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QUADRAGESIMALE DE FLORIBUS SAPIENTIAE.
(Venice: Bonetus Locatellus, for Octavianus Scotus, 20 Feb. 1488/89). 247 x 177 mm. (9 3/4 x 7"). 314 unnumbered leaves (first and last blank). COMPLETE. Double column, 61 lines plus headline, gothic type. Edited by Marcus Venetus. Fourth Edition.
Contemporary wooden boards backed with blind-stamped pigskin, raised bands, ink lettering to spine, one brass clasp (new strap) and catchplate, lacking second clasp. With six-line opening initial hand-painted in red, numerous three-line initials in red or green throughout, many with flourishes in margins. Not infrequent marginal annotations in a small, neat contemporary hand, occasional painted initials filled with decorative penwork in the same ink (and by the same hand?); a10 with remnants of metal tab. Remnants of vellum manuscript leaves used as sewing guards visible in the gutters of first and last quires. BMC V, 436; Goff S-681; ISTC is00681000. Pigskin with two-inch split at head near front joint and half-inch split at foot, spine somewhat soiled, but the binding entirely sound and pleasantly antique. Occasional trivial thumbing or printing smudges, front flyleaf vaguely soiled, various other--but always very minor--imperfections, and, all in all, an extremely pleasing copy--the text clean, fresh, and bright.
Rubricated throughout in red--and with less commonly seen green--and in a substantial period binding, this is a very pleasing copy of sermons that exerted a considerable influence during the last quarter of the 15th century. Our author, Treviso native Ambrosius Spiera (ca. 1413-55), was a theologian and member of the mendicant Servite Order. First printed in 1475 and appearing here in its fourth and final incunabular edition, his 45 "Lenten Flowers of Wisdom" were directed primarily at theology students and resemble scholastic lectures as much as sermons. In them, Spiera tackles a range of theological questions, citing numerous authorities, including Augustine, Bonaventure, and Thomas Aquinas, clarifying their arguments and attempting to rectify disagreements between them, providing a useful resource for students. The present edition represents an important partnership in early Venetian publishing. Bonetus Locatellus printed this work for Octavianus Scotus, for whom he worked almost exclusively until the publisher's death on Christmas Eve, 1498. Locatellus began printing for Scotus in the 1480s; his name first appeared in the colophon of an edition of "De Civitate Dei" published in 1486-87, but Haebler believes Scotus may have been employing him as early as 1482. Locatellus continued to print for Scotus' heirs and other patrons through the first decade of the 16th century, and he continued to use the types seen here until the end of the 15th century. He issued a large number of incunables, probably numbering closer to 200 than 100, consisting largely of texts for university use. While early editions of "Quadragesimale" come to market with some regularity, the present fully contemporary copy, with its thick, clean paper and highly decorative rubrication is a particularly appealing example. (ST20838)
Price: $7,800.00