GENERAL MISCELLANY

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CRIMINAL LAW — An Italian “Take”

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•  Caballo (d. 1616) was a Florentine judge and legal writer who saw his “Resolutionum criminalium” achieve great acceptance upon publication in 1606 and as attested to by the several later editions in the 17th century. This dense work on criminal law begins with a title-page in red and black with type in a great variety of point sizes of roman and italic. The text is printed in double-column format and each “century” begins with a large woodcut headpiece and ends with a small woodcut tailpiece.

This edition, “Hac quarta editione pluribus mendis expurgatae,” has several very good indices of “arguments,” words, and “things.”

•  Later limp, but rather stiff, vellum. Inkstains on bottom edge of closed volume; some captions a little shaved, half-title a little tattered. Remarkably solid andclean.  (31616)

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Laugh a Little — Cringe a Little — Carrington Curiosa

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•  W.C. Costello's translation of Cabanès' Cabinet secret de l'histoire (première série), the sole edition in English and an interesting, if at times gruesome, complication of medical anecdotes, medical humor, celebrity lore, and titillation.

Cabanès (1862–1928) was a medical doctor, historian, and successful writer of a goodly number of works of fiction and history, with a subspecialty of historical medical mysteries. Carrington was a leading British publisher (“abroad”) of late-Victorian and Edwardian pornography/erotica for “bibliophiles,” much of it flagellatory; there have been significant essays on him and his works, butWikipedia provides one irresistible sentence: “Carrington went blind as a result of syphilis and the last few years of his life were spent in poverty as his mistress stole his valuable collection of rare books.”

The chapters in this publication are: A youthful indiscretion of Louis XIV, The fistula of a great king, The maladies of Louis XV, The semi-impotency of Louis XVI, The first pregnancy of Marie-Antoinette, Louis XVI in private life, One of the judges of Marie-Antoinette: the surgeon Souberbielle, What was Marat's disease, Talleyrand and the doctors, The accouchement of the empress Marie-Louise, The ancestors of Marshal Mac-Mahon, and Gambetta's eye.

Nicely printed, with title-page in black and red and text block issued untrimmed, this is a copy of the trade edition: There was a deluxe issue on Japan vellum limited to 30 copies.

Provenance:  “Virginia Pritchard Hilton-Green, my father's book.”

•  Publisher's blue cloth stamped in blind. Minor rubbing; small tear at base of front joint (outside). Inside clean.  (35372)

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As Bibliographies Go, Delicious!

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•  Essential for all collections — institutional or private — that include American cookbooks. The Lilly has one of the great collections in this field; Cagle is Lilly Librarian Emeritus and Stafford is a former Lilly Library editorial employee. Temporal coverage here is 1739 to 1950 and all items are given professional bibliographical treatment, including collation. The work also includes illustrations.

•  New, in dust jacket.  (29379)

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AMERICANS . . . “Never Retreat
     either in Battle or in Immigration”

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•  One of the earliest, if not the earliest, of proposals for admission of California to the Union. The bill failed to obtain majority support, but Committee members do offer suggestions to increase the territory’s chances of acceptance in the future. The minority opinion is strenuous in its support of admission, touting the wealth of the state beyond the obvious gold then causing such a fever in the land.

•  Removed from a nonce volume and now in wrappers. A very good copy.  (11350)

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IllustratedA–Z of the BIBLE

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•  Second German edition of Calmet's great dictionary of the Bible, first published at Paris in 1722 in his native French, followed by a supplement in 1728; Augustin Calmet (1672–1757) was a renowned exegetist and Benedictine priest who completed the present work shortly after the massive Bible commentary that made him famous (Commentaire littéral, 23 vols., Paris, 1707–16).

The text here is from the Latin translation by Giovanni Domenico Mansi (1692–1769), and givesdefinitions for hundreds of words and where to find them in Scripture; it is printed double-column in roman and italic, with a few woodcut initials, head- and tailpieces, and with the printer's device on both title-pages. Select entries from the dictionary are illustrated by seven fold-out engraved plates including five maps and 23 full-page engraved plates (some folded at the fore-edge to fit), of places, apparatuses for religious rituals, numismata, dress, and musical instruments described in Scripture. Many of these are signed by Augsburg engravers Johann Gottfried Kolb and Andreas Ehman, who himself contributedeight new plates to Kolb's set (used in the 1729 ed.). Two maps are ascribed to A.P. Starckman.

