World of Aldus Manutius: Business and Scholarship in Renaissance Venice

This First Edition copy of The World of Aldus Manutius - Business and Scholarship in Renaissance Venice, by Martin Lowry was published in 1979 by the Cornell University Press of Ithica, NY and printed by the Cambridge University Press in Great Britain. The book, which measures approximately 6 ¼ inches wide by 9 ½ inches tall by 1 1/8 inches thick, contains 350 pages of text and illustrations dedicated to the subject of the book. The book is hard bound in green cloth covered boards with gilt lettering on the spine. The book is enclosed in a yellow paper dust jacket with brown and black printing on all faces. The book is in fine condition. The dust jacket, which has a three inch tear on the front face, is in fair condition.

An overview of the book can be determined by the following quote from the front flap of the dust jacket, which reads "The relationship between Renaissance scholarship and printing is the subject of this fascinating biographical study. The book centers on the life and work of Aldus Manutius (1450-1515), printer and man of letters – his background, his business practices, and his impact on the intellectual life of the times…".

The illustrations accompanying this description show the front face of the dust jacket, the Title page, the list of illustration Plates, and first pages of two (2) typical chapters of the book.

Aldus Pius Manutius (/c. 1449/1452 – 6 February 1515) was an Italian printer and humanist who founded the Aldine Press. Manutius devoted the later part of his life to publishing and disseminating rare texts. His interest in and preservation of Greek manuscripts mark him as an innovative publisher of his age dedicated to the editions he produced. Aldus Manutius introduced the small portable book format with his enchiridia, which revolutionized personal reading and are the predecessor of the modern paperback book. He also helped to standardize use of punctuation including the comma and the semicolon. [Wikipedia]