Propugnacula, seu Turris Sapicntuv; one sheet, piano, Brit. Mus. (Sotheby, ii. 164).
Of Netherlandish origin.Block-books of Netherlandish origin are:
(1) Biblia Pauperum; forty leaves (each bearing a signature; a to v, -a- to -v-). As many as seven editions have been distinguished by Sotheby (i. 43; see also Holtrop, Monum. Typ., p. 3).
(2) Ars Moriendi;[1] twenty-four leaves, small folio, thirteen con taining text, eleven plates (see Sotheby, L 69; Holtrop, p. 8).
(3) Canticum Canticorum, Historia seu Providentia B. Virg mis Marias ex Cantico Canticorum; sixteen leaves, in fol. (Sotheby, i. 77; Holtrop, p. 6).
(4) Liber Regum, seu Historia Davidis; twenty leaves, folio (Sotheby, i. 120b). Some consider this to be a German work.
(5) Exercitium super Pater Noster, by Henricus de Pomerio; ten leaves, small folio (Sotheby, ii. 137; Holtrop, p. 10).[2]
(6) Temptationes Dcmonis Tcmptantis Hominem de Septcm Peccatis Mortalibus; a single large folio leaf printed on one side. Two copies, one in British Museum, the other in the library at Wolfenbuttel.
(7) Vita Christ!, or the Life and Passion of Christ; thirty-six cuts, originally printed in a press on six anopisthographic leaves, 8vo. In the library at Erlangen (see Campbell, Annalcs, 746).
(8) Historia Sanctse Crucis; a fragment of one leaf (with signature g], preserved in the Weigel collection (ii. 92), which seems to be a proof-sheet only.
(9) Alphabet in figures (Holtrop, p. 11; Sotheby, i. 122).[3]
(10) Pomcrium Spiritiuile, by Henricus de Pomerio or Henry Bogaert; twelve leaves, having twelve woodcuts accompanied by MS. text, in the library at Brussels (Holtrop, Mon. Typ., p. 9). It bears the date 1440 in two places; but some contend that this refers to the date when the book was written,[4] not when the engravings were printed.
Besides the works of Sotheby, Holtrop, and Weigel, already quoted, consult W. M. Conway, The Woodcutters of the Netherlands in the 15th Century, Cambridge, 1884; Heineken, Idee Generalc, Leipsic, 1771; J. Ph. Berjeau, Facsimiles of the Biblia Pauperum, Canticum Canticorum, Speculum, London, 1859-1861; and Id., Catal. Hlustre dea Livres Xylogr., London, 1865.
Early Printing at Mainz.
When we, for the moment, leave out of sight the question as to when, where, and by whom the art of printing with movable metal types was invented, and take our stand on well -authenticated dates in such printed documents as have been preserved to us, we find that the first printed date, 1454, occurs in two different editions of the same letters of indulgence issued in that year by Pope Nicholas V. in behalf of the kingdom of Cyprus.
