Perottus (Nicolaus) Cornucopiæ, sive linguæ latinæ commentarii, [edited by Aldus Manutius], first Aldine edition, collation: [aa-ee⁶] a-z A-H¹⁰ I¹², 352 ff., the last blank, 59 lines, Roman letter and a little Greek, initial on a¹ in red and blue, the others in red, some underlining in red or black, contemporary and later ink marginalia in several hands, occasionally in red, marginal repairs, mostly at beginning and end, H¹ neat short split just within text at inner margin, without loss, f⁴ and k⁸ piece from lower blank corner, final blank repaired, mostly marginal water-staining, some spotting or staining, lightly browned, leaves from ?14th century hymnal used as pastedowns, fragments of 15th century rubricated manuscript used in binding, ornately blind-stamped pigskin over wooden boards, including various flowers and dragons in triangular borders and large and small rosettes in circular borders, spine in compartments, metal clasps, repaired with some loss to pigskin, mostly on lower cover, stained, rubbed, folio (318 x 214mm.; binding 334 x 230mm.), Venice, Aldus Manutius, July, 1499.

⁂ A great Aldine rarity at auction. The first Aldine and best edition of this monumental work on the language and literature of classical Rome. It is written in the form of a commentary on the epigrams of Martial. The first edition was edited by the author's nephew Pyrrho Perotti and Lodovico Odaxio, from whom there are two letters at the beginning of our edition.

Provenance: Father Labe, S.J., 1698.

Literature: Ahmanson-Murphy 32; BMC V, 561; Goff P-296; H 12706*; Bod-inc P-107; BSB-Ink P-221; GW M31090; Renouard 19:2; ISTC ip00296000.