Cuspinianus, Johannis [Johan Speissheimer]. Engraved by Heinrich Vogtherr

De Caesaribus Atq Imperatoribus Romanis Opus Insigne

      Ferdinandi [C. Mylius], Strassburg / Strasbourg 1540 - Folio. [1] blank, [1] title, [14] preface, 762pp., [5] index, [1] colophon, [1] blank. Text in Latin. Printer's vignette engraving to title page. Woodcuts by Heinrich Vogtherr in the form of elaborately bordered circular medallions containing the busts of Roman and German Emporers throughout. Numerous historiated initials. Large engraved printer's mark to final leaf. Contemporary leather, decoratively tooled in blind. Raised bands, gilt stamped motifs to spine compartments, and red leather title panel stamped in gilt. All edges red. Binding expertly repaired but with some old scratches and staining. Paper repairs at and near the upper right corner on the second, third, fourth, and sixth leaves, and with text often replaced in manuscript. Very faint dampstaining to much of the text block at the upper right corner, never affecting legibility and often unnoticeable. Underlining to several pages. Previous owner's inscription to title. Complete, bright, and beautifully illustrated. Adams 3134. ** Two later editions were published, a German edition of 1541 and a second Latin edition of 1561. Johannis Cuspinianus (1473-1529) was an Austrian scholar of medicine, a statesman, an historian, and member of the inner circle of renaissance humanists. In this, his best known work, Cuspinianus examines the history of Empires chronologically through reigns of each ruler, from Julius Caesar to the fall of Rome and finally the Ottoman Sultans. Cuspinianus frequently references past scholars including Cicero, Herodotus, and Plutarch. The illustrator, Heinrich Vogtherr the elder (1490-1556), was a skilled woodcutter, painter, draughtsman, writer, and publisher. He cloned and published the works of Albrecht Durer as well as publishing his own version of Hans Holbein?s ?Dance of Death? in 1544. The illustrations in this chronicle also appeared in Hedio?s edition of the Upsberg Chronicle. OCLC locates 3 copies of this edition in world libraries. [Attributes: First Edition; Hard Cover]