Aesopus. La vida y fabulas del Esopo: a las quales se anadieron algunas muy graciones de Avieno, y de otros fabios fabuladores.

€ 2,800.00

Pretty and attractively illustrated, pocket-sized Spanish fable collection containing a life of Aesop (consisting of 86 pages and illustrated with one woodcut showing Aesop with a basket on his arm collecting fables in the field), 80 fables by Aesop illustrated with 46 woodcuts, 17 so-called fables "extravagantes" with 3 woodcuts, another 17 fables by Aesop in the translation of Rimicius, illustrated with 13 woodcuts, 37 fables by Avianus with 5 woodcuts, and 23 other fables collected from various sources, illustrated with 2 woodcuts. According to Peeters-Fontainas, the book was published at the Plantin office at Leyden although at the time the Netherlands were still at war with Spain: "L'adresse 'Oficina planiniana' a toujours fair attribuer cette édition aux presses d'Anvers. C'est une erreur, la marque plantinienne no. 165 n'a été utilisée que dans l'officine de Leyde; elle ne figure d'ailleurs pas dans les recueils de marques plantiniennes de Van Havre. Nous la retrouverons encore sur plusieures éditions espagnoles de cette officine" (Pays-Bas Méridinaux).

Binding wrinkled and stained with traces of former ties. Some wrinkling, browning and waterstains throughout; leaves C5-6 bound before C3 but complete. Title-page clipped next to device and re-backed without loss. Old handwritten ownerships of monastic libraries and traces of a stamp to title-page; further 17th century ownership at the beginning of the biography. Stamp of the L'achki collection on lower pastedown.