[Incunabula][History of the late Roman Empire and the early Church]

Cassiodorus, Magnus Aurelius [Theodoret of Cyrus, Sozomen, Socrates Scholasticus]

Historia ecclesiastica tripartita.


[Augsburg]: Johann Schüssler, 'circiter' 5 Feb. 1472. First edition.




Price: $22,000

This is an attractive, wide-margined example of the rare and beautifully printed EDITIO PRINCEPS of this major history of the early Christian Church and of the The Dominate (late Roman Empire) beginning with Constantine the Great and the Council of Nicaea and up to year 429. Cassiodorus' Historia ecclesiastica tripartita was used in the Middle Ages as a principal guide to the early Church history in the period subsequent to that covered by Eusebius' Ecclesiastical History, including, in particular, the Arian controversy. The text of the Tripartite History is compiled from the ecclesiastical histories by Theodoret, Sozomen and Socrates, whose works had previously been translated from Greek into Latin by Epiphanius Scholasticus working under Cassiodorus' supervision.

Dibdin in his Bibliotheca Spenceriana describes this fine edition and notes that "De Bure had never seen this edition, although he mentions it; and that Cave, Possevinus, and others, who notice the works of Cassiodorus, and the impressions of them, were ignorant of its existence. Hence they justly conclude its rarity to be great." Recently a copy of this edition in fine contemporary monastic binding was offered by Shapero Rare Books in their catalogue "75 Incunables from the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica" at 85,000 €.

Johann Schüssler, the second printer to establish a press at Augsburg, was a citizen of the city who had probably worked as a papermaker and bookbinder before he learned printing from Johann Mentelin at Strassburg. In his short period of activity as a printer, between 1470 and 1473, he produced only twelve known books, beginning with the editio princeps of Flavius Josephus (June-August 1470), all printed with the same typeface purchased from Gunther Zainer. In 1473 he sold his house to Zainer and his five presses and equipment to the Monastery of St. Ulrich and Afra in Augsburg.

Cassiodorus (ca.487 - 583), one of the most important figures of the sixth century, served as an official in the Ostrogothic kingdom of Theodoric before retiring to the monastery of Vivarium which he founded in southern Italy. At Vivarium he set himself to preserve the tools of Christian learning, and proposed a program of secular and religious studies which greatly influenced the educational practice of the Middle Ages.

Cassiodorus was brought up as a pagan but at the summit of his career was converted to Christianity. Cassiodorus bridged the world of Classical Greco-Roman learning and the earliest beginnings of Christian culture.

He also spent his career trying to bridge the 6th century cultural divides: between East and West, Greek culture and Latin, Roman and Goth, and between a Catholic people and their Arian ruler.

His Historia ecclesiastica tripartita makes frequent mentions of the relations of Sasanian Iran and other ancient Near Eastern kingdoms with Rome and the Christian Church. He concurs with Sozomenus's opinion that the conversion of Persians to Christianity had been a result of their commercial contacts with the Osrhoenians and the Armenians. The persecutions under Shapur II (r. 309 - 79) and their victims are mentioned. The siege of Nisibis by Shapur II (in 337-8) is related in detail, with special emphasis on the importance of interventions by the local bishop, James. Also taken from Sozomenus is an otherwise unknown story about a Persian monk named Arsacius (Arsaces), who lived on a tower at Nicaea in Bithynia. In Book 12 there is a rather long account of the mission of Marutha, bishop of Mesopotamia, to the king of the kings, Yazdegerd I, which led to the official recognition of Christianity in the Persian empire. Later there is a mention of the hostile attitude of Yazdegerd's son and successor Bahram IV and of the resumed Perso-Roman war (invasion of the formerly Armenian province of Arzanene) up to the conclusion of a peace agreement between Bahram IV and the emperor Theodosius in 422. (see Encyclopedia Iranica).

Physical description:

Super-chancery Folio; leaves measure 310mm x 210mm). A wide-margined example with many pinholes visible. Bound in early 19th-century English calf by Mackenzie & Son (stamp-signed on front free endpaper): covers with gilt double-fillet borders, spine with six raised bands, and decorated in gilt including small fleuron tools in compartments; one black morocco title-label with gilt lettering (another label perished). Board edges with gilt dentelles; turn-ins decorated in blind. All edges rouged.

193 leaves (386 pages). Without foliation or signatures. Collation: [112 2-910 106 1111(10+1) 12-1910 206] (-205,6 blanks).
COMPLETE, except for the two rear blanks, front blank 11 present.

Printed in single column, 35 lines per page, in fine Gothic typeface; Type: 1:117G. Chapter headings printed in all capitals.

2- to 7- line initial spaces (with manuscript guide-letters supplied by contemporary hand). Two fine painted initials in red on leaves 45v and 94r supplied in contemporary hand, otherwise unrubricated.

Cassiodorus' preface on 12r, colophon on 204r.

Condition:

Very Good antiquarian condition. Binding with minor rubbing and light edge-wear; corners slightly bumped; second spine-label missing. Text-block with occasional light soiling (mostly marginal). Three tiny harmless wormholes to several leaves at end, but with legibility unaffected. Curiously, one page (leaf 152v) has a faint interlinear imprint of text from 159r, apparently due to a printing mishap, but mainly without affecting legibility. Else, a fine, clean, solid and uncommonly wide-margined example of this magnificent specimen of early typography.

Bibliographic references:

Hain-Copinger *4573; Goff C-237; GW 6164; BMC II, 329 (IB. 5627); Proctor 1594; BSB-Ink. C-169; Bod-inc C-106; Polain(B) 4274; IGI 2553; Bibliotheca Spenceriana 662.


Please click on thumbnails below to see larger images.