Euripides. Tragoediae septendecim. Venice, Aldus, 1503. 2 volumes, contemporary bindings

EURIPIDES

Τραγωδιαι επτακαιδεκα... Tragoediae septendecim, ex quib. quaedam habent commentaria. (Venice: Aldus, February 1503)

2 volumes, 8vo (165 x 97mm. and 168 x 100mm.), Greek text, woodcut Aldine device on final verso of each volume, with 5 blank leaves, volume 1 in contemporary Venetian brown morocco with blind-tooled interlacing knotwork stamps, author's name lettered along foredge, volume 2 in contemporary Italian tan morocco, blind and gilt fillet border with a central female Fortuna stamp gilt, edges gilt and gauffered to a knotwork design, occasional light soiling, staining at end of volume 1, binding of volume 1 skilfully repaired at both ends of spine and corners, lacking ties, volume 2 neatly rebacked retaining most of original spine

EDITIO PRINCEPS of the plays of Euripides (four of the eighteen in this edition had been printed previously in Florence, before 18 June 1495); although only seventeen were mentioned on the title-page, Hercules furens was added towards the end of the printing (Electra does not appear here, and was first printed in 1545). The text was prepared by John Gregoropoulos, also responsible for the Aldine Sophocles of 1502 (see lot 8), and both editions were printed in the same small and elegant typeface by Griffo.

LITERATURE:

Aldo Manuzio tipografo 71; Edit16 18373; Renouard 1503/10; UCLA 69

PROVENANCE:

Francesco Savio, inscriptions in volume 2 (a Francesco Savio was a printer in Naples in the early seventeenth century)