Nicholas V. s indulgence of 1454.These two editions are distinguished respectively as the 31-line and the 30-line indulgence. The former, of which three different issues with the printed date mccccliiii., and a fourth with the printed date mcccclv., are known to exist, claims priority[5] from a chronological point of view over the latter, of which one issue with the printed date mccccliiii., and two issues with the printed date incccclquinto, are known to exist, because one of the sold copies that has been preserved was issued at Erfurt on 15th Novem ber 1454, whereas of the 30 -line indulgence the earliest sold copy that has as yet come down to us was issued at Cologne on 27th February 1455, though it distinctly has the printed date mccccliiii., but altered with the pen to inccccliiiij. In the 31-line indulgence occur (1) a large church type usually regarded as identical with that of the 36-line Bible, and used for the rubrics of the absolutions, for the word with which the document commences, and for the Christian name of the pope's legate; (2) a smaller text or brief type, which was afterwards very closely imitated, if not actually used, at Eltville, in printing the 1472 edition of the Vocabularius ex quo and an edition of the Summa de Articulis Fidei of Thomas Aquinas; (3) a large initial V and two large initials M, which differ from each other. In the 30-line indulgence occur (1) a large church type, which is used as in the 31 -line indulgence, and is usually regarded as identical with that of the 42-line Bible; (2) a smaller text or brief type, of which as yet no further trace has been found; (3) a large initial U, and two large initials M, which differ from each other, the first being identical with the initial M of the second absolution of a 33-line indulgence printed by Peter Schoeffer in 1489 for " Raymundus Peyraudi, archidiaconus Alnisiensis in ecclesia Xanton," who issued it at the order of Pope Innocent VIII., "pro tuicione orthodoxe fidei contra Turchos." These two different editions are usually regarded as having been printed at Mainz Mainz; and, so long as there is no evidence to the contrary, we may printing. assume that such was really the fact. But we must at the same time conclude that about November 1454 there were at least two rival printers at work there, (1) the printer of the 31 -line indulgence, whose name has not yet transpired, but who may have been Johan Gutenberg, perhaps subsidized by Johan Fust; (2) the printer of the 30-line indulgence, who was no doubt Peter (Schoeffer) de Gernssheym, on account of the connexion of this indulgence with that of 1489, which was unquestionably printed by him. Latterly four written copies of the same indulgence have been found, which respectively bear the dates, Frankfort, 10th April 1454 (in the possession of Herr Lais, Wiesbaden); Frankfort, 11th April 1454 (Frankfort archives); 11th July 1454 (place unknown; Darmstadt archives); Lübeck, 6th October 1454. As their dates precede by a few weeks only the earliest known printed date (15th November 1454), they mark, perhaps, the exact time when printing made its appearance at Mainz in an already advanced state of perfection.
In following up the basis afforded by the above indulgences we Early may give a short chronological view of the early printing at Main/, types and so far as it is at present known, referring for minute details to J. H. books at Hessels, Gutenberg: Was he the Inventor of Printing? 1882, p. Mainz. 150 sq.
TYPES 1 (large church type) and 2 (smaller brief type), used by an unknown printer, 1454.
(i.) 31-line indulgence; three different issues (A, B, C), with the printed year mccccliiii., and one issue (D) with the printed year mcccciv. All printed on vellum. Of issue A and B no sold copies have yet come to light. Three unsold copies of each are preserved at (1) Brunswick, (2) Wolfenbüttel, and (3) Hanover (Culemann). Of issue C eight sold copies are known to exist in various libraries, with dates from Nov. 15 1454 to Apr. 30 1455. Also four unused copies have been discovered. Of issue D ten sold copies with dates from Mar. 7 1455 to Apr. 30 1455 and four unused copies are known.
TYPE 1, continued; for type 2 see below.
(ii.) Manung widder die Durke. An almanac for Jan. 1455, in 4to, 5 leaves, 20 and 21 uneven lines. The only copy known was discovered at Augsburg, and is now in the Munich library.
(iii.) Conjunctiones et Oppositiones Solis et Lunæ. A calendar for 1457, a broadside sheet, printed on one side. The upper half of the only copy known was discovered at Mainz, aud is now in the Paris library.
(iv.) Der Cisianus (not Cislanus) zu Dutsche. A broadside sheet, printed on one side, 36 lines, besides separate head-line. The Tross copy, mentioned in Suppl. to Brunet's Manuel (1878, s.v. "Cislanus"), was bought in 1870 for the Cambridge university library.
(v.) and (vi.) Donatus. Two different editions of 14(?)leaves each, 27 lines (B. Mus., C. 18.e 1, Nos. 2 and 5).
(vii.) Donatus of 30 lines, 12 (?) leaves; a fragment of the 8th (?) in the Mainz library.
