De Bello Civili
On the Tudor Trail reader, Jessica, recently contacted me to share some information about a book her grandfather has in his rare and antique book collection.
The book was purchased in London in the early 1990s from an antique book dealer. It is a collection of ten poems by the Roman poet Lucan, entitled De Bello Civili (‘On the Civil War’), about the civil war between Caesar and Pompey.
Printed in Lyon, France in 1547 by Sebastian Gryphius (a German bookseller-printer and humanist), it was most likely taken from the Continent to England, as there was great demand for books by the classical poets.
De Bello Civili, Sebastian Gryphius
The cover is made of vellum and the pages are made of cotton, which is part of the reason why it’s in such good condition. Cotton pages are not as delicate as the materials used in book making today and are much more durable. The book is printed in Latin, and every single page is in as beautiful condition as the ones in the photographs below.
Amazing to think that it has survived 450 years intact! I wonder which English family once had this in their possession…
Thank you Jessica for sharing! I hope to one day own a 16th century book myself.
De Bello Civili, Sebastian Gryphius
I’m so glad you liked it! Perhaps you could go book hunting when you’re in London for the Anne Boleyn tour? 😉
What is such a beautiful specimen! And being that I’m also a Romanophile along with being a Tudorphile, I also recommend Lucan’s poetry on the Roman Civil War between the Caesarians and the Optimates. His writing is really very lovely.