Antiquariatsmesse Stuttgart 2021 - Katalog

[Gelen, Sigismund, editor] – Notitia utraque cum
orientis tum occidentis ultra arcadii honoriique
caesarum tempora illustre vetustatis monumentum
… Basle: (Hieronymus Froben), 1552. (Bound
with:) Curtius Rufus, Q. De rebus gestis Alexandri
Magni regis Macedonum opus. Basileae: in officina
Frobeniana, 1545. 2 works in one volume in folio
(325 × 215 mm), attractively bound together in contemporary
blind-stamped brown morocco with
clasps and catches on boards. Woodcut printer’s
devices to title-page and final page verso of first
work, pp. nn. (216), beautifully illustrated with 106
woodcuts in fine contemporary coloring within
the text, 85 of which are full-page. Rufus: pp. [8],
171, [13], with a full-page woodcut to verso of title,
depicting the dedicatee, Prince Albertus of Bavaria,
and his coat-of-arms; and another full-page woodcut
at recto of last prelim. leaf *4, depicting the coatof-arms
of the editor of this work, Christophorus
Bruno; some large woodcut historiated capitals
after Holbein, and printer’s device at verso of last
leaf. € 14 000,–
The first complete edition of this richly illustrated
„state handbook of the military and civil organisation
of the late Roman Empire“ (cf. Hieronymus). Originally
written in the 5th century AD, it survived in illustrated
manuscripts throughout the medieval period;
the first printed edition of 1529 only featured selected
passages. The present, first complete edition was edited
by the humanist Sigismund Gelen (ca.1498–1554), who
worked as a consultant at the Froben press. The work
is remarkable for its fascinating woodcuts designed
mostly by Conrad Schnitt, except for three probably
made by Hans Rudolf Manuel Deutsch, with bird’seye
views of Rome and Constantinople, allegorical
representation of the provinces of the Empire, royal,
military and civil insignia, military ships and carts.
Very interesting are the illustrations of the notarial
and secretarial offices of the Primicerius Notariorum
and the Magister Scriniorum, with large woodcuts illustrating
books (some in Greek) of various sizes and
with various bindings. In the last part of this treatise
we can find some further short texts, on civil and military
organisation (by Andrea Alciati), a topographic
description of classical Rome (by Publius Victor) and
a dialogue between Emperor Hadrian and the philosopher
Epictetus. VD16, N-1884; BM-STC German
747; Adams II, 354; Hieronymus, Oberrhein. Buchill.
II, 466; Schweiger 618; Graesse IV, 691; Ebert 14904;
Brunet IV, 111. Curtius: VD16 C-6466; Index Aurel.
148.802; Adams C-3123. – Siehe Abbildungen.
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