Plinius Secundus, Gaius

Historia naturalis

      Venice: Thomas de Blavis, de Alexandria, 3 November 1491. Folio, 11.5 x 8 inches. aa-bb8, a-d8, [another]d8, e6, f-z8, &8, [con]8, Rx8, A-I8, II6. 306 0f 308 leaves. (Lacking the initial blank, aa1. The final leaf, II6, with the register, is supplied in photographic facsimile on matching period paper.) This is a fine copy, with some paper repairs in the first few leaves, very nicely executed. It is bound in full parchment over boards, a very attractive binding, with a morocco label on the spine. . OPlinyOs Natural History is an encyclopedia written around AD 77 by Pliny the Elder. It is one of the largest single works to have survived from the Roman empire to the modern day, and was one of the first reference works developed in the classical period to examine natural and man-made objects, both organic and mineral, as well as many natural phenomena. It became a model for all later encyclopedias in terms of the breadth of subject matter examined, the use of original authors, and a comprehensive index, or list of the contents. It is the only work by Pliny to have survived.O#11;PlinyOs work is also important for its contribution to the history of art. It is the only extant work on the subject from the classical period. The story of the sculpture, OLaoco!n and his Sons,O is particularly interesting. This sculpture, described by Pliny in his Historia Naturalis, was unearthed near the site of NeroOs Domus Aureus in 1506. Pope Julius II quickly purchased the statue and placed in the Belvedere Gardens at the Vatican, where it still resides. OWhen the statue was discovered, Laoco!nOs right arm was missing, along with part of the hand of one child and the right arm of the other. Artists and connoisseurs debated how the missing parts should be interpreted. Michelangelo suggested that the missing right arm was originally bent back over the shoulder. Others, however, believed it was more appropriate to show the right arm extended outwards in a heroic gesture. The Pope held an informal contest among sculptors to make replacement right arms, which was judged by Raphael. The winner, in the outstretched position, was attached to the statue. In 1957, the original right arm, with a snake coiled about his wrist, was found by L. Pollack in a builderOs yard in Rome, and was in the position suggested by Michelangelo. The arm has now been rejoined to the statue.O (Quotes taken from wikipedia.)#11;PlinyOs work defines the model that natural history followed for centuries. The museum movement of the early modern period would have been impossible without him. His work is an essential source for information on ancient Roman art, architecture, aqueducts, engineering, mining, sculpture, technology and more. #11;