A leaf from Grüninger’s first edition with the gloss by Sebastian Brant.
Of all classical Latin poets, Virgil has held the most secure place in the canon of great authors. His works became school texts in ancient Rome and his perceived affinity with Christianity meant that his poetry was widely read in the Middle Ages.
The Aeneid is an epic poem in 12 books that tells the story of the foundation of Rome from the ashes of Troy. It was probably written in Rome from 30-19 BC during the reign of the Emperor Augustus.The poem is named after the Trojan hero Aeneas, the son of Venus (Aphrodite in Greek mythology) and Anchises, a Trojan aristocrat. Aeneas leads the survivors from the sack of Troy through the Mediterranean, and ultimately to the site of (future) Rome. (See Notes).
Verso: Text printed on laid paper in Latin and Greek with sections of Book One. Heading Eneidos. Virgil’s original text is in the larger font in the centre of the page and is surrounded by the gloss (commentary) of Brant in the smaller font.
Recto: As Verso wth the heading Liber Primus CxLVIII (First Book, page 148).
Printer: Johann Grüninger, Strassburg, 1502.
Content: The English translation of Virgil’s text on Verso beginning at Nec tam aversus equos Tyria Sol iungit ab urbe, reads:
Nor does the Sun yoke his horses so far from the Tyrian city.
Whether you opt for mighty Hesperia, and Saturn’s fields,
or the summit of Eryx, and Acestes for king,
I’ll see you safely escorted, and help you with my wealth.
Or do you wish to settle here with me, as equals in my kingdom?
The city I build is yours: beach your ships:
Trojans and Tyrians will be treated by me without distinction.
I wish your king Aeneas himself were here, driven
by that same storm! Indeed, I’ll send reliable men
along the coast, and order them to travel the length of Libya,
in case he’s driven aground, and wandering the woods and towns.’
Gloss: Sebastian Brant, also spelled Brandt, (born 1457, Strassburg [now Strasbourg, France], died 1521, Strassburg), was a highly accomplished humanist scholar.. Trained in classics and law at the University of Basel, Brant later lectured in jurisprudence there and practiced law in his native city of Strasbourg. While his satirical poem Das Narrenschiff (The Ship of Fools) won him great acclaim as a writer, his role in the transmission of Virgil to the Renaissance was at least as important. In 1502 he and Strasbourg printer Johannes Grüninger produced a major edition of Virgil’s works, from which this leaf of the first edition comes.
Condition: The leaf is in very good/excellent condition, with original margins. Edge browning and a pale stain in the bottom outer margin are of little consequence. It is unconditionally guaranteed genuine. Please note that shipping is invoiced separately.
Size: approx. 305x205 mm.
Item: PSE125
