Early Printing & Manuscripts (15th & 16th Century)

IBN SINA (AVICENNA). Canon medicinae [= al-Qanun].
Lyon, Jean Trechsel & Johann Klein, 24 December 1498. 2 volumes. Folio (ca. 31 × 42 cm). With a diagrammatic woodcut. Contemporary blind- and gold-tooled calf over wooden boards, sewn on 4 double supports, one volume with 2 brass clasps (and traces on the other volume). 379; 357 ll. Full description

IBN SINA (AVICENNA), Maynus de MAYNIS, Arnaldus de VILLANOVA, [Roger BACON] and others. Regimen sanitatis Magnini Mediolanensis ... Insuper opusculu[m] De flebothomia editum ... Reginaldo de Villa Nova. Additur quoq[ue] Astronomia Hippocratis ... de variis egritudinibus et morbis. Item Secreta Hippogratis. Item Averrois De venenis. Ite[m] Quid pro quo apothecariorum ... Nicolaum ... Cum no[n]nullis insuper Avicenne: ...
[Lyon], publisher's device of B[arthélemy] T[rot] (colophon: Lyon, printed by Jacques Myt, 6 February 1517). Small 4to (19 x 14 cm). With the title page printed in red and black with Trot's woodcut publisher's device (lion holding arms bearing a globus cruciger with a parochial cross and initials BT), 12 decorated woodcut initials (white-on-black "Lombardic" capitals with leaf and flower decorations, 3 series) plus 3 repeats. Set in rotunda gothic types (2 sizes) with 3-line "Lombardic" capitals (and a couple 2-line), and 2 spaces with guide letters left to be filled in by hand. 17th-century(?) calf, sewn on 5 double supports, gold-tooled spine with titles in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th of 6 compartments and a fleur-de-lis in each of the others, blind fillets on sides. Rebacked with the original backstrip laid down. CI, [3] ll. Full description

IBN SINA (AVICENNA) and Gherardo da CREMONA (translator). Liber canonis totius medicine.
(Colophon:) Lyon, Jacques Myt, 1522. 4to. With the title printed in red, set within an elaborate woodcut architectural frame, 115 metal cut decorated initials. Later blind-tooled brown calf, with the contemporary richly blind-tooled brown calf laid down on both boards showing 6 horizontal panels alternating 2 different rolls within an elaborate multi-fillet frame, sewn on 4 supports with corresponding raised bands on the spine, the leather on both boards shows small holes once containing closing ties. [8], 453 ll. Full description

IBN SINA (AVICENNA) and Jacob MANTINO (translator). Avicennae quarta fen primi libri de universali ratione medendi: nunc primum. m. Iacob Mantini medici hebrei: opera Latinate donata.
(colophon:) Venice, Lucantonio Giunti, 8 April 1530. 8vo. With Giunti's printer's device on the title page (a Florentine lily with the L. A. initials). Later vellum with more recent end leaves. 60 ll. Full description

IBRAHIM HAKKI ERZURUMLU. Marifetname. [The Book of Gnosis].
[Ottoman Empire], 1238 H [= 1823 CE]. Folio (21 x 32.3 cm). Ottoman Turkish manuscript on paper. Written in a compact nastaliq hand in black ink, with headings, key words and punctuation marks in red, the text enclosed within ruled golden borders. With numerous full-page and smaller polychrome astronomical, cosmological, geometrical and calendrical diagrams, numerical tables and charts, several occupying entire pages and executed in blue, yellow, pink, orange, green and brown. Elaborately illuminated floral headpiece in colours and gold. Contemporary burgundy morocco binding with fore-edge flap, blind-ruled and tooled borders, central stamped medallion, and marbled paper doublures. 259 ll. Full description

IGNATIUS of ANTIOCH. [In Greek:] Toi en agiois ieromartiros ignatioi archiepiskopioi antiocheias, epistolai. (In Greek).- Antiochiae, & martyris epistolae, prosus apostolicae. (In Latin).
Antwerp, Christophe Plantin (colophon:) 8 August, 1566.
With: IDEM. Antiochiae, & martyris epistolae, prorsus apostolicae.
Antwerp, Christophe Plantin, 1566. Small 8vo. With Plantin's woodcut compasses device on each title page and a couple decorated woodcut initials. Set in italic and Greek type. Contemporary calf. 69, [1 blank]; 78 pp. Full description

[INCUNABLE - COLOGNE EDITION OF THE ARS MORIENDI]. Speculu[m] artis bene morie[n]di [= Ars moriendi].
[Cologne, Heinrich Quentell, ca. 1493/97]. Small (Chancery) 4to (20.5 x 14.5 cm). With a large woodcut on the title page. Set in a single column, with 36 lines to the page, in a rotunda gothic type, with a larger textura gothic for the first line of the title. With spaces left for manuscript initials with manuscript guide letters in black ink. Most pages with a few words underscored in black ink. Recent marbled paper over boards by the Geneva bookbinder Jean-Luc Honegger (signed with his "honegger" stamp in blue ink at the foot of the back paste-down), the marbled paper in an antique spot pattern, black morocco spine label with the title in gold roman capitals, reading up the spine. [31], [1 blank] pp. Full description

[INCUNABLE - GERMANY]. [12 leaves from: Statuta synodalia herbipolensia].
[Würzburg, Georg Reyser, ca. 1486]. Folio. Printed in red and black in rotunda type (32 lines; printed area: 18 x 12 cm; type: 112a). With illustrations cut from 19th- or 20th-century reproductions of early woodcuts (ca. 21 x 14 cm) pasted on the front (Annunciation) and back pastedown (Christophorus, with the year "cccc xx tercio").. Later bound in two leaves from a 13th-century vellum theological manuscript, rubricated and decorated with alternating red and blue initials with penwork. [12] ll. Full description

[INCUNABLE - GOUDA]. Historia septem sapientiu[m] Rom[a]e.
[Gouda, Gheraert Leeu, before 3 June 1480]. 4to (20.5 x 14 cm). With 4 full-page woodcuts plus 14 repeats. The first initial is supplied in manuscript, in a rich ornamental uncial style in red and blue with brown penwork. All other initials are supplied by hand in simple red uncials. The text is rubricated throughout. Most of the plates are lightly highlighted in yellow and red, by a contemporary hand. Contemporary limp sheepskin parchment without a spine, so that the sewing is completely visible. Kept in a modern brown half morocco clamshell box. [79], [1 blank] ll. Full description

INDAGINE VON HAGEN (ROSENBACH), Johannes. Chiromantia 1 Physiognomia, ex aspectu membrorum hominis. 2 Periaxiomata, de faciebus signorum. 3 Canones astrologici, de judiciis aegritudinum. 4 Astrologia naturalis. 5 Complexionum noticia, juxta dominium planetarium.
(Colophon: Strasbourg, Johann Schott, 1534). Folio (31 x 21.5 cm). With a large woodcut portrait of the author on the title page, the author's full-page woodcut coat of arms on the recto of the otherwise blank last leaf, about 93 woodblock illustrations (including 3 hand blocks and a few square astrological diagram blocks used repeatedly with varying content). 20th-century half maroon goatskin morocco. 126, [1], [1 blank] pp. Full description