Bessarion, In calumniatorem Platonis libri quatuor, Venice, Aldus, 1516, later half calf

Bessarion, Cardinal. Quae hoc in volumine tractantur. Bessarionis cardinalis Niceni, & Patriarchae Constantinopolitani in calumniatorem Platonis libri quatuor… Eiusdem correctio librorum Platonis de legibus Georgio Trapezuntio interprete… Eiusdem de natura & arte adversus eundem Trapezuntium tractatus… Eiusdem Metaphysicorum Aristotelis XIIII librorum tralatio. Theophrasti Metaphysicorum lib. I. Index eorum omnium.(Venice: in the house of Aldo Manuzio and Andrea Torresano, September 1516)

A reprint of the earlier Aldine Bessarion of 1503 (lot 188), but now with a second part containing Bessarion's translation of Aristotle's Metaphysics.

Folio (317 x 210 mm). Roman and Greek type, 55 lines plus headline. collation: a-p⁸ q⁴ aa-bb⁸ [2]c-f⁸ [2]g⁶: 178 leaves. Woodcut Aldine device on title-pages and final verso (otherwise blank). (Title-page lightly soiled with small paper repairs, quire g with a few small stains, slight damp-staining towards end.)

binding: Later half calf over purple cloth (325 x 215 mm), spine tooled in gilt and blind. (Upper joint broken.)

provenance: "Abbati Francisci de Comitibus", old inscription at foot of title-page — Laurence Witten, catalogue 14 (Southport, 1981), item 7. acquisition: Purchased from Laurence Witten, Southport, 1981. references: UCLA 148; Cataldi Palau 19; Edit16 5645; Renouard 77/6