Platina, Bartholomaeus Sacchi de

Chancery folio (315 x 216mm.), 128 leaves, [a¹⁰ b-r⁶ s⁸ t⁶ v⁸], double column, 54-56 lines, gothic type, 3- to 5-line initials in red, green or blue, one 15-line initial in blue and yellow with coloured decoration extending into the margins, yellow initial-strokes, some contemporary quire numbers in red ink, contemporary Viennese blind-stamped calf over wooden boards with later bosses on upper cover and clasps, two fourteenth-century manuscript bifolia containing the text of Thomas Aquinas's Summa theologica used as pastedowns and sewing guards, some edges uncut, slight staining at foot of last few leaves, binding slightly wormed and rubbed, repaired at edges and rebacked retaining part of original spine, lacking bosses on lower cover

Cistercian monastery of BMV, Heiligenkreuz (near Vienna), seventeenth-century inscriptions on first two leaves, "catalogo inscriptus", together with a paper stamped label giving the shelf mark

Goff P769; HC 13047; BMC ii 420; GW M33881; Bod-inc P-343

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."

A tall and crisp copy of Platina's Lives of the Popes, first published in Venice in 1479.

The binding contains some tools that are found on bindings by Meister Matthias, a binder active in Vienna in the 1460s-1470s, and indeed it has the same overall design, with crested trefoil tools at top and bottom and a distinctive rectangular chainlink tool in the spine compartments, both of which are a feature of Viennese bindings at this date (see Goldschmidt, Gothic and Renaissance Book Bindings, no. 4, and Mazal, Europäische Einbandkunst, no. 29).