Additionally appearing are various tables and charts, including genealogical tables; a chronological register of Hebrew high priests; a comprehensive chronology of general Bible history; a Jewish calendar; and an extensive index of authors' names included in thebibliography of the best sources on Scripture that precedes the dictionary in vol. I. The second volume closes with a “Dissertatio de tactice hebraeorum” by D. Equite Volard.

Bindings: Contemporary blind-tooled alum-tawed pigskin over beveled wooden boards, tooled using a variety of rules and foliate rolls and stamps in concentric rectangular panels to frame a central lozenge (constructed of multiple stamps) on each cover. Each volume bears remnants of two clasps, and both spines have raised bands with author and title written in early ink in the upper two compartments. Blue edges.

Provenance:  Discalced Carmelite Convent at Schongau, Bavaria (early ink inscription, title-pages, both volumes).

•  Graesse, II, 20n. See Brunet, I, 1495; and Vancil, pp. 44–45.   Binding as above, scuffs and dust-soiling; spine of vol. II pulled and lower spines speckled with ink. Ex-library: bookplates of two collections on front pastedowns and fly-leaves, stamp on bottom edges and rear pastedowns, call number on spines (crossed out), and penciling from a third library on front pastedowns. Clippings from old booksellers' descriptions on front pastedown of vol. I. Both title-pages trimmed just grazing print; title-page in vol. I tipped onto following leaf, with tear in outer margin and another starting near printer's device; otherwise the odd small marginal tear or isolated stain only, and occasional light foxing in both volumes including to plates. Very minor worming to one plate in vol II. An indispensable reference and an illuminating “browse.”  (30573)

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Life & Letters — A German Neo-Latin Poet

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•  Three first editions, all uncommon: Joachim Camerarius the elder’s life of the German neo-Latin poet Helius Eobanus Hessus (1488–1540), followed by books two and three of Hessus’s correspondence as edited by Camerarius. All books were issued separately. The Protestant humanist Camerarius was a member of Hessus’s circle and an associate of Melanchthon’s, as was Johannes Crato von Crafftheim, the royal physician and friend of Martin Luther to whom Camerarius dedicated the final volume of letters; Melanchthon, Euricius Cordus, Justus Menio, Mutiano Ruffo, and others appear with letters sometimes wholly in Greek, others with extensive passages in that language.

Binding: Contemporary alum-tawed pigskin, dated 1567 in blind; binding with bevelled edges, covers blind-embossed using rolls: faith, hope, justice, and charity. One metal clasp is present, the other perished.

•  Narratio: Adams C436; Brunet, II, 1009; VD16 C480 / VD16 C408. Libellus: Brunet, II, 1009; VD 16 C409; not in Adams. Tertius libellus: Brunet, II, 1009; VD16 C410. Binding as above, spine with later hand-inked paper label; binding much darkened and somewhat rubbed, one clasp intact and the other lacking. First title-page with ownership inscription dated 1559 inked in lower margin; Libellus alter lacking last leaf of preface (with errata on reverse) and Tertius libellus epistolar lacking title-page. Some corners dog-eared; two leaves with outer corners torn away, without loss to text. Early inked underlining and lining through of text, with a few marginalia, mostly in Narratio and occasionally in other two works. Last few leaves of final work with light waterstaining to lower outer corners.  (18853)

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Angels — Witchcraft

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•  On angels indeed, but also in part a reply to John Webster's “The displaying of supposed witchcraft,” with the “appendix” treating of this having a separate dated title-page (pagination and register are continuous). With a preliminary imprimatur leaf and a final advertisement leaf (with errata).

Provenance:  Front pastedown rubber-stamped by the Library of the Colgate Rochester Divinity School. Remnants of a private library bookplate on front pastedown.

•  ESTC R18390; Wing (rev. ed.) C388.   A “poor scholar's copy”: rebinding would help immensely. 19th-century half leather over marbled paper-covered boards; very worn, covers detached, text split into sections. Previous owner's signature at top of title-page, ink numeral at bottom margin of p. [5], first (blank) page and last page reinforced with archival tape at inner edge, covering a portion of the errata and advertisement. Staining and a little soiling; marginal chips and tears. Volume now housed in a simple, acid-free phase box.  (17726)

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English Camões in Green Morocco

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•  Fourth edition: Sonnets and canzones by the legendary Portuguese poet and playwright, translated into English by Percy Clinton Sydney Smythe, Viscount Strangford, a notable Lusophile who served as a diplomat in Lisbon.

