Lexikon [in Greek]/ Dictionarium

HESYCHIUS OF ALEXANDRIA (late 4th/early 5th c.)

Published by Thomas Anshelm Badensis December 1521, Haguenau, 1521

About this Item

Folio (319 x 203mm). Signatures: a-z (in 8s); A-B (in 6s). Double column, numbered to 776, text in Greek. Woodcut initial beginning letter A. Large woodcut printer s device on final leaf by Hans Baldung Grien (d.1545), German artist and printmaker, is called "one of his best works" (Butsch I, p. 48, pl. 75). Period limp vellum, neatly rebacked, remnants of old index tabs; light staining or wear with use, otherwise very good. Few instances of marginalia in Greek, mostly in letter A ; Armorial bookplate of Reverend William B. Hayne, Master of the free grammar school of Hinton Maurice in Devon; sold by Thomas Baker to Cuthbert H. Turner (1860-1930), English ecclesiastical historian and Biblical scholar (his ownership inscription dated 1919, Magdalen College, Oxford); John Waynflete Carter (1905-1975), English author, diplomat and book collector (his book label on front pastedown); "BL" (early emblematical bookplate on front pastedown); gilt monogram on covers "CML." First edition printed in a German speaking country of Hesychius Lexicon of obscure Greek words, this copy with an interesting scholarly provenance. First Edition printed in a German-speaking country, correcting the Aldine edition of 1514. The Lexicon suffered substantial alterations, including abridgements and additions on its way from the author to the only surviving manuscript (of the fifteenth century). This production gives all-important information about the manuscript and the work of earlier scholars. Hesychius of Alexandria lived in the fifth century A.D. and compiled this dictionary of unusual or difficult Greek words with explanations in Greek. Approximately 51,000 entries make it the richest surviving Greek lexicon compiled until the invention of printing. Hesychius Lexicon is of great importance to Ancient Greek studies because it contains countless words and expressions from poetry, administration, medicine, and so on, that are otherwise unknown or insufficiently explained. In particular, this work preserves numerous words from the Greek dialects that are important not only for Greek but also for Indo-European philology. Staikos says, "A unique source book, Hesychius Lexicon deals mainly with words that exist in unusual forms or have more than one meaning, that is to say rare words that were not in everyday use. It also quotes a great many passages from lost works by orators, poets, historians and medical writers." Excellent survival and passed through many learned hands. Adams H509; Staikos I, 348. Seller Inventory # D6762

Bibliographic Details

Title: Lexikon [in Greek]/ Dictionarium

Publisher: Thomas Anshelm Badensis December 1521, Haguenau

Publication Date: 1521

Binding: Hardcover

Condition: Very Good

Edition: First Edition.