ROSINUS, Johannes.

by Johannes Rosinus

£1,500 · Offered by Sokol Books

Johannes Rosinus (1551-1626) was a Lutheran pastor and rector of a school in Regensburg. He is primarily known for his Antiquitatum romanarum, one of the age s most popular illustrated encyclopedias of Roman antiquity. It first appeared in Geneva in 1583 and went through numerous editions over the next decades. The work is divided into ten parts. The first ( de urbe et populo Romano ) deals with the Roman people and the city s topography (it contains the fold-out map of historical Rome). Books II and III focus on Roman religion, including major and minor deities, temples (there is a large woodcut of the temple of Janus), and the sacerdotal class ( de diis, templis , de sacerdotiis ). Book IV concerns the Roman calendar and feast days, Book V the games and spectacles. Books VI and VII discuss Roman politics and statecraft ( de comitiis , de magistratibus ), while Books VIII and IX explore the intricacies of Roman law and judicature ( de legibus , de iudiciis ). The final book discusses the structure of the army, and includes a fold-out map of a Roman military camp. There is a very detailed and useful index. This copy belonged to Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun (1653? 1716), the Scottish political theorist and book collector, the most learned Scotsman of his day . He was involved in the Monmouth Rebellion of 1685 but had to flee the expedition after killing one of his own side s leading figures in a brawl. Sentenced to death for treason .in absentia., Fletcher later returned to Engl

• Binding: Hardcover

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