Binding:  Contemporary dark green straight-grain morocco, spine with gilt-stamped rules, rolls, and devices. Covers framed with a delicately curly gilt-rolled border; the center panels, within, accented by gilt-stamped corner fleurons. A bit of additional filigree in blind appears both within the rules of the gilt border and within the border on each center panel, to nice subtle effect. Gilt inner dentelles. All edges gilt.

•  NSTC C355.   Binding as above, leather rubbed at edges and joints, spine a bit dimmed. Front pastedown with armorial bookplate of John Allan Powell; front fly-leaf with inked inscription dated 1922. A few spots of foxing, pages otherwise clean. A pretty and very English production for this Portuguese poet.  A charming volume.  (23077)

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DefendingFrench Rights & Religion from the POPE

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•  First edition, untrimmed copy of Camus's response to two missives from Pius VI — a controversial piece which prompted a flurry of replies.

•  Removed from a nonce binding, with stab holes, signatures intact but sewing gone; title-page with paper shelving label in lower inner corner, early pencilled inscriptions in upper portion. Edges uncut. Occasional light spotting, most to front wrapper, otherwise clean; some bits unevenly/lightly inked.  (30928)

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     entering the number 16244 as keyword calls up *many* more
  FRENCH REVOLUTION, FIRST REPUBLIC
PAMPHLETS — Voilà!

The Broadway (of New Haven) Broadsides — Scarce Small Press Items

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• Collection of largely humorous verse and prose pieces in broadsides and small pamphlets, printed for the author and “issued at odd intervals” from Head's Bookshop on Broadway in New Haven. These items were issued in limited editions that ranged from25 to 110 copies; An Adventure is represented here by numbered copies 15 and 44 of 50 printed and signed by “Capet,” while Apologia is numbered copy 89 of 110 printed and signed. Many of the items reflect particular early 20th-century sensibilities — pretty blonde stenographers are the subject of “new position” jokes, the “American Negro” tales involve foolishness and philandering (and the word “coon”), a blustering Hollywood director thinks “Hunchback of Notre Dame” is a college play about a football hero. On the other hand, An Adventure is a Gothic fantasia about a young Malatesta's brush with the bloody ending of the tale of Paolo and Francesca da Rimini, while Colourations comprises four wholly serious sonnets.

In a more serious vein, Head (1887–1963) was the author of Antiquities of Yale and the New Yale Guide, as well as a poet and a patron and supporter of both the Brick Row Book Shop and the Yale University Library. Several of the items here makeYale references, like the barroom ghosts who “puffed at their pipes and their stogies / And pulled at their Phantoms of Ale, / Recalling the things that were Bogies / When they were assembled at Yale”; Ex is specifically about four different gentlemen expelled from Yale for reasons including bad grades, vandalism, and bawdiness.

•  Folded as issued. 10 of the pamphlets with small inscription “M. Clark” or “Clark” pencilled on front wrapper. Apologia with two pencilled corrections. Upper edges of Hot from Hollywood chewed. Minor age-toning, occasional small spots and edge nicks. Overall a clean, crisp collection of these uncommon pieces.  (36453)

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CanalFEVER

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•  Set o f pamphlets on canal construction, including “The importance of the views of the Canal policy of New York, presented by DeWitt Clinton . . . ”. “Fulton — no. IV. Canals and railways” is a continuation of the series “Canal Policy.”

The Pennsylvania Society for the Promotion of Internal Improvements in the Commonwealth was established in Philadelphia, in December 1824, to disseminate information on the latest improvements in the development of transportation systems including roads, railways, canals, bridges, etc.; William Strickland, Mathew Carey, Richard Peters, Jr., Joseph Hemphill, Stephen Duncan, and Gerard Ralston were among its members.

•  Shoemaker 15654, 21855, 19953, 19955, & 19949. Light blue paper–covered boards, spine with printed paper title-label. Light age-toning and spotting, more pronounced in last few leaves. Final (blank) leaf with early inked ownership signature; child’s pencilled drawings on one blank page.  (18669)

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A LONG-POPULAR! ILLUSTRATED Work onAncient Mythology

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•  First published in 1556, Cartari's work brings together a wealth of information about Classical mythology: idols, rites, ceremonies, and practices. It was first issued with illustrations in 1571, those being by Bolognino Zaltieri, and the many in-text engravings of this edition are derived from his.

