Gellius, Aulus: Noctes Atticae.
Venice: Nicolaus Jenson, 1472.
Fol. [1-1110 128 13-1610 17-188]. [174] leaves (1/1, 18/8 blank).
ISTC ig00120000; GW 10594; Goff G120; BMC V 171 (IB. 19653); Bod-inc G-055; CIBN G-64.
| GIP number: | G16 |
| Shelf-mark: | Sp Coll Hunterian Be.2.4 (see main library entry for this item) |
| Note: | Printer's pin-holes visible. |
| Provenance: | Henri II (1519-1559), King of France: see Binding. Diane de Poitiers (1499-1566), Duchess of Valentinois and mistress of Henri II: see Binding. Paris, Bibliothèque du Roi: the numbers “MCLIX” (scored through) and “252” in ink at the top margin of 1/2r are characteristic provenance marks of books from the Bibliothèque du Roi - cf. Bg.2.6 (F14), Bx.1.10 (P73/1), By.2.3 (D26). Louis Jean Gaignat (1697-1768), Secretary to King Louis XV: Gaignat sale, 1769; lot 2366 in Guillaume de Bure, Bibliographie instructive: supplément ... ou catalogue des livres de feu M. L.J. Gaignat, 2 vols (Paris: 1769). William Hunter (1718-1783), physician and anatomist: purchased by Hunter at the Gaignat sale through his agent, Jean-Baptiste Dessain, for 100 livres; see Dessain-Hunter correspondence (University of Glasgow Library, MS Gen. 36, f. 25v). University of Glasgow: Hunterian bequest 1807; Hunterian Museum bookplate on front pastedown, with former shelfmark “Ah.2.9”. |
| Binding: | France, 16th-century citron goatskin over wooden boards. Bound for Henri II, King of France, by Claude de Picques; see Mirjam M. Foot, ‘Other bindings by Claude de Picques’ in M.M. Foot, The Henry Davis Gift: a collection of bookbindings, I (London: 1978), p. 181. Each cover is decorated with blind fillets to form a centre panel surrounded by two frames; the panel of the front cover has an oval inlay of reddish-brown goatskin bearing the arms of Henri II of France in blind and the rest of the panel contains blind stamps of a crowned letter ‘H’, a fleur-de-lys, the monogram ‘HD’ (denoting Henri II and Diane de Poitiers) and stamps of three interlaced crescent moons (emblem of Diane de Poitiers); the inner frame has the same blind tools amongst floral strapwork; the outer frame contains a fleur-de-lys stamp and stamps of a quiver full of arrows and a bow (the latter also emblems of Diane de Poitiers) and at its top edge is the title ‘AVLI. GEL.’ in blind. The rear cover is identical except the arms of Henri II in the inlay are in gold and the title is not included. Spine decorated with fleur-de-lys stamps in gold, a crowned initial ‘H’ in blind and cross-hatching in blind; evidence from nail holes of four bosses on each cover and of two clasps (all now lost); gauffered gilt-edged leaves. Size: 329 x 229 mm. |
| Leaf size: | 323 x 224 mm. |
| Annotations: | Occasional marginal annotations in a humanist hand; running book numbers ‘1-19’ in an early hand from 2/6-18/7 on rectos; table of contents (1/2-2/5) numbered in same hand ‘c[apitula] l[iber] 1’ - ‘c[apitula] l[iber] 19’; the number ‘1101’ below the letter ‘A’(?) on front pastedown; ‘N.o 575’ on rear pastedown. |
| Decoration: | None. |
| Imperfections: | Wanting the blank leaf 1/1. |
