ATTIC NIGHTS
GELLIUS, Aulus.
Auli Gellii luculentissimi scriptoris Noctes Atticae.
Lyon, Sebastian Gryphius, 1555.
8vo, pp. [64], ‘553’ [recte 533], [1], [2 (blank)]; woodcut Gryphius device to title (hand-coloured in red) and at end (traced to facing blank), woodcut criblé initials; dampstaining to lower margins, some light foxing; in contemporary calf, blind triple-fillet border and frame to covers with gilt floral centre- and cornerpieces, four raised bands to spine, top two and bottom compartments neatly restored, the second lettered in gilt, corners restored, some dampstaining to covers and small abrasions; early inscriptions to front pastedown recording ownership of ‘S. Bazilius’ and ‘H.H.R.M.’, inscription at foot of title-page ‘Hartmannus Niger Rhetus Parpanensis'.
Gryphius edition of Aulus Gellius’ famous Attic Nights, issued the year before Gryphius’ death.
Published around 180 AD in twenty books, the Noctes Atticae is a remarkable collection of short essays based on the Greek and Latin books Gellius had read, as well as on conversations and lectures he had heard. The content ranges widely, encompassing philosophy, history, law, and above all grammar, including literary and textual criticism. ‘He began collecting his material during the winter nights in Attica and arranged it in later life for the amusement and instruction of his children. It contains thousands of curious and interesting passages, from works no longer extant, and is a mine of information on Greek and Latin authors; we are particularly indebted to him for the preservation of many passages from early Latin literature … and, among many good stories, for that of Androclus and the lion’ (Oxford Companion to Classical Literature).
Gryphius (1493–1556) was one of the most prolific French printers of his time, his career spanning over thirty years, during which he enjoyed a close relationship with Lyons humanists and writers, Rabelais among them. He is best known for his numerous handy pocket editions of the Latin classics.
Provenance: with the Latinised ownership inscription of the Swiss theologian Hartmann Schwarz of Parpan (d. 1662). He studied at Basel and Herborn before moving to Chur in Switzerland where he served as a preacher and catechist, and later as pastor of St Martin’s.
USTC 151871.
