Aesop.

Phalaris. Epistolae [Greek, edited by Bartholomaeus Justinopolitanus]. Venice: Bartholomaeus Pelusius, Gabriel Bracius, Joannes Bissolus and Benedictus Mangius, 18 June 1498,  aa-dd^{8 ee4, 57 leaves (of 58),29 lines, text in Greek, colophon in Roman type, woodcut pine cone device after colophon (with the stalk pointing upwards), lacking a1 (containing preface)}



2 works in one volume, 4to (175 x 119mm.), Phalaris bound first, eighteenth-century vellum, spine lettered in gilt, in modern folding box, cut close at head with a few leaves of the Phalaris shaved

Goff A97 & P545; HC 267 & 12871; BMC v 578; GW 312 & M32830

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Gabriele da Brisighella took out a Venetian privilege in March 1498 for the printing of four works in Greek; the other two were Pollux and Philostratus but they were never published (this press also produced Ficino's De triplici vita in the same year). The Greek type is closely modelled on Aldus's, quite unsurprisingly as Brisighella (and perhaps his colleagues) had worked for Aldus. As Aldus's typeface had been granted a privilege in 1496, he sued Brisighella and his colleagues, which presumably resulted in the premature closure of the press and the reappearance of Bissolus and Mangius in Milan in 1499.

This is the editio princeps of Phalaris (though the letters are now known not to have been written by Phalaris) and the second Greek edition of Aesop (the first was printed in Milan in c. 1478), and the first to be printed without a Latin translation; this compares with about 80 Latin editions produced before 1501.