Incunabula  Leaves

 From the Dawn of the Era of the Printed Word!

"Incunabula" refers to works printed in the first half century of printing, dating 1455 to 1500. They are the most highly prized of all collectible leaves and books. For more information about Incunabula

                                                                           

                              " Leaf Taken from a Mamotrectus Super Bibliam"   

                Written by Jo Marchensius and printed by Nicholas Jensen, :on 23 Sept 1479   

   An extremely INCREDIBLE part of this Leaf, is the printer, Nicholas Jensen He was and is a very respected printer  !!!!!!!!!!

  Between 1470 and 1490 he printed about 70 works including Bibles written in German and Italian

  These books were printed some 25 years after the development of the printing press  He also developed a certain style of Roman type that became the standard for his day and again revived by William Morris in the 1800`s  Research has also shown that Jensen was taught by Gutenberg Himself!! 


 

LF-065. Text leaf from Lucius Lactantius, Opera (The Works), printed by Andrea de Paltasichis & Boninus de Boninis at Venice, Italy in 1479. Folio size, measuring 7¾" x 12". Latin text in a quite early Roman Letter type arranged in single column format. Beautiful printing of the works of the early Christian convert, who served as Constantine's son's tutor. A beautiful leaf in the finest style, from the infancy of printing and the first decade from which it is generally possible to secure specimens of printing today. References: BMC, V, 251, Goff L-8. Condition is bright clean very fine, with some very faint margin waterstain not detracting   

 

 

LF-075. Text leaf from Martialis Epigrammata. (Martial's Epigrams, with commentary by Calderinus, printed by Baptista de Tortis at Venice, Italy in 1485. Folio size, measuring 7½" x 10¾". The body of the text is printed in large Roman letter type one column wide with extensive commentary surrounding in smaller Roman typeThis 1507 woodcut is one of the earliest illustrations of a printing press in use. A lovely Venetian Renaissance printing of the great Roman satirist's chief work. Quite lovely condition and executed in several handsome type fonts, a fine example. References: BMC V, 324; Goff M308. Colophon dates completion to 17 July 1485. Condition is a nice bright very fine with the faintest of marginal damping.

LF-076. Initial Leaf from Scriptores Historiae Augustae (The Writers of The History of Roman Emperors), printed by Joannes Rubeus Vercellensis at Venice, Italy in 1490. Folio size, measuring 8¼" x 11¼". Roman Letter Latin text in single column. Completed 15 July, so states at Colophon. This fine Incunabula printing of Roman history is a 4th century Christian reinterpretation of Suetonius' monumental Lives of the Twelve Caesars, along with Aelius the Spartan's history of the later emperors of the second and third centuries A.D. Detailing the excesses of the first rulers of Imperial Rome, the work is one of propaganda more than of serious historical merit, and was enormously influential in shaping the view of Ancient Rome until the advent of modern, critical history. This leaf displays the lovely Roman Letter type that was developed in this period during the flowering of the Venetian Renaissance