Osualdus Crollius (1 results)

A celebrated book about chemical medicine by Oswald Kroll (1563-1609), an alchemist and professor of medicine at the University of Marburg in Hesse, Germany. This undated edition is a slightly later reissue of that of 1609 with some modifications; it also slightly differs from all early editions we were able to collate with this copy. "Basilica Chymica" is supplemented with Kroll's treatise "De signaturis internis rerum" and "Elegia de vera antiqua philosophica medicina, Scripta a M. Ulrico Bollingero Ad DN. Osualdum Crollium, Medico-chymicum felicissimum, etc." The book features an engraved title page with emblems/diagrams and portraits of Hermes Trismegistus, Morienus, Lullus on one side, and Geber, Roger Bacon and Paracelsus on the other. This rare copper engraving was made by Aegidius Sadeler (1570-1629), a Flemish engraver who was principally active at the Prague court of Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor. Antiqua typeface; pages are decorated with large woodcut headpieces, tailpieces and initials; two pages contain woodcut illustrations of instruments (see photos). A complete, well-preserved copy. Provenance: The copy contains two bookplates, ownership stamp, call numbers and other notes of the Capuchin Monastery in Hradcany (Prague); a coloured spine with handwritten title and call number is also typical for its library. The front endpaper has a simple recent bookplate of Petr Vopenka (1935-2015), a Czech mathematician and philosopher. /// Parchment binding with leather strings (backstrip with handwritten title and call number); hardback, [16]+283+[25]+[16]+80+[16]+24 pp., 8° (18 x 22 cm), parchment worn, yellowed and deformed, edges darkened, endpapers have a few bookworm traces, title leaf with two small paper labels pasted over its verso, some pages yellowed or slightly foxed, other signs of wear and age are rare (several pages with small water stain, a few tiny ink stains, small tear or chipped corner), condition: good Book Language/s: Latin.