Early Printed Books

by E. Gordon Duff

The first complete edition of Ovid was produced in 1471, and is the first book printed at Bologna, the printer being Balthasar Azzoguidi, ‘primus in sua civitate artis impressoriæ inventor,’ as he calls himself in the preface to the book. Andrea Portilia must also have been amongst the earliest printers at Bologna, though his only dated book is 1473, for in that year he returned to Parma. Among the many printers who worked in the town, none are better known, from the frequency with which their names occur in colophons, than the various members of the family ‘de Benedictis,’ who worked from 1488 onwards.

Andreas Belfortis, a Frenchman, was the first to print at Ferrara, issuing in 1471 at least three books, of which the earliest, published in July, is an edition of Martial (which has catchwords to the quires in the latter portion). This was followed by editions of Poggio and Augustinus Dathus. Belfortis continued to print till 1493. A certain Augustinus Carner, who printed a few books between 1474 and 1476, printed in 1475 the rare Teseide of Boccaccio, the first printed poem in the Italian language. De Rossi, in his tract, De typographia Ebræo-Ferrariensi, gives a long description of some Hebrew books printed at Ferrara in 1477, which must be the first printed in that language, though some words are found in a book printed at Esslingen in 1475.

The first printer at Milan was Anthony Zarotus, and his earliest book, with both name and date, is the Virgil of 1472. In the previous year, four books had been issued without any printer’s name, but the identity of the type with that of the Virgil shows Zarotus to have printed these also. Mention has often been made of a certain Terence, printed in 1470, March 13. It is quoted by Hain (15,371), who had not seen it, and by Panzer (ii. 11. 2), and a copy was said to be in the library of the Earl of Pembroke, the home of many mysterious books. It is often quoted as the first book with signatures. It was doubtless a copy of the edition of March 13, 1481, in which some ingenious person had erased the last two figures, xi, of the date. It is very probable that there was at first some connection between Zarotus and Philip de Lavagna; and it was perhaps at the latter’s expense, and through his means, that Zarotus first printed. Certainly, in the colophon of a book printed in 1473, probably by Christopher Valdarfer, are the words ‘per Philippum de Lavagnia, hujus artis stampandi in hac urbe primum latorem atque inventorem;’ but it is quite possible that the words should not be taken in too narrow a sense, and that Philip de Lavagna simply means to speak of himself as the first person to introduce printing into Milan, not as printer, but as patron.

The history of the first printers in this town is very interesting, for they entered into various partnerships, and the documents relating to these have been preserved and published,[22] throwing a good deal of light on some of the customs and methods of the early printers. In 1476 was printed at Milan the Grammar of Constantine Lascaris, the first book printed in Greek; and in 1481, a Greek version of the Psalms, the first portion of the Bible printed in this language.

[22]Saxius, Bibliothecá scriptorum Mediolanensium. Milan, 1745. Fol.

At Florence, Bernard Cennini, the celebrated goldsmith and assistant of Ghiberti, printed, with the assistance of two of his sons, an edition of the Commentary of Servius on Virgil. It was begun towards the end of 1471, and not finished till October 1472, but is the first book printed at Florence. This is the only book known to have been printed by Cennini; but it is not unlikely that in his capacity of goldsmith he did work for other printers in cutting type. The most interesting press at Florence in the fifteenth century, was that founded in the Monastery of St. James of Ripoli by Dominic de Pistoia, the head of the establishment. Beginning with a Donatus, of which every copy has disappeared, it was carried on briskly up till the time of his death in 1484, issuing, according to Hain, just over fifty works; according to De Rossi, nearly one hundred. The account books connected with this press have been preserved, and from them we can learn the price of the various articles used by the printers, such as paper, ink, type-metal. Several kinds of paper are mentioned, and identified, as a rule, by their watermarks. We have paper from Fabriano with the mark of a crossbow, a different paper from the same place marked with a cross, and two sorts of paper from Pescia marked with spectacles and a glove. There are several celebrated books printed at Florence before 1500 which cannot be passed over. In 1477 was issued the Monte Santo di Dio, said to contain the first copperplate engraving; and in 1481, the celebrated Dante, with engravings by Baccio Baldini after the designs of Botticelli. Most copies of this book contain only a few of the plates, while about eight copies are known with the full number. Some celebrated Greek books also were issued at Florence, notably in 1488 the first edition of Homer printed by Demetrius Chalcondylas at the expense of two brothers, Bernardus and Nerius Nerlii. There is a copy of this book in the British Museum, which was bought by Mr. Barnard, librarian to George III., for seven shillings. One complete copy on vellum is known, in the library of St. Mark’s at Venice.

Towards the end of the fifteenth century, Francis de Alopa printed five Greek books entirely in capital letters, the Anthologia of 1494, Callimachus, Euripides (four plays only), Apollonius Rhodius, 1496, Poetae Gnomici, and Musæus. It is very probable that the ‘editio princeps’ of Lucian, which was printed at Florence, but is ascribed by Ebert to Caliergi at Venice, was also printed at this press.

Under the patronage of Ferdinand I., King of Naples, Sixtus Riessinger of Strasburg began to print there in 1471, and continued till 1479. He seems to have been in high favour with the king, who offered him a bishopric, which was, however, refused. In 1472, Arnaldus de Bruxella set up his press, using (unlike most other printers) Roman type only. The large M and small y are of a curious form and easily recognisable, while the final us in words is always represented by an abbreviation. Most of the books printed by him are rare; of the Horace and Petrarch, only single copies are known; and it was for the sake of acquiring these two books, so Dibdin tells us, that Lord Spencer bought the Cassano Library. Hain mentions seventeen books printed by this Arnaldus de Bruxella, and out of that number he had seen only one. Van der Meersch gives twenty-three; but some are doubtful.

Pavia is more celebrated for the number of books it produced than for their interest, and it is only mentioned here as one of the towns to which printing is said to have been introduced in 1471.

The last town to be mentioned in this group is Treviso, where, in 1471, that wandering printer Gerardus de Lisa began to print. In his first year he printed several books, but his industry gradually got less. In 1477 we find him at Venice, in 1480 at Cividad di Friuli (Civitas Austriæ), and in 1484 at Udina.