Although this was not the most rigorous of studies, its engaging style, its being in Italian rather than Latin, and its illustrations have made Cartari's Imagini popular and given it a long and successful run of editions.

Provenance:  Pressure-stamp of private collector Colossio Solari of Cremona.

Brunet labels this “une des plus belle editions de cet ouvrage.”

•  Graesse, II, 56; Brunet, I, 1601.   Mid-19th-century quarter cloth with marbled paper sides. Some staining; some gatherings probably supplied or damaged and now tipped to stubs. Light waterstaining here and there. A less than perfect copy priced very much according to its faults and still a worthy copy for an impoverished collector or a person who just doesn't need “perfect”!  (34647)

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One Classic NonfictionBIBLIO-Who-Dunnit

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•  The first edition of the book that destroyed Thomas Wise, England's doyen of bibliographers and biblio-forgers. “This book is a fully documented exposure of a group of more than fifty 'first editions' of such eminent authors as Wordsworth, Tennyson, Dickens, Thackeray, the Brownings, Swinburne, George Eliot, William Morris, R. L. Stevenson, and Rudyard Kipling. . . . The exposure of the real character of these books introduces scientific methods which have never before been applied to bibliographical problems of this period.”

•  Fine copy in a very good dust jacket, jacket with minor chipping to lower area of spine, one long split at spine repaired on verso, and lower corner of ifront flap cut off; volume very clean and nice, top edge gilt. In a green cloth chemise with red leather author, title, and date labels on the spine, in an open-back slipcase.  (33426)

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EARLY U.S. EDITION: An Influential Classic

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•  Second American edition (following the first of 1792, and the true London first of 1765) of this landmark work of early British cookery. Not much is known about Carter herself, but her emphasis on a variety of tasty, accessible gravies and sauces has stood the test of time. Although in its initial U.S. appearances, the Frugal Housewife was strictly oriented towards British cuisine and ingredients, it was later adapted and expanded for American housewives, and portions of the original publication directly formed the basis for the first American-authored cookbook: Amelia Simmons's American Cookery.

The work includes chapters on pickling and preserving and on homemade wines, and is illustrated with two engraved plates that depict trussing techniques for cooking fowls and hares.

Provenance:  Flourishing old signatures of “J. Lowry” to pastedown and title-page.

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•  ESTC W12281; Bitting 78–79; Evans 30168; Lowenstein, American Cookery, 15.   Contemporary treed sheep, moderately rubbed and with some chipping; spine with gilt-stamped leather title-label (also chipped), boards slightly warped, and joints well repaired. Paper somewhat browned and foxed but quite strong, with pp. 41–44 long ago supplied from another copy; some edges ragged and corners bumped. Back free endpaper and last few leaves lightly waterstained. Inscriptions as above. Now housed in a maroon cloth clamshell case with gilt-stamped spine label of matching leather.  (24689)

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Guadalajara AchievesIts Own Press

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•  This first production of the first press in Guadalajara, the fourth city in Mexico to have a press, commemorates the funeral obsequies of the Dominican bishop of the City, Antonio Alcalde. It begins with the Latin oration of José Appolinari de Vizcarra, Marqués de Pánuco, “Oratio in funere Illmi. D.D. Fr. Antonii de Alcalde Episcopi Guadalaxariani habita . . . quinto Idus Novembris ann. MDCCXCII. A Josepho Appolinari de Vizcarra, Marchione de Panuco. . . . “ (pp. i–xxviii and a leaf previous to first page of text). This is followed by Lic. D. Juan José Moreno's Spanish-language “Sermon predicado el dia 10 de noviembre de 1792. En las solemnes exequias que la Santa Iglesia Catedral de Guadalaxara celebró á su pastor el Illmô. y Rmô. Señor Mtrô. D. Fr. Antonio Alcalde . . . “ (pp. 1–26 and a leaf prior to first page of text). The remainder of the volume is composed of copies of documents illustrative of the generosity and goodness that characterized the bishop's life, including a long, detailed list of his gifts to various monasteries, convents, and schools. The volume ends with an embarrassingly long list of errata for the sermon and the oration.

