Content: "Prologo" begins, leaf IIa: El se distingue tutol te[m]po de lanno in [qua]tro parte ouer tempi ...
Content: Text begins, leaf IIa, following "Prologo": Incomincia el libro intitulato legendario de sancti composto per el reuerendissimo patre frate Iacobo de Voragine de lordine de predicatori Archiepiscopo de Genoua.
Publications: Translation by Niccolò Malermi, first published: Venice : Nicolaus Jenson, [between 1 July 1475 and 23 Feb. 1476]. Previously published by Capcasa, 16 May 1492, with title: Legendario deli sancti historiado; see Pagnotta (cited below), 1492¹.
Content: Translator's prologue on leaf CCXLVIIIb, beginning: Nicolao de Manerbi Veneto monacho del ordi[n]e Camaldulense. A tutte le deuote & catholice christiane persone ...
Content: Imprint from colophon, which begins: Finisse le legende de sancti composte per el reuere[n]dissimo padre frate lacobo de Voragine delordine de frati l[pre]dicatori arciuescouo de Genoua. Traducte de lati[n]o i[n] li[n]gua uulgare [per] el uenerabile messer don Nicholao de Manerbi ueneto del ordine de camaldulense Abbate del mo[n]asterio de sancto Mathia de Mura[n]o ... Laus Deo.
Biographical/historical: Edition shared with Lucantonio Giunta; copies are known with Giunta's device in place of Capcasa's, e.g. Biblioteca nazionale Marciana (Venice) copy. Pagnotta notes that the Venice copy also differs in details of foliation errors, and thus perhaps represents a separate issue printed by Capcasa for Giunta.
Content: With 3 additional legends added in Capcasa's 1492 edition (Geminiano, Erasmo, Rocco) and an expanded version of the legend of Catherine of Siena.
Content: Printed in 2 columns. Roman type (Proctor 4997), except title page in Gothic type; 60 lines.
Numbering: Signatures: a-z⁸, A-G⁸ H¹⁰ = 250 leaves, II-CCXLVIII foliated (with some errors in foliation). See "Registrum huius operis," following colophon. Spencer Coll. copy has last two leaves foliated CCXLIX-CCL.
Content: Reichling reports 256 leaves, apparently in error, as signing is the same.
Content: Illustrations : 243 woodcuts, comprising a full-page group on the verso of the title page made up of 4 vignettes surrounded by 2 borders (see Pagnotta, fig. 145), and 239 vignettes in the text (including about 30 repeats); most are taken from Capcasa's 1492 edition, except for 22 (4 signed "F") from the Manfredo Bonelli edition, Venice, 10 December 1492; 8 are new to this edition. Some appeared originally in other works published by Capcasa. For the 1492 editions, see also Pagnotta; Essling, 3e part., entry 677bis and 1re part., t. 2, entry 678. The inner border was first used in the Benalius-Capcasa edition of Dante, La commedia, 1491; here with a 4-piece outer border, derived from one used in Capcasa's 1493 Dante. On leaf IIa, 2 historiated initials with the names of the translator, "Du[n] Nicolo Manerbi" (repeated for "Parte del prologo" and "Prologo" on XLVIa, LXVIb, LXXXXIb), and author, "Fra Iacomo de Voragine."
Biographical/historical: All illustrations from the 1492 and 1494 editions are reproduced in Pagnotta, "Legendario hystoriato volgare: le vignette dei primi cicli figurative (1492-1551)," pages 157-339.
Content: Designs are attributed to the artist called the "Popular Designer" by Arthur Hind; see Hind, Arthur M. Introduction to a history of woodcut, 1935, v. 2, pages 476-477 (fig. 235, 236) and 502-503. Recent authorities identify him with the miniaturist known as the "Pico Master"; see Armstrong, Lilian. Studies of Renaissance miniaturists in Venice, 2003, pages 269-274, 314-315, 327-329; Pagnotta, page 29. Inner border on title page verso described in Hind, page 503 (no. A2c), and Armstrong, page 328 (no. W3c).
Content: Capcasa device at end (Kristeller, P. Die Italienischen Buchdrucker- und Verlegerzeichen bis 1525, entry 208; Zappella, G. Le marche dei tipografi e degli editori italiani del Cinquecento, v. 2, entry 233). Some copies have Lucantonio Giunta's device (Kristeller, entry 215; Zappella, entry 61) instead. Numerous small historiated initials, white on black.
Content: "Tabula" on last 2 leaves.
Additional physical form: Also available online via Internet Culturale (Biblioteca nazionale Marciana (Venice) copy) and BEIC (Biblioteca nazionale centrale di Firenze copy).
Ownership: With armorial ownership stamp of "Comes Hercules Silva" (Ercole Silva) and white on black stamp "A C" (unidentified) on the title page. NN
Ownership: The Montgermont-Rahir copy, with bookplate of Edouard Rahir. For Montgermont, see: Catalogue des livres de la bibliothèque de M.L. de Montgermont, [7]. Théologie; jurisprudence; sciences et arts; belles-lettres; histoire, 1914, page 148, no. 468. For Rahir, see: Rahir, Edouard. La bibliothèque de feu Édouard Rahir, ancien libraire, 2e partie, 1931, lot 319. NN
Date: nel anno dela natiuita del nostro Signor Mcccclxxxxiiii, a di xiii di mazo [13 May 1494]
Physical Description
Extent: 248, [2] leaves : illustrations ; 31 cm (folio)
