7 - Humanism - Elzevier

Humanism - Elzevier Livius, Titus Historiarum quod extat cum perpetuis Ioannis F. Gronovii et variorum notis. (Vol. 1 of 3). With engraved title page. Amsterdam, Elzevier, 1665. 24 leaves, 820 pp., 37 leaves of contemporary paper with handwritten title (slightly scuffed). First edition. — Willems 1358. Schweiger 534 — First volume of the three-volume Livy edition published by the Elzevierin Amsterdam, containing the complete surviving historical work of the Roman historian, edited and annotated throughout by the Dutch philologist Johann Friedrich Gronovius, supplemented with selected variorum commentaries. The volume bears the distinctive engraved copper title page, typical of the Elzevier editions in this series, and features the characteristic small octavo format (24mo/8vo) of the Amsterdam publishing house, with clear Antiqua type and a carefully compiled index. This is Gronovius’s second textual revision, which builds upon his first edition from 1645 and, for the first time compared to Heinsius’s 1634 edition, introduces a continuous chapter division, a significant feature for collectors of classical philology and Roman historiography. The footnotes are clearly distinguished between Gronovius’s and Variorum notes; each volume has its own *Index rerum et verborum*, all presented in the typographic quality prized in Elzeviriana. The Amsterdam printing house of the brothers—or rather, cousins—Ludovicus and Daniel Elzevier was one of the leading European publishing houses for editions of Latin classics in the 17th century, and editions bearing Gronovius’s name remain among the most sought-after reference editions for the reception of Livy to this day, often referred to as the *editio optima*. Ownership note on the endpaper; small number on the title page. First volume of the three-volume Livy edition published by the Elzevier printers in Amsterdam, containing the complete surviving historical work of the Roman historiographer, edited and annotated throughout by the Dutch philologist Johann Friedrich Gronovius, supplemented by a selection of Variorum commentaries. The volume bears the distinctive engraved copper title page, characteristic of the Elzevier editions in this series, and features the typical small-octavo format (24mo/8vo) of the Amsterdam publishing house, with clear Antiqua type and a carefully prepared index. This is Gronovius’s second textual edition, which builds upon his first revision of 1645 and, compared to Heinsius’s 1634 edition, introduces for the first time a continuous chapter division—a feature of considerable importance for collectors of classical philology and Roman historiography. The footnotes are neatly distinguished between Gronovius’s own annotations and the Variorum notes; each volume has its own index rerum et verborum, all executed in the typographic quality prized among Elzeviriana. The Amsterdam printing house of the brothers—or rather, cousins—Ludovicus and Daniel Elzevier was among the leading European publishing houses of the 17th century for editions of the Latin classics, and editions bearing Gronovius’s name still rank today among the most sought-after reference editions of Livy’s reception, often described as the editio optima.