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Macrobius's In somnium Scipionis

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Macrobius's In somnium Scipionis
Boninus de Boninis, 1483
MACROBIUS, Aurelius Theodosius (fl. 400 CE). In somnium Scipionis expositio. –Saturnalia. Brescia: Boninus de Boninis, 6 June 1483.

Second edition—and first illustrated with a woodcut map—of Macrobius, with ten illuminated initials. Macrobius’s neo-platonist commentary on an excerpt from Cicero’s otherwise mostly lost De re publica—itself modeled on the “Myth of Er” from Plato’s Republic—was hugely popular throughout the Middle Ages. It addresses not only the nature of the soul and the divine but the structure of the heavens and the celestial spheres, giving Macrobius remit to comment on everything from philosophy to physics. The map is integral to the text, illustrating Macrobius’s geographical theories in the first and second books; a map is found in about 100 surviving manuscripts of the work as well. According to Dibdin, this edition contains largely the same material as the editio princeps published by Jenson in 1472, with the addition of the map. This edition also contains Macrobius’ Saturnalia, another imitation of Plato which records scientific and literary conversation held during a fictional dinner party. Only two copies of this edition are recorded at auction in the last 100 years. HC 10427*; BMC VII 968; BSB-Ink M-2; Bod-inc M-002; IGI 5924; Klebs 638.2; Campbell(Maps) 87; Goff M-9; ISTC im00009000; Dibdin Spenceriana 304. See also Ford BPH 139 (third edition) and Stillwell, Science, I.74 (first edition).

Super-chancery folio (309 x 205mm). 191 leaves (of 192, without initial blank). Greek and Roman types. 10 illuminated initials in red, blue, and green, red and blue Lombard initials, woodcut map and other diagrams (dampstaining throughout, some other staining, some wormtracks, one initial partially worn away). 19th-century red straight-grained morocco (upper joint cracked and board partially detached, boards repaired). Provenance: early library inscription, partially erased, dated 1498 – acquired from H.P. Kraus, New York, 4 May 1955.

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[ translate ]

Macrobius's In somnium Scipionis
Boninus de Boninis, 1483
MACROBIUS, Aurelius Theodosius (fl. 400 CE). In somnium Scipionis expositio. –Saturnalia. Brescia: Boninus de Boninis, 6 June 1483.

Second edition—and first illustrated with a woodcut map—of Macrobius, with ten illuminated initials. Macrobius’s neo-platonist commentary on an excerpt from Cicero’s otherwise mostly lost De re publica—itself modeled on the “Myth of Er” from Plato’s Republic—was hugely popular throughout the Middle Ages. It addresses not only the nature of the soul and the divine but the structure of the heavens and the celestial spheres, giving Macrobius remit to comment on everything from philosophy to physics. The map is integral to the text, illustrating Macrobius’s geographical theories in the first and second books; a map is found in about 100 surviving manuscripts of the work as well. According to Dibdin, this edition contains largely the same material as the editio princeps published by Jenson in 1472, with the addition of the map. This edition also contains Macrobius’ Saturnalia, another imitation of Plato which records scientific and literary conversation held during a fictional dinner party. Only two copies of this edition are recorded at auction in the last 100 years. HC 10427*; BMC VII 968; BSB-Ink M-2; Bod-inc M-002; IGI 5924; Klebs 638.2; Campbell(Maps) 87; Goff M-9; ISTC im00009000; Dibdin Spenceriana 304. See also Ford BPH 139 (third edition) and Stillwell, Science, I.74 (first edition).

Super-chancery folio (309 x 205mm). 191 leaves (of 192, without initial blank). Greek and Roman types. 10 illuminated initials in red, blue, and green, red and blue Lombard initials, woodcut map and other diagrams (dampstaining throughout, some other staining, some wormtracks, one initial partially worn away). 19th-century red straight-grained morocco (upper joint cracked and board partially detached, boards repaired). Provenance: early library inscription, partially erased, dated 1498 – acquired from H.P. Kraus, New York, 4 May 1955.

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22 Apr 2021
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