JOSEPHUS, Flavius (c. 37-c. 100). Lhistoire Contenant les guerres qui furent au pays de Judee . Anonymous French translation of Rufinus's Latin version of De bello Judaico . Paris: Nicolas Savetier for Galliot Du Pré the elder, Poncet Le Preux and Claude Chevallon, 8 t h October 1530.
JOSEPHUS, Flavius (c. 37-c. 100). Lhistoire Contenant les guerres qui furent au pays de Judee . Anonymous French translation of Rufinus's Latin version of De bello Judaico . Paris: Nicolas Savetier for Galliot Du Pré the elder, Poncet Le Preux and Claude Chevallon, 8 t h October 1530. M2 o (330 x 215mm). Collation: a 6 (title, translator's prologue, table of contents, woodcut), b 8 c-z 6 A-L 6 M 4 (text and woodcuts, M4 blank). 209 leaves (without final blank). Bâtarde type, double column, ruled in red. Title printed in red and black within Du Pré's four-block architectural woodcut border, 6 FULL-PAGE WOODCUTS, the first repeated once. (Top right blank margin of d6 torn off.) BINDING: contemporary Parisian gold-tooled black morocco, border made up of a repeated arabesque tool, large panel formed by an intersecting lozenge and rectangle of double fillets surrounding central compartments of fillets, gouges and solid tools, fleurons at the various angles, small rosette in compartments of spine, later gilt red morocco lettering piece, (joints slightly rubbed, extreme corners repaired, ties removed, front free endpaper missing). Provenance : Sir Henry Knevett, gentleman of the King's privy chamber, who presented the book on the 12 t h of June 1545 to -- Sir Anthony St. Leger (c. 1496-1559), gentleman of the same chamber and lord-deputy of Ireland (6-line inscription on a vellum flyleaf following the text, recording the gift under the richly emblazoned arms of both knights) -- St. Pott, London bookseller (collation note on back endpaper, dated 1620: I warrant this Book To want noe Leaves) -- Lord Braybrooke (19 t h -century armorial bookplate) -- Acquired from Harry Levinson 1970. VERY RARE second edition of the first French translation (originally published by Antoine Vérard c. 1492). The illustration blocks were first used in various French vernacular incunables, mostly from Vérard's shop. The presentation cut (a6v and repeated on o6r) is a block from Vérard's Orosius; the battle cut (s4v) is an altered block from the Vérard Josephus; the particularly fine woodcut of Jerusalem (A5v) comes from the 1486 Abbeville St. Augustine's City of God. Variants of the binding design on the Vershbow Josephus were frequently employed by Jean Picard in the 1540s, but none of these tools quite match his. Soon after the book received its binding, it reached London and it is tempting to think that it may have been bound for Sir Henry Knevett, whose gift is so lavishly recorded on vellum. Sir Anthony St. Leger was Cromwell's agent in the suppression of the monasteries, sat on the grand jury of Kent that found against Anne Boleyn and escorted Anne of Cleves to England. A RARE ENGLISH PROVENANCE of a French vernacular illustrated book in a de-luxe Parisian binding. Brunet III, 571; Fairfax Murray French 294. Fact and Fantasy 24.
JOSEPHUS, Flavius (c. 37-c. 100). Lhistoire Contenant les guerres qui furent au pays de Judee . Anonymous French translation of Rufinus's Latin version of De bello Judaico . Paris: Nicolas Savetier for Galliot Du Pré the elder, Poncet Le Preux and Claude Chevallon, 8 t h October 1530.
JOSEPHUS, Flavius (c. 37-c. 100). Lhistoire Contenant les guerres qui furent au pays de Judee . Anonymous French translation of Rufinus's Latin version of De bello Judaico . Paris: Nicolas Savetier for Galliot Du Pré the elder, Poncet Le Preux and Claude Chevallon, 8 t h October 1530. M2 o (330 x 215mm). Collation: a 6 (title, translator's prologue, table of contents, woodcut), b 8 c-z 6 A-L 6 M 4 (text and woodcuts, M4 blank). 209 leaves (without final blank). Bâtarde type, double column, ruled in red. Title printed in red and black within Du Pré's four-block architectural woodcut border, 6 FULL-PAGE WOODCUTS, the first repeated once. (Top right blank margin of d6 torn off.) BINDING: contemporary Parisian gold-tooled black morocco, border made up of a repeated arabesque tool, large panel formed by an intersecting lozenge and rectangle of double fillets surrounding central compartments of fillets, gouges and solid tools, fleurons at the various angles, small rosette in compartments of spine, later gilt red morocco lettering piece, (joints slightly rubbed, extreme corners repaired, ties removed, front free endpaper missing). Provenance : Sir Henry Knevett, gentleman of the King's privy chamber, who presented the book on the 12 t h of June 1545 to -- Sir Anthony St. Leger (c. 1496-1559), gentleman of the same chamber and lord-deputy of Ireland (6-line inscription on a vellum flyleaf following the text, recording the gift under the richly emblazoned arms of both knights) -- St. Pott, London bookseller (collation note on back endpaper, dated 1620: I warrant this Book To want noe Leaves) -- Lord Braybrooke (19 t h -century armorial bookplate) -- Acquired from Harry Levinson 1970. VERY RARE second edition of the first French translation (originally published by Antoine Vérard c. 1492). The illustration blocks were first used in various French vernacular incunables, mostly from Vérard's shop. The presentation cut (a6v and repeated on o6r) is a block from Vérard's Orosius; the battle cut (s4v) is an altered block from the Vérard Josephus; the particularly fine woodcut of Jerusalem (A5v) comes from the 1486 Abbeville St. Augustine's City of God. Variants of the binding design on the Vershbow Josephus were frequently employed by Jean Picard in the 1540s, but none of these tools quite match his. Soon after the book received its binding, it reached London and it is tempting to think that it may have been bound for Sir Henry Knevett, whose gift is so lavishly recorded on vellum. Sir Anthony St. Leger was Cromwell's agent in the suppression of the monasteries, sat on the grand jury of Kent that found against Anne Boleyn and escorted Anne of Cleves to England. A RARE ENGLISH PROVENANCE of a French vernacular illustrated book in a de-luxe Parisian binding. Brunet III, 571; Fairfax Murray French 294. Fact and Fantasy 24.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