Sometime before 1792, the authorities and well-placed private individuals in Guadalajara began soliciting among the printers of Mexico City for one of them to move with his/her press to their ever-growing city. At first there were no takers, but eventually Manuel Antonio Valdés, the editor of the Gazeta de México, accepted their offer and guarantees, and agreed to send his son, Mariano, to fill the position. The father ordered new type and equipment from Spain, and all of the necessary permissions for the establishing of the first press in Guadalajara were in place by February of 1792. Valdés Tellez Girón and his press, however, did not arrive until the beginning of the next year. As with all first presses, the work available was less than promised or envisioned, but Valdés persisted and probably did much more “job printing” than book or broadside work. His presswork is characterized by neatness and good page design.

The importance of this production is underscored by its having been reproduced in a limited edition facsimile of 50 copies in Guadalajara in 1982.

•  Medina, Guadalajara, 1; Palau 79207 (incorrect collation); Sabin 22362 & 29025; Beristain, I, 303.   Evidence of original wrappers along inner margin of title-page, spine, and blank rear leaf: some discoloration from glue. Some dust-soiling. No worming or tears. A very good copy, now laid (not glued) into a neat folder of marbled paper.  (34568)

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Timeless Hours — A Medieval Manuscript Leaf

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•  These lines from Psalm 2, line 4, through Psalm 3, line 5, were copied in a fine gothic hand and decorated by a skilled illuminator withone two-line initial “D” in blue and 14 single-line initials in alternating blue and gold, with delicate pen infills in red and black flourishing into the spacious margins.

This leaf was once part of a Book of Hours: a prayer book with eight sections corresponding to different times of day, always containing the Hours of the Virgin, as well as a calendar and selection of psalms, but more or less personalized depending on each owner's taste and social class. Illuminated Books of Hours like this signaled the owner's status and “values” at the same time — the more sophisticated the decoration, the more money spent — therefore, the more devout the scribe's patron!

•  Soft, white vellum, red edges, lightly soiled; tiny nicks (as usual) on one edge of the leaf where it was sometime detached from previous sewing, preserving margin except for one lower corner where a bit of vellum was cut away or naturally lacking. Very charming.  (30810)

Nahuatl Catechism, withProvenance

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•  The first edition of this important translation of the standard Catholic catechism. Father Pérez was one of Mexico's leading Nahuatl (i.e., Aztec) scholars of the 18th century, the period of a major rebirth of scholarship in Nahuatl studies; he held the post of professor of Nahuatl at the Royal University in Mexico City. This work was prepared for use among the Indians of Central Mexico, as well as other areas of North America into which Nahuatl had been introduced.

The catechism isnot in the accustomed question and answer format, but is composed of sermon-like discussions on the articles of faith and dogma. Additionally, Perez discusses various Biblical issues and teachings of the Fathers of the Church.

Provenance:  18th- or early 19th-century ownership note at top of title-page (partially crossed out) of Bachiller Perez Jimenez y Mendoza; bookplate of Frederick Starr, noted 20th-century scholar of Mexican languages and matters indigenous.

•  Viñaza 280; García Icazbalceta, Lenguas, 56; Sabin 60912; Medina, Mexico, 2719; Pilling, Proof-sheets, 2957; H. de León-Portilla, Tepuztlahcuilolli, 2135.   Original limp vellum; text block almost totally loose in it. Lacking endpapers; worming at inner margins, some repaired. Stains and foxing but minor and only occasional. Withal, a solid, good, and useable copy of this significant work — with pleasant provenance both early and late.  (34616)

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Small Format forUse in the Field

Catholic Church.  Catechisms. Kalispel.   (Canestrelli, trans.).

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•  The second catechism in Kalispel,following the much shorter, basic one of 17 pages issued by the mission press at St. Ignatius Print in 1880. This one received the approval of the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore and was translated into Kalispel, a Salishan language, by the Jesuit missionary Felipe Canestrelli.

Kalispel is the language of the Flathead Indians of Montana, Idaho, eastern Washington, Alberta, and portions of British Columbia.

•  Pilling, Salishan, 29; Newberry Library, Ayer Indians, Kalispel 2.   Publisher's pale green wrappers, minor chipping or abrasion to wrappers with small loss of paper at top of spine and to one corner. A nice clean copy.  (35116)

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Recovered from a Binding

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•  A partial leaf from a liturgical manuscript, probably a church service book. The text on the recto is in a single column of 12 lines with ten 4–line staves, ruled in red with neumes in black, and on the verso in a single column of 33 lines (no staves) ruled in red.

