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CONSTITUTIONES ORDINIS VELLERIS AUREI E GALLICO IN LATINUM CONVERSAE.
([Antwerp: Balthasar Moretus, [1626]). 257 x 185 mm. (10 1/4 x 7 1/4"). 8 p.l., 91 pp.Translated by Nicolas Grudius. ONE OF 50 COPIES ON VELLUM PRINTED FOR THE KING OF SPAIN (and 25 copies on paper).
Handsome dark brown crushed morocco tooled in gilt and blind by the Club Bindery for Robert Hoe (stamp-signed and dated 1903 on front turn-in and with Hoe's monogram on front pastedown), covers with frame of double gilt rules enclosing repeated blind-stamped medallions, central panel with blind-ruled lozenge and rectangle, the latter with oblique gilt fleurons at corners, raised bands, spine compartments ruled in blind, with gilt fleuron centerpiece and gilt floral buds at corners, gilt lettering, vellum endleaves, all edges gilt (tiny, invisible repairs at top of spine and front joint). With two full-page armorial engravings by Cornelius Galle, one the arms of the Spanish monarch, the other the insignia of the Order, engraved head- and tailpieces. Front pastedown with morocco bookplate of Robert Hoe, as well as engraved bookplates of Arthur & Charlotte Vershbow and David Godine. Bibl. Belg. I, 692; Voet II, 1017; Van Praet V:161-2; Brunet Supp. I:291; USTC 1007848. Boards slightly bowed (as almost inevitable with vellum books), text a bit wavy (also as expected), occasional faint smudges or dustsoiling at edges, but AN EXTREMELY PLEASING COPY, the vellum creamy and bright, the binding very lustrous.
This is the luxurious vellum printing of the rules of the Order of the Golden Fleece, bound in 16th century style for the renowned bibliophile Robert Hoe by the workshop he co-founded and supervised for much of its existence. Founded in 1429 by Philip, Duke of Burgundy, the exclusive Order of the Golden Fleece was the most distinguished knighthood in the Holy Roman Empire, being limited to just 24 members. Its primary purpose was to preserve and protect the Catholic faith, as well as to uphold the 12 knightly virtues outlined by Philip: Faith, Charity, Justice, Sagacity, Prudence, Temperance, Resolution, Truth, Liberality, Diligence, Hope, and Valor. Those deserving to be collared with the order's golden necklace (featuring an appended ram that gave the group its name) swore to support their monarch militarily, and in return they were exempt from taxes as well as being entitled to be tried for any crimes by a jury restricted to their fellow knights. The "Rules" or "Statutes" that make up the text here dictate the (very strict) obligations and behavioral guidelines for its members, including proscriptions against such things as fleeing a battle out of cowardice or embracing beliefs antithetical to the Church, along with a number of procedural decrees governing, for example, how, exactly, to participate in ceremonial occasions. The earliest Latin edition of the "Constitutiones," translated from the French by the secretary of the Order, Flemish poet Nicolaus Grudius (1504-70), was printed by Guillaume Silvius at the Plantin Press in 1566. In total, four vellum editions were issued over the next 200 years, all now rare. The present copy collates as the 1626 edition issued by Balthasar Moretus, which the Belgian national bibliography tells us was printed for the king of Spain with 50 copies on vellum and 25 on paper. Our copy was bound in 1903 for Robert Hoe (1839-1909), a founder of the Grolier Club and one of the world's great book collectors. After Grolier was established in 1884, it soon became apparent that the country's few established hand binders were overtaxed in providing repairs and rebinding for the club members' rapidly accumulating acquisitions. As a consequence, in 1895, Grolier members, along with Edwin Holden and other wealthy collectors, established the Club Bindery in order to attract European craftsmen to provide, close to home, fine quality binding work rivalling what was available abroad. The Club Bindery was in operation until 1909, with Hoe being its most influential manager and client. It provided bindings that tended to be traditional in style--though frequently with elaborate decoration--and that lived up to its patrons' expectations in terms of excellence. Our volume later passed into the hands of another Grolier Club member, Arthur Vershbow (1922-2012), and his wife Charlotte (1924-2000). All early editions of this work are scarce; we were able to trace just one other copy of our vellum-printed edition at auction (sold for €11,700 at van de Wiele in 2024). (ST21074)
Price: $17,500.00