Jerome, Saint, Epistolae, Rome, Paolo Manuzio, 1566, contemporary brown morocco, by binder of Ulrich Fugger's Bible, Cardinal Alfonso Gesualdo di Conza's copy

Jerome, Saint. Epistolae … et libri contra haereticos, ex antiquissimis exemplaribus. Rome: Paolo Manuzio, 1566

Second Aldine edition of the epistles of St. Jerome, sumptuously bound, Cardinal Alfonso Gesualdo di Conza’s copy.

Gesualdio di Conza became Cardinal in 1561 at only 20 years old, and when he attended the papal conclave of 1565-1566, he became one of the youngest Cardinals to participate in a papal election. In 1564 he became Archbishop of Conza, then Bishop of Albano in 1583, Bishop of Frascati in 1587, Bishop of Porto e Santa Rufina in 1589, Bishop of Ostia in 1591, and Archbishop of Naples in 1596.

2 volumes, 8vo (162 x 108 mm; 160 x 110 mm). Roman, italic, Hebrew, and Greek type, (1) 36 lines plus headline, (2) 36 lines plus headline. Woodcut Aldine device on title-pages, index at end. collation: (1) + - ++++^8 χ+⁴ A-Z⁸ Aa-Zz⁸ Aaa-Zzz⁸ Aaaa- Cccc⁸ (Cccc8 a blank): 612 leaves. (2) A-Z⁸ Aa-Tt⁸ a-z⁸ &⁸ aa-gg⁸ hh-ii⁸ kk⁸ LL-MM⁸ nn-ss⁸ tt⁴ (tt4 a blank, nn bound out of order): 676 leaves. (Browning, scattered foxing, in vol. 2 open marginal tear to Cc4 and loss to lower corners of Gg1 and ss1.)

binding: Strictly contemporary Bolognese (or possibly Roman) dark brown morocco (169 x 128 mm), covers with large gilt arabesque panel stamp occupying almost entire cover (similar to the 1523 Trapenzuntius and 1533 Ovid, by the binder of Ulrich Fugger's Bible), first volume with .I. | .II. in gilt at center, second volume with .III. in gilt at center, surrounded by border of repeated gilt arabesque, traces of two pairs of ties, spine with three full and four half gilt-decorated bands in eight gilt-decorated compartments, all edges gilt and gauffered. (Light rubbing at extremities.)

provenance: Cardinal Alfonso Gesualdo di Conza (1540-1603) — unidentified owner, inscription, “P.C. empt. ex libris D(omi)ni Cardinalis Gesualdi die x. Nov. 1603,” at end of both volumes — Charles Carmichael Lacaita (1853-1933), bookplate to pastedown of both volumes — Sotheby’s London, 20-22 July 1936, lot 114 — E.P. Goldschmidt & Co., London, purchased in previous sale; Catalogue 46, London 1937, item 61; Catalogue 50, London 1938, item 96 — Arthur Rau, Paris. acquisition: Purchased from Librairie Thomas- Scheler, Paris, 2006. references: UCLA 776; Renouard 199/3; Edit16 22474; USTC 835739; Barberi p. 147