CALEPINUS, Ambrosius.

Calepinus: another word for dictionary Dictionarium ex optimis quibusque authoribus studiose collectum: & rursus auctum: et multo diligentius ab Ascensio repositum: ita ut nullum vocabulum cornucopiae queratur praetermissum: is qui composita in simplicibus: & h ante i: & y scribenda suis locis inquirere norit. Quam fidem ipse Ascensius huic renovare impressioni suae praestare pollicitur: oratum faciens lectorem ut signum inspiciat. Nam sunt qui titulum nomenque Badianum mentiant: et laborem suffurent. Greci praeterea recognitum: accentibus discretum: et Latine expositum est.

      Paris, Jodocus Badius Ascensius, 1519.. Folio. Contemporary half vellum over wooden boards, spine ribbed, half vellum sides richly blind-stamped, remnants of 2 brass clasps. Title within richly designed ornamental woodcut borders, partly in white on black crible and partly in black on white, with large woodcut printer's device in centre, the whole title printed in red and black; fine large crible woodcut initials in the text. (398) lvs. printed in 2 columns.. Rare edition, published by one of the most important printers of Paris, Josse Badius Ascensius, of certainly the most popular Latin dictionary ever. Ambrosius Calepinus (1440-1510), entered the order of the Augustins in 1458 and lived at monasteries in Milan, Mantua, Cremona and Brescia. After he had studied Greek with Constantin Lascaris he devoted his time to study the classics and philology. He spent thirty years preparing the present dictionary, which was first published at Reggio nell'Emilia in 1502. The work met with an unsurpassed success, was published over 200 times and remained in use for more than three centuries, being still an invaluable source of information for the study of Medieval- and Neo-Latin, the language of the Renaissance and Humanism. Good copy, with ample margins, in contemporary binding.- (Binding sl. rubbed, top and bottom of spine sl. dam.; old owner's ms. entry on top and bottom of title; marginal worm-holes throughout). Labarre 26; Renouard, Imprimeurs et libraires parisiens , II, 401; this ed. not in Renouard, Badius Ascensius; not in STC French.