.

Size with base: 15 5/8 x 15 5/8 x 66 1/2 in.

#2400 . 

“Don Quixote” is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. It was published in two parts in 1605 and 1615. A foundational piece of Western Literature, it is often considered the first modern novel and one of the greatest works ever written. The plot revolves around a member of the lowest nobility, a hidalgo from La Mancha named Alonso Quijano, who reads so many romances that he loses his mind and decides to become a knight-errant to revive chivalry and serve his nation, under the name Don Quixote de la Mancha. He recruits as his squire a simple farm laborer, Sancho Panza, who brings a unique, earthy wit to counter Don Quixote’s lofty rhetoric. Throughout the journey, Sancho leaves behind his bitter realism and becomes enamored with the fantasy of his new master, while Don Quixote declines from his illusions into harsh reality after countless failures and ignominities. “Don Quixote” is one of the most-translated books in the world and one of the best-selling novels of all time, with the image of the noble yet shabby knight and his squat, affable sidekick the basis for comedies, dramas, and tragedies all the way from Shakespearean times up through modern buddy cop flicks.