Erasmus, Desiderius;

Paraphrases in omnes Epistolas Pauli germanas, & in omnes Canonicas, diligenter ab autore recognitae, ac marginalibus indicibus illustratae.

      Basileae [Basel]: Apud Ioannem Frobenium, [March] 1521. - 4 vols. bound as 2, 8vo., ff. [280], [192]. Woodcut borders on titles and several other leaves, woodcut initials and headpieces, attributed to Holbein, occasional short early ink marginalia and underlining. First title page with a wormhole in corner, last 10 leaves of vol. 1 with two small wormholes sometimes touching a character, vol. 2 title loosening. Some light browning at edges and spotting. Sometime cased in a pair of contemporary blind-stamped pigskin bindings of similar style, vol. 1 slightly taller and with brass clasps (one broken at tip), vol. 2 clasps removed, both a touch worn at corners and spine ends, green paper labels in top spine compartments chipped and rubbed, the first two gatherings of vol.1 slightly proud and hence rubbed by the clasp, no free endpapers. Several early inscriptions (one dated 1529) to pastedown and title in vol. 1. The first collected edition of the ?Tomus Secundus? of Erasmus?s Paraphrases on the New Testament, containing the paraphrases on the Apostolic Epistles; until the collected editions after his death, the ?Tomus Primus? (with the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles) and the ?Tomus Secundus? had entirely separate printing histories. Each section of these Paraphrases was first printed (and reprinted) individually, beginning in 1517, but in 1520 Erasmus decided to publish them all together and revised. He worked his revisions from the first editions rather than from the more recent reprints, and the result was these volumes, published in March 1521. Another edition (with a slightly different title, since this edition?s title page was typeset before the manuscript of ?Epistle to the Hebrews? made it to the press) appeared in July 1521. There were then four further editions in 1522-3, including two folio versions. (For a full account, see Bateman, ?The Textual Travail of the Tomus Secundus of the Paraphrases?, in Holy Scripture Speaks, 2002.) At the time of publication, Hans Holbein the Younger often produced work for Froben, and the woodcuts in these volumes have been attributed to him. COPAC suggests that the only UK institution holding this March 1521 edition is Oxford, though it is often hard to distinguish from that of July. VD16 E3375. Not in Adams.