Alphabetum arabicum.

Published by Rome, typographia Medicea, 1592.

  • First Edition
  • Signed
  • Softcover
  • Used
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Seller: Antiquariat INLIBRIS Gilhofer Nfg. GmbH, Vienna, A, AustriaAntiquariat INLIBRIS Gilhofer Nfg. GmbH

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Softcover

Condition: Used

£ 34,810.08

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Item description from seller

4to (175 x 232 mm). 64 pp. Printed in Roman and Arabic types. With printer's woodcut device on title-page. Contemporary carta rustica binding. Only edition of this early milestone of Arabic typography from the Roman Medici Press, including a Latin treatise on Arabic script. - The Medici Oriental Press, the first printing press in Europe dedicated to printing books in an Arabic typeface, was founded in Rome under the direction of Giovanni Battista Raimondi and the patronage of Pope Gregory XIII. For the Arabic types, Raimondi commissioned the famous typefounder Robert Granjon: "In a few years Granjon had cut a large number of oriental characters, following superb calligraphic designs provided by Raimondi. On September 6, 1586, he completed the small Arabic typeface [.] Because cutting the Arabic typefaces took such a long time, establishment of the Medici Press went slowly. Though the contracts formally setting up the press were signed on March 6, 1584, the first book to bear its imprint did not appear until 1591. Legible and much more 'oriental' in feel than those of de Gregorii, Postel or Spey, this face was not improved upon until the time of Ibrahim Müteferrika in the early 18th century [.] Once underway, however, the Medici Press was very productive. In 1592 it issued a prospectus of its Arabic type faces under the title 'Alphabetum arabicum' - a 64-page masterpiece of design which not only displays Granjon's beautiful types, but contains a careful Latin Essay on the Arabic writing system" (Lunde). Until 1610 Raimondi printed a mere eight works with Granjon's types, "all equally rare" (Smitskamp 29b), before a long hiatus ensued - probably due to the sluggish distribution of the works in the Orient, where everything produced in the West, and especially any printed specimen of Arabic script, was received with the utmost caution (cf. Fück 55). Even Smitskamp cites only four other productions of the Medici Press, but not this exceptionally rare one. - Some browning and some minor foxing throughout; binding lightly rubbed and dust-soiled. A fine, wide-margined copy. - Adams A 780. BM-STC Italian 36. Schnurrer 41. Edit 16, CNCE 1227. OCLC 47816774. Lunde, Paul, "Arabic and the Art of Printing", in: Aramco World 32/2 (1981) (with illustration). J. Balagna, L'imprimerie arabe en occident (Paris 1984), p. 135. Le Livre et le Liban (mentioned on p. 190; no copy in the catalogue). Not in Smitskamp or Fück.…

Seller Inventory # 68990

Bibliographic details

Title
Alphabetum arabicum.
Author
[Alphabetum arabicum].
Publisher
Rome, typographia Medicea, 1592.
Signed
Signed by Author(s)
Binding
Soft cover
Edition
1st Edition
Item weight
500 grams
Seller catalogs
Early printing up to 1600

Antiquariat INLIBRIS Gilhofer Nfg. GmbH

Vienna, A, Austria

5-star seller

AbeBooks seller since November 22, 2000

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We have been dealing in valuable books, manuscripts, and autographs since 1883. As members of the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB), the Verband der Antiquare Österreichs (Austrian association of antiquarian booksellers), as well as the Verband deutscher Antiquare e.V. (German association of antiquarian booksellers), we are bound by these organizations' code of ethics. A large proportion of our customers is made up of institutions, including renowned international universities and major state libraries. We keep contact with our private customers at international book fairs and through our online catalogues. You are welcome to visit us on our business premises from Monday to Friday, 10 AM to 6 PM. We are happy to take buying orders for the important book auctions in Germany and Austria, which we attend regularly. We dedicate special attention to the estates and archives of important personalities of the arts and sciences in European and world history. Through specially prepared archive catalogues we have been able to sell the archives of Viktor Léon (librettist, 1859-1940), Leo Fall (operetta composer, 1873-1925), Lotte Lehmann (singer, 1888-1976), Otto Tressler (actor, 1871-1865) and Max Reinhardt (director, 1873-1743), as well as the last privately owned important original manuscripts by Ludwig Wittgenstein (philosopher, 1889-1951). Along the lines of this specialization our buying policy concentrates especially on these fields.…

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Seller's business information

Inlibris, Handelsgesellschaft für antiquarische Bücher und Drucke GmbH

Rathausstrasse 19/27
Wien, Austria 1010