DE MEDITATIONE CORDIS; DE ORATIONE ET VALORE EIUS; EXPOSITIO SUPER SEPTEM PSALMOS POENTITENTIALES

[Cologne: Ulrich Zel, ca. 1470]. FIRST EDITION. 215 x 140 mm. (8 1/2 x 5 1/2"). [56] leaves (last blank). Complete. Single column, 27 lines in gothic type.
Late 18th or early 19th century calf, covers framed by gilt fillets and repeating fleur-de-lys tools, raised bands, spine gilt in compartments with central floral sprig, one red and one green morocco label, marbled endpapers, joints and edges expertly renewed. Rubricated in red, capitals struck with red, numerous three- to four-line initials hand-painted in red. Upper right corner of text leaves numbered in ink in an early hand; front pastedown with 19th century bookplate of Dr. Bulkeley Bandinel (Bodley's Librarian at Oxford University). Goff G-231; BMC I, 184; ISTC ig00231000; Bernard Quaritch's Catalogue, No. 221, item 30, p. 11 (this copy; binding attributed to Chambolle Duru). ◆Covers a bit dulled, faint marginal mottling to perhaps half the text, occasional slight soiling, but internally fresh, and a perfectly acceptable copy in a well restored binding.

From the first printer in Cologne, this is the original appearance in print of a significant work of Christian mysticism and personal piety by one of the most prominent figures in the Church of his time. From his position as chancellor of the University of Paris, Jean Gerson (1363-1429) became a renowned theologian, a spiritual writer of great importance, and a major figure in the attempt to bring unity to the schismatized Church. He was greatly concerned with the mystical side of Christianity and the importance of cultivating a more meaningful relationship with God through prayer and meditation. The three works here--"Of the Meditation of the Heart," "On Prayer and its Value," and "An Exposition on the Penitential Psalms"--all offer guidance for developing a practice of prayer and meditation to foster a personal relationship with the Almighty. Ulrich Zel (or Zell) was not only the first printer in Cologne, but (along with Peter Schoeffer) was active longer than any other member of his profession during the incunabular period. He apparently printed his first book in 1464 and was still at work at century's end (suggested dates of his death vary from 1501 to 1507). He identified himself as "clericus" (one of the Church's minor orders) while in Mainz, where he was reported to have learned his craft under Johann Fust and Schoeffer, and both the nature of his typefaces and the high quality of his press work show a close connection with his masters. He is thought to have gone to Cologne because of the commercial opportunities offered by its university, and the majority of the books he produced were small quartos--like the present item--for student use. Although only a few editions contain his name, he is thought to have issued as many as 200 books, and he became greatly prosperous (he renounced his ecclesiastical orders in 1471, married a prominent heiress, and acquired extensive landholdings). In addition to his significance as a long-lived printer, Zel is important as an early commentator on the origins of printing: the Cologne Chronicle of 1499 contains his testimony that printing began in 1450, that Gutenberg was its inventor, and that Gutenberg's first book was the famous 42-line Bible. Our volume was once in the collection of Dr. Bulkeley Bandinel (1781-1861), who served the Bodleian Library at Oxford for 50 years, 47 of these as its head. He increased the size of the collection considerably during his tenure: according to DNB, "Bandinel prided himself on the speed with which he responded to items coming on the market, and through judicious purchases he significantly strengthened the holdings of incunables and early Bibles." He also grew the library by courting important donors; his courtesy to the temperamental antiquarian Francis Douce is credited for the bequest of Douce's collection to the Bodleian. And critically, he and his staff produced and published a thorough and up-to-date catalogue of the library's holdings..