Epistolae

In-folio of 328 leaves, complete, 52 lines + running title; title placed above and worded as follows: Liber epistolarum beati