(viii.) 36-line Bible. 2 vols. fol., 882 leaves, with 2 columns of 36 lines each on a page. Some bibliographers call this the Pfister Bible, assuming that Pfister printed it. The Paris library possesses a paper copy, and also a separate copy of the last leaf, which bears the MS. date 1461. Other copies exist in Lord Spencer's library, in the Brit. Mus., at Jena, Leipsic, Antwerp, &c.[6]
TYPES 3 (large church type) and 4 (smaller brief type), used by Peter Schoeffer de Gerussheym, 1454-1455.
(i.) 30-line indulgence; one issue (A) with the printed year mccccliiii., and two issues (B, C) with the printed year mcccclquinto. All printed on vellum. Of issue A only one copy has been discovered, now in Lord Spencer's library. It was sold at Cologne on Feb. 27 1455, the printed date mccccliiii. having been altered with the pen to mccccliiiij. Of issue B two sold copies, with dates Apr. 11 and 29 1455, are in the Berlin library and the Brit. Mus. Of issue C two sold copies, with dates Feb. 22 and Apr. 24 1455, are at Hanover (Culemann) and Wolfenbüttel. An unsold copy is at Hanover (Culemann).
TYPE 3, continued (till about 1457); of type 4 no further trace is found,
(ii.) Donatus of 24, 25, or 26 lines, 24 (?) leaves; one leaf (the 8th or 9th?) in the Mainz library.
(iii.) Donatus of 32 lines, 14 (?) leaves, the 10th (?) in the Mainz library.
(iv.) Donatus of 33 lines, two leaves in the Paris library.
(v.) Donatus of 35 lines, folio; printed, according to the colophon, "per Petrum de Genissheym, in urbe Moguntina cum suis capitalibus."
(vi.) 42-line Bible (also called Mazarine Bible), printed before Aug. 15 1456, as the binder of the paper copy in the Paris library states that he finished its rubrication on that day. 2 vols. fol., 641 leaves of 2 columns of 42 lines each, except that in some copies the columns of pp. 1-9 contain 40 lines only, while the 10th page has 2 columns of 41 lines each, though the difference in the number of lines makes no difference in the space which they occupy.[7]
(vii.) 42-line Cantica ad Matutinas. The first and only leaf known is in the Paris library. It is printed on vellum, and corresponds in every respect to the 42-line Bible, having double columns, 42 lines, &c.
The above four types and the books printed with them (besides a few others printed by Albrecht Pfister at Baruberg) are the only ones that stand in close connexion with the question regarding the introduction, or the possible invention, of printing at Mainz. It has been pointed out above that one of the initial M s of the 30-line indulgence of 1454 occurs again in an indulgence of 1489, printed by Schoeffer; hence types 3 and 4 and the books printed with them must be ascribed to this printer, in spite of the fact that the capital P found in the indulgence does not seem to occur again in the 42 line Bible. No further trace of the brief type 4 has yet been found, and perhaps Schoeffer melted it down for his other types. As Schoeffer, in the colophon of the Donatus (v.) which bears his
- ↑ Heineken enumerates six editions, of which one has inscriptions in German. See also an article by Guichard, in Bull. du Bibliophile, Paris, 1841.
- ↑ See also W. M. Conway, Notes on the Exercitium super Pater Noster, 1887.
- ↑ There is one copy in the British Museum and another in the library at Basel, this last having the date 14C4 engraved on the letter A, which is mutilated in the former. A similar alphabet preserved at Dresden seems to be a copy made in Germany.
- ↑ Mr W. M. Conway is of a different opinion; see Notes on Exercitium. Dumortier testifies to having seen another copy unaccompanied by MS. ("Notes sur l'Imprimerie," in Bull. Acad. Roy. de Belg., vol. viii., 1841).
- ↑ No inferences can be drawn from this priority, as it merely rests on the date of a sold copy that has come to light.
- ↑ See Hessels, Gutenberg, p. 160; and Bernard, Origine, ii. 31.
- ↑ For other copies, see Bernard, Origine, i. 164, 177-192; and Hessels, Gutenberg, 170.