The recto has text and chant of prayers for celebration of the Feast of [Saint] Mary Magdalene (22 July): The rubric reading “Sancte marie ma-/-gdalene ad primas vesperas super psalmos diei. antyphon,” lines 1–2) and the text beginning “Maria pio coniuncta ihesu osculando pedes . . .” (line 3). The verso contains a list of prayers (mainly collects?) for celebrating the feasts of a number of saints and occasions, including the feasts of Saints Peter and Paul (“In Octaua Apostolorum Petri et Pauli,” lines 3–8); “Sanctorum Septem Fratrum” (“[De] Septem fratrem martirum”, lines 16–19); the translation of Saint Benedict (“[In] translacio sancti benedicti abbatis et confessoris,” lines 20–21); Saint Thuriam (“[De] Sancti thuriam episcopi et confessoris,” lines 29–30); Saint Arnulf (“[De] Sancti arnulphi episcopi et martiris,” lines 30–31); Saint Arsenius (May 8) (“[De] Sancti arsenij abbatis et confessoris,” lines 31–32); and Saint Margaret (“[De] Sancte margarete virgine et martiris” lines 32–33).

The text is written in a Gothic textura book hand of good quality in two grades of formality: the text on the recto and that of larger size on the verso is written in textualis quadrata (minims have consistently applied feet), while the text of smaller size on the verso is written in the slightly less formal textualis semi-quadrata (although some minims have feet, others are simply rounded off). As should be expected there is frequent use of abbreviations including both contractions and suspensions (“-us,” “-rum” and “-bus” abbreviations), although with a general preference for “et” in full. The music for the chant (on the recto) is written inneumes.

The recto has a single large initial “M” in red (the height of one stave plus one line), marking the opening of the chant for “Maria pio communita oscilando. . . . “ and on the verso are six large 2–line initials in alternating red and blue (D[eus], S[anctoru(m)], P[resta], D[eus], C[onserua], and D[eus]), marking the beginning of liturgical sections; the outside portion of each initial was lost to cropping when the leaf was recycled as binding material. The rubrics and liturgical signposts (e.g., “oratio”) are in red, including antiphons on recto and Orations, Chapters, Collects, Hymns, Antiphons, Responds and Versicles on verso, with other liturgical signposts underlined in red.

•  This leaf was used as binding waste in making up a volume half its size, to which end it was heavily cut down to a size just smaller than the text block and rotated horizontally. A crease running horizontally across the middle of the leaf shows the mark (location) of the spine of that volume. Instructive, and visually striking.  (37285)

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Splendor of the Mass in aSplendid Binding on a Miniature Book

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•  The Catholic mass is big and splendid but in this book it is made small while still maintaining splendor via the binding on a miniature book designed to guide children through the ritual.

Binding:  Original wrap-around red morocco, richly gilt on back cover with a Virgin and on front one with a foliate design on a finely ruled background, spine gilt and with title; leather of rear cover extends across fore-edge onto front cover and is attached there with a tongue slipped into a strap (wallet style). All edges gilt.

Provenance:  Gift inscription “Laura, from C. & S. M., June 7, 1869.”

Searches of NUC, WorldCat, COPAC, CCPBE, KVK, and the OPAC of the Spanish National Libraryfail to find another copy.

•  Welsh, Miniature Books, 4378 for a work of same title, different place of publication, and approximately same number of pages, but with no mention of plates.   Light wear to binding, gilt of rear cover faded; the tongue of the binding is rubbed under its strap and may be missing a small piece at the end. Interior clean and fresh; over all very good.  (35616)

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The Feast of a MARTYREDSoldier & Patron of Hunters

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•  Handsome manuscript rendition of the Proper for the festival of St. Eustachius or Eustace — who converted after seeing a vision of the crucifix between a stag's antlers, and was eventually roasted alive along with his family — and his companion martyrs. Possibly commissioned for the Church of St. Eustache in Paris, this manuscript offersFrench and Latin parallel texts nicely accomplished in double columns of neat text in brown withred and blue accents, ruled in blue and red with some inked flourishes; one column (along with a scattered handful of words elsewhere) is done in oblique script, while all others are upright roman.

