Polemonis, Himerii, & Aliorum quorundam declamationes, nunc primùm edita [BOUND WITH] Aeschyli tragoediae VII. Quae cùm omnes multo quam antea castigatiores eduntur, tum verò una, quae mutila & decurtata prius erat, integra nunc profertur [BOUND WITH] Manuelis Moschopuli de ratione examinandae orationis libellus.

THREE RARE EDITIONES PRINCIPES, INCLUDING AESCHYLUS' COMPLETE PLAYS, PUBLISHED BY ESTIENNE AND BOUND IN A MAGNIFICENT RENAISSANCE BLIND-TOOLED CALF BINDING.

The volume contains three very important Estienne imprints. It is bound in very well-preserved contemporary full blind-tooled calf, showing elaborate concentric borders on the covers and a contemporaneous, or nearly contemporaneous addition, on the central panel, of blind-stamped fleurons, floral centrepiece and two monograms (initials "A.M." - as yet unidentified) topped by a crown within ovals. The spine was skilfully restored in some points. There are metal pieces for protection nailed along the fore-edge of the board's corners and towards the hinges. The works contained in the volume are:

POLÉMON, Marcus Antonius. Polemonis, Himerii, & Aliorum quorundam declamationes, nunc primùm edita.

[Geneva], Excudebat Henr. Stephanus, 1567.

EDITIO PRINCEPS. 4to, pp. [4], 91, [1] ("Henrici Stephani annotatiunculae in eos declamationum Polemonis & Himeriilcos qui duplicem lectionem habent": p. 89-91 – bound after the title; pages after p. 89 misnumbered as 82 and 83). Title with Estienne's woodcut device, woodcut initials, text in Greek.

Censorial ms. note on centre of t-p: "Opus hoc editum industria Henrici Steph. auct. damnati permissu cum auctoris nota". Other shorter similar notes ("auctor damnatus") on the head of the following pages in which the author's name is mentioned.

Adams P1755.

[BOUND WITH]

AESCHYLUS. Aeschyli tragoediae VII. Quae cùm omnes multo quam antea castigatiores eduntur, tum verò una, quae mutila & decurtata prius erat, integra nunc profertur.

[Geneva], Ex officina Henrici Stephani, 1557.

FIRST EDITION and EDITIO PRINCEPS of the Agamemnon. 4to, pp. [8], 395, [1], final blank. Title in Greek and Latin, text in Greek, woodcut printer's device on title, initials and headpieces. While 6 of these plays had been published by Aldus in 1518, the Agamemnon appears in full for the first time here.

Graesse, I, 20: "Rare. Édition importante par les manuscrits consultés et par les notes du célèbre Henri Estienne, elle mérite le nom de première édition, le texte de l'Agamemnon s'y trouvant pour la première fois complet".

Brunet, I, 78: "La véritable première édition complete".

Dibdin, I, 237: "This edition is rare and dear".

Adams, A265; Schreiber, 145; Renouard, 116, 15.

[BOUND WITH]

MOSCHOPULOS, Emanuelis. Manuelis Moschopuli de ratione examinandae orationis libellus.

Paris, Ex officina Roberti Stephani, 1545.

EDITIO PRINCEPS. 4to, pp. 216, [52]. Title in Greek and Latin, text in Greek, woodcut printer's device on title, initials and headpieces.

Schreiber, 86: "Editio princeps of this important Byzantine grammatical text, the second in Robert Estienne's programme of printing important unpublished Greek texts from manuscripts in the Royal Library. Beautifully printed in 'grec du roi'" ... "These new Royal Greek types, known as "grecs du roi", were based by Garamond on the script of the Cretan Angelo Vergetio, a well-known calligrapher in the employ of François I. These cursive Greek types are universally acknowledged as the finest ever cut".

Updike, p. 236: "Their design was based on the handwriting of a clever calligrapher, Angelos Vergetios – 'notre écrivain en grec', as François I styled him. Garamond was employed to cut the punches of these types under the direction of Robert Estienne, and they were completed, apparently, by 1541. They were in three sizes. These fonts were intended to reproduce as closely as possible the Greek handwriting of that day as exemplified by Vergetios's fine manuscript [...] One of Garamond's reforms was the adoption of larger and more adequate Greek capitals, which replaced the small and unimportant capitals in current use".

Adams, M1838; Renouard 64, 11.