About this Item
Only Edition, second issue, of this anthology of judicial opinions for law students in the Spanish Kingdom of Naples. Primarily extracted from recent Spanish legal sources, these one hundred exemplary court decisions span divorce, adultery, theft, taxes, usury, student debt, money bets, inheritance, illegitimate children and concubines. Each decision provides legal precedents or theoretical explications. The publishing history is unexpected. The decisions were to be followed by the notable sayings (Dicta mirabilia) announced in the title, but, in 1576, only the first text was ready, and Salviani printed some copies. When, four years later, García completed the second text, Salviani reset the first quire of the Decisions with a new dedication and imprint date and altered 76 to 80 in manuscript in the colophon. He then typeset the Sayings as a separately signed book. This copy was bound for the new dedicatee, Juan de Zúñiga y Requesens (1536-86), Viceroy of Naples (1579-82), a skilled courtier and ambassador known for his discretion. The year this book was published, he was involved in a plot to put Mary Queen of Scots on the English throne. The book likely entered the Astorga family library during the stewardship of Antonio Pedro Álvarez Osorio Gómez Dávila y Toledo, X marqués de Astorga (c. 1615-89). He was ambassador in Rome (1667) then viceroy of Naples (1672-5) and owned a fine library. The copy offered here figures in the 1789 Astorga library inventory (BnF ms. Espagnol 609 f. 168); printed bookticket on the second verso and small letterpress 220 mounted on a front flyleaf. No copies in the U.S. In good condition. Palau, Manual del librero hispano-americano 99927; Astorga, Catalogue (1870) I: 274 "Very remarkable Italian binding" (tr.); Manzi, La Tipografia napoletana nel 500: Annali di O. Salviani 69; Toda y Güell, Bibliografia espanyola d'Italia 1953; EDIT16 CNCE 20445. CONTEMPORARY NEAPOLITAN BLIND-RULED AND GILT BROWN MOROCCO, two blind triple-rule borders enclosing A WIDE FRAME OF A TYPICALLY SPANISH ROLL OF DRUMS, MASKS, HELMETS, SHIELDS, TOOLS, MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS AND WEAPONS, potted bouquets and angel heads in the corners, deeply impressed gilt central cartouche with THE ARMS OF THE DEDICATEE JUAN ZÚÑIGA Y REQUESENS, VICEROY OF NAPLES, painted on a raised oval medallion (painting worn), gilt birds on the spine (slightly cracked, base neatly repaired), evidence of four leather ties, all edges gilt and gauffered. Seller Inventory # 12004
Contact seller
Report this item