•  Contemporary mottled sheep, spine compartments with gilt-stamped floral decorations; binding scuffed with small areas of insect damage, spine with label now absent and leather lost at foot. Preliminary leaves with pinhole worming; pages slightly age-toned, with scattered mild spotting and some small smudges to letters and lines. All edges red. AN ENGAGING THING.  (32913)

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The Year inFour Vols. & Beautiful Bindings

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•  Beautifully printed and handsomely bound set of the Roman Breviary. The text is printed in double-column format, in black and red, with a vignette on each title-page and an engraving in each volume.

Binding: Contemporary's black goat sides with simple roll gilt border and gilt corner devices, spines gilt extra. The top panel of each volume indicates contents with abbreviation: P. V. (“Pars Vernalis”), P. AE. (“Pars Aestivalis”), etc. Block-printed decorated endpapers; all edges gilt. Silk place markers.

•  Not in Weale & Bohatta.   Bindings as above, edges and extremities rubbed, spine leather with tiny cracks, one spine head chipped, one joint starting. Ex-library with bookplates, rubber-stamp on lower edges of pages of the closed volumes. One volume with text block separating from spine and sewing loosening; this with the most leather rubbed away and the darkest instances of the usually-light waterstaining and spots of foxing seen occasionally throughout. Endpapers bear early inked ownership inscriptions and annotations. An elegant quartet.  (12406)

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Christmas Prayers — Gorgeous Binding

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•  This richly bound breviary offers dedicated prayers for Christmas as well as the feasts of Saint Stephen, Saint John the Apostle, and Saint Thomas, among others; the title-page bearsa lovely small engraving of the holy family with baby Jesus. The text is handsomely printed in both red and black throughout with beautifully illustrated initials and emblematic tailpieces, several of the latter beingentirely printed in red.

Binding:  18th-century red morocco elaborately gilt-tooled, spine with floral and vine-stamped compartments and rules; covers framed surrounding an oval arabesque central design using a multiplicity of rules, rolls, and individual tools, one roll being of thistles and each arabesque corner stamping being surmounted by a bird. The endpapers are of floral “wallpaper” style in brown, bisque, and cream; all edges are gilt and gauffered in a floral pattern of their own. The volume is closed with two heavy, working brass clasps.

Provenance:  Contemporary ownership signature of Fr. Cristobal de Parayso on verso of title-page.

Searches of OCLC, the NUC, and COPAC reveal no copies of this edition in U.S. libraries.

•  Bound as above, with light rubbing and some darkened leather, dust-soiling (or evidence of old polish) around clasps, and clasp attachments having a little poked through endpapers with small spots of associated discoloration but no apparent continuing danger. Moderate age-toning with a few leaves crinkled along edges from gauffering or with a small spot, one leaf with short internal tear; ownership signature as noted above and date lightly pencilled on back fly-leaf. A lovely, ornately embellished, and lovable book.  (36927)

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Florentine Decrees from the Giunta Press in Black & Red

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•  The fifth portion (only) of the major collection of canon law known as the Liber Sextus Decretalium, with this section comprising important documents from the reigns of Popes Eugene IV and Julius II: bulls issuing from the Council of Florence, on the reunification of the Roman Catholic Church and the Jacobite, Greek, and Armenian Churches, and on the process of papal election.

The text is printed in a small but handsome rotunda typeface with several decorative capitals, and headers and other elements are presented in red; the red fleur-de-lis Giunta printer's device appears on the title-page. This portion of the law does not include any of the woodcuts found in other portions in this edition.

Provenance:  Front pastedown with thevery engaging bookplate of American private collector Mark Holstein, designed by artist Arthur Allen Lewis.

•  EDIT16 CNCE 13404. Not in Adams.   Later quarter vellum and printed paper–covered boards; extremities slightly rubbed, vellum gently darkened. Waterstaining variously, from atmospheric to pretty severe; final eight leaves with upper margins repaired, affecting parts of captions and a few words of text; endpapers with later pencilled annotations. A survivor souvenir of a worthy press, with pleasant provenance.  (36846)

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Working Documents Produced inWorkmanlike Fashion

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•  During the first year of Benedict XIII's pontificate (1725), as the bishop of Rome he hosted a concilium for the province of Rome. The assembled prelates met in the Lateran Basilica to review and revise the rules and laws regulating the clergy in and of the province, producing revisions that were numerous and important. These were promulgated promptly and published in several editions in 1725. This is one of three editions we have identified as being printed in that year, all from the press of the same printer. No priority has yet been established for their order of appearance.

•  Contemporary vellum over light pasteboards with slightly raised bands; the vellum used here was recovered from earlier use in a binding or some document. Some foxing and other staining/soiling in text; in all, a solid, good to good-plus copy.  (36632)

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THREE Classics with Commentary, in aPRIZE BINDING

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•  The works of Catullus, Tibullus, and Propertius were first published together in 1472. The first part here contains a section for each of these Roman poets, each with copious notes by Joseph Justus Scaliger (1540–1609); the second part is divided into14 chapters of commentary by Muretus, Statius, and others as per the title-page. The volume's text is in Latin with some Greek, printed in roman, italic, and capital letters, with the main text single-column above Scaliger's notes, printed smaller and in double columns; the separate commentaries, paginated continuously but quite erratically, are also in double-column. Dotted throughout are attractive woodcut initials of floral, historiated, and factotum designs; ornaments and head- and tailpieces; a small woodcut diagram; and a few inscriptions printed in capitals, including one set lengthwise on a full page. The title-page features the printer's large device and is preceded by an added engraved title-page.

Binding: Contemporary vellumprize binding paneled in gilt on each cover with fleurons at corners, this surrounding thecoat of arms of Rotterdam, i.e., two gilt lions supporting a shield of four lions passant above a pale charge, crowned by a ducal coronet with a fleur-de-lis at the helm. Spine blind-ruled with a single floral ornament blind-stamped in each compartment, title written in early ink (now faded).

Provenance:  Two different bookplates of Lebanese lawyer, writer, and translator Camille Aboussouan (b. 1919), former UNESCO ambassador to Lebanon who founded the cultural review Les Cahiers de l'Est. Pressure-stamp of Jean-François Jolibois (1794–1879), a priest at Trévoux, France, who was a member of the légion d'honneur and various literary societies. Ink inscription in French dated 25 February 1863 at Lyon, shelf number in same hand on front pastedown, and price in ink on front free endpaper.

•  Schweiger, II, 81; Dibdin, I, 377; Graesse, II, 87 (“fort rare”).   Binding as above, with four green ribbon ties; prize assignment lacking and engraved title-page reattached; lightly soiled, gilt rubbed in places, some staining to edges of text block. Mild to moderate foxing, occasionally; a few inkstains or smudges and small dampstains; two small holes from natural paper flaws not affecting text and one sectional title-page with same taking “A” from CATULLUS; two short marginal tears. Overall, indeed, clean and crisp and pleasing.  (31362)

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Star-Crossed Italian Lovers — Peregrino & Genevera

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•  “Nuovamente ristampato, e con somma diligenza corretto, et alla sua pristina integrita ridotto”: an uncommon early edition of Caviceo's best-selling, often translated, and widely influential romance. The author had a complicated life which included dropping out of law school shortly before he could be expelled, becoming a court historian and diplomat in Parma, being banished from that city for seducing a nun (and possibly more than one), voyaging in the Middle East and India, and embroiling himself in various political intrigues before working his way to the post of Vicar General in cities including Rimini, Ravenna, and Florence. His classically inspired novel, first published in 1508 and dedicated to Lucrezia Borgia, is a romance in which Peregrino tells the ghost of Boccaccio all about his globe-spanning quest to satisfy his passion for the fair Genevera — with the plot incorporating the author's own travel experiences.

In addition to the woodcut architectural border on the title-page (previously used in the printer's 1536 edition of Boccaccio's Laberinto), the text is decorated with one large and two small woodcut illustrations, the large cut showing our lovelorn hero tormented by two satyrs playing fantastical string and wind instruments, under the banner “Ancora spero solver me.”

WorldCat locatesonly three U.S. institutional holdings of this edition.

Provenance:  From the library of American collector Albert A. Howard (sans indicia).

•  Adams C1190; EDIT 16 CNCE 71312; Brunet, I, 1701; Index aurel. 134.670.   19th-century half calf over marbled paper–covered boards, spine with gilt-stamped olive morocco title-label and gilt-tooled bands, all page edges speckled in brown; binding rubbed and worn, joints cracked but holding. First gathering very possibly supplied from a different copy. Front pastedown with two older cataloguing slips affixed; front free endpaper and (tipped-in) fly-leaf with later inked annotations in Latin and Italian. Occasional small spots of foxing and ink staining; a limited circle of light waterstain(?) to last leaf; a very few small early inked marks of emphasis in margins. A solid, eminently readable copy of animportant, readable, and uncommon early prose romanzo d'amore.  (37524)

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