Procopius of Caesarea. De Bello Persico,. Rome, Eucharius Silber, 1509

Procopius of Caesarea. De Bello Persico, Per Raphaelem Volaterranum Conversus. Romae per Magistrum Eucharium Silber alias Franck. Castigatum per Andream Nucium MDIX. Nonis Martiis.(Rome, Eucharius Silber, March 1509] Folio. [90]f. Roman letter. At end of text 6 line privilege in favour of Giacomo Mazzocchi printed in capitals. Woodcut initial with portrait of a saint at beginning of first book, lombard initial decorating beginnings of books II-IV. Early 19th century red quarter morocco, gilt; marbled boards. The first printing of Procopios' account of the early 6th century Byzantine military campaigns against the Persian kings Kavadh & Chosroes Anushirvan, and against the Vandal kingdom in North Africa. The Latin translation from the Greek is by Raffaele Maffei Bishop of Volaterra (1451-1522), a noted humanist ; (the Greek original text was first published by Höschel at Augsburg as late as 1607; an English version by Holcroft followed in 1653). The colophon is unusual in referring to the editor, Andrea Nucio, by name. The lengthy privilege by Pope Julius II is in favour of Giacomo Mazzocchi, learned Roman bookseller, printer, and noted antiquarian, first mentioned here. Procopios, a native of Caesarea in Palestine, trained as a lawyer and rhetorician, was attached to the Byzantine general Belisarius in AD 527 as his aide and legal adviser in the Persian war. He was to accompany Belisarius in all his brilliant campaigns to restore East Roman power. His Histories, written c550 AD, constitute the authoritative text for the period. Procopios emphasizes the crucial rôle of archers in Belisarius victories. A good copy with wide margins from the library of Dmitry Petrovich Count Boutourlin (1763-1829), Russian senator, outstanding bibliophile, and director of the Imperial Library, with his engraved armorial bookplate inside front cover; Boutourlin s first library was lost in the burning of Moscow in 1812; his immense second collection, formed during his retirement in Tuscany, was described in a privately printed catalogue limited to 200 copies by Audin (Florence 1831); the books were ultimately dispersed by auction through Silvestre (Paris, 1839-41); many were acquired by the Bodleian Library. A small, neat repair in blank tailend corner of last leaf. Isaac 12013; Jähns 143-6; Adams records no copies in Cambridge libraries.