Early Printing & Manuscripts

[AUTOGRAPH]. MELANCHTHON, Philipp. [Autograph letter, signed, from Philipp Melanchthon to Sebastian Boetius].
[Wittenberg], Easter [14 April 1555]. Folio (19.5 x 32 cm). In Latin. [2] pp. Full description

ALVERNUS, Guillelmus (William of AUVERGNE). Libri ... de fide et legibus.
[Augsburg, Günther Zainer, ca. 1475/1476]. Small folio. Set in a hybrid roman type with gothic elements (a single column of 43 lines per page plus running heads), with the first 3 lines, including the title, in a slightly larger rotunda gothic. With all initials supplied in manuscript in red, rubricated throughout. Contemporary, richly blind-tooled vellum over wooden boards, two brass clasps, blue edges, "Nr. 56" in red ink written at the foot of the spine. [139] ll. Full description

BAÏF, Lazare de and [Charles ESTIENNE (editor)]. De re vestiaria libellus, ex Bayfio decerptus: addita vulgaris linguae interpretatione, in adolescentulorum gratiam atq[ue] utilitatem.
Lyon, Sebastian Gryphius, 1539. 4 works in 1 volume. 8vo. With a woodcut printer's device on the title-page and final page of the first 3 works, each work with a decorated woodcut initial. With: (2) IDEM. De vasculis libellus.
Idem.
(3) ESTIENNE, Charles. De re hortensi libellus.
Idem.
(4) SENALUS [= CENEAU], Robert. De vera mensurarum ponderumque ratione.
Paris, Ioannes Roigny, 1535.

Later vellum, with a brown morocco label on the spine with the author and title lettered in gold, red sprinkled edges. 65, [11], [3 blank], [1]; 54, [7], [2 blank], [1]; 97, [15] pp.; [18], 119, [1 blank] ll. Full description

BAÏF, Lazare de and [Charles ESTIENNE (editor)]. De re vestiaria libellus, ex Bayfio excerptus: addita vulgaris linguae interpretatione, in adolescentulorum gratiam atque utilitatem.
Paris, Roberti Stephani [Robert Estienne], (colophon: 13 April) 1541. Small 8vo (ca. 16.5 x 10.5 cm). With a woodcut printer's device on the title-page. Modern blueish-grey paper over boards with the title printed in black on the spine, red sprinkled edges. 68, [11], [1 blank] pp. Full description

BAÏF, Lazare de and [Charles ESTIENNE (editor)]. De vasculis libellus, adulescentulorum causa ex Bayfio decerptus, addita vulgari Latinarum vocum interpretatione.
Paris, Roberti Stephani [Robert Estienne], (colophon: 13 October) 1543. 8vo. With a woodcut printer's device on the title-page. Later blueish-grey paper over boards with the title printed in black on the spine. 52, [3], [1 blank] pp. Full description

BARGAGLI, Scipione. Dell' imprese die Scipion Bargagli ... Alla prima parte, la seconda, e la terza nucoamente aggiunte.
Venice, Francesco de Franceschi, 1594. Small 4to (20.5 x 15 cm). With oval engraved device on title-page, full-page engraved portrait of Rudolf II, full-page engraved dedicatory emblem, and 138 engraved oval emblems in text. 19th-century half sheepskin parchment. [24], “573” [=604], [15], [1 blank] pp. Full description

BARLANDUS, Hadrianus. Hollandiae comitum historia et icones: Cum selectis scholijs ad lectoris lucem. Eiusdem Barlandi Caroli Burgundiae ducis vita. Item Ultraiectensium episcoporum catalogus & res gestae. Eiusdem argumenti libellus Gerardo Noviomago auctore.
Frankfurt am Main, Johann Wechel for Sigmund Feyerabend, 1585. 2 parts in 1 volume. 8vo. With a woodcut portrait of Gertrude of Saxony (repeated on p. 25) on the title page, a woodcut printer's device of Feyerabend ('Fama') on the divisional title page of part 2, a variant of his printer's device on the verso of the last page, 37 half-page woodcut portraits (all except the first three with their coats-of-arms and small ornamental woodcuts underneath), several decorated woodcut initials, and head- and tail pieces.
With: IDEM. Traiectensium episcoporum catalogus et eorum res gestae. Contemporary overlapping limp vellum. [16], "393" [=391], [1 blank]; 109, [1], [2 blank] pp. Full description

BEAUXAMIS, Thomas. In sacro sancta Coenae mysteria, passionem, et resurrectionem domini nostri Jesu, homeliae, & tabulae, annexis quibusdam scholiis, ex primis ecclesiae patribus. Ad amplissimum, & illustrissimum principem carolum cardinalem Lotharingum.
Mons (Belgium), Claude de Bronchin [printed in Paris by Guillaume Chaudière], 1570. 8vo. With Chaudières woodcut device on the title-page (Chronos, with the motto, "hancas iem sol retundit virtus"), a woodcut headpiece, 2 woodcut tailpieces and 2 woodcut initials (from 2 different series). Limp vellum (ca. 1700?). [6], 321, [1] ll. Full description

[BECH, Philipp (editor)]. De disciplina puerorum, recteque formandis eorum & studiis & moribus, ...
Basel, Joannes Oporinus (colophon: Bern, Samuel Apiarius, March 1556).
With: (2) [MOREL, Guillaume, ed.]. Graecorum veterum selectae brevesque epistolae.
Paris, Guillaume Morel, King's printer for Greek, 1562. With a remarkable woodcut device on the title-page. With the Greek text set in Claude Garamont's famous Grec du Roi and the Latin translation set in his Aldine-style italic. 2 works in 1 volume. 8vo (15 x 10 x 4.5 cm). Richly gold-tooled tanned sheepskin (ca. 1700), gilt edges. 31, [21]; [16], "840" [= 804] pp. Full description

[BECKET, Thomas à (subject)]. [Diego Afonso de MIRANDA, translator]. Historea da vida e martyrio do glorioso Sancto Thomas Arcebispo, Senhor de Cantuaria, Primas de Inglaterra, legado perpetuo da sancta see apostolica, trelada da novamente de Latim em lingoagé Portugues.
(Colophon: Coimbra, João Alvarez, printer to the University, 12 November) 1554. 4to. With several woodcut decorated initials. With the 4 preliminary leaves in facsimile. 20th-century Portuguese tree calf, gold-tooled spine, red spine label, brown sprinkled edges, marbled endpapers. [8], “CCCI” [= 303], [1 blank], [20] pp. Full description