Beschreibung:

AUGUSTINUS, Aurelius (St., 354-430). De civitate Dei . Commentary by Thomas Waleys and Nicolaus Trivet. Basel: Johann Amerbach, 13 February 1490. Median 2° (325 x 227mm). Collation: a 1 0 b-o 8 p-y A-K 8 . 6 y 6 A-K 8 . 6 L-O 6 . 8 (a1r title, a1v large woodcut and verse, a2r Argument, table for Book I, a3r commentators' preface, a4r text with commentary, O4r colophon, O4v index of text and commentary by Trivet, O8v blank). 268 leaves. 54 lines of text, 65 lines of commentary, and headline, double column. Type: 4*:185G, 6:108G, 9:76G, 14:285G, 15*:92G, occasional Greek, printed guide-letters. With contemporary colouring and decoration: large woodcut by the Master of Haintz-Narr coloured, 9-line illuminated initials opening author's and commentators' prefaces in blue with white patterning on ochre ground with floral border extensions, 6-line initial opening Book I without extension but with floral decoration, 5- to 6-line Book initials in blue with red penwork decoration and green highlights, corresponding commentary initial in red with blue penwork decoration, small initials and paragraph marks alternating in red or blue, red capital strokes. (Small wormhole in first 20 leaves, filled in the first, blank corner of n1 renewed, short repaired marginal tear in q1, occasional light spotting, lightly washed and pressed, blue pigment very occasionally faded.) Early 20th-century dark blue morocco panelled with blind foliate roll, title tooled in gilt on spine, signed by G. Vignal. Provenance : one early marginal annotation. A handsomely decorated copy of an edition reprinting page-by-page Amerbach's 13 February 1489 edition (see previous lot). Without any of the variants listed in GW. HC *2066; BMC III, 752 (IB. 37328); GW 2888; Schreiber 3394; Goff A-1244.