ESTIENNE, Charles. [with] BAIF, Lazare de. [and] TESLIO, Antonio.

£8,500 · Offered by Sokol Books

A charmingly-bound sammelband of four Latin works, in two first and two very scarce editions. Although the first three works may be considered the first children s books or the first books produced specifically for the entertainment (unlike schoolbooks) as well as the edification of a juvenile readership (Schreiber, Estiennes , 50, 1535 ed.), they were also read, as here, by adults wishing to know more. The younger brother of the famous printer Robert Estienne, Charles (1504-64) was a physician who made important discoveries in the field of anatomy. Eventually following the family s business, with a focus on popular, didactic works, he became royal printer in 1552. He wrote and edited influential works for the educated middle classes, which appeared in Latin, Italian and French. De re hortensi , on herbs for vegetable gardens, is concerned with the enclosure of suitable land, the types of herbs which grow spontaneously or need cultivating, ornamental ones used to embellish arbours, and the various garden areas subdivided by kinds of plants (e.g., coronalis , odorata or olitoria ). It concludes with a Latin-French vocabulary. The second and third were written by the humanist Lazare de Ba‚àö√òf (1496-1547). De re vestiaria is an entertaining work on countless types of clothing (both civil and military), head- and footwear, each with their Latin and French names and a brief historical context. For instance, crepida , slippers or sandals, are highlighted for the noise of the heel

• Binding: Hardcover

Found via Rare Books Intel, a search across rare-book dealers, auction houses and marketplaces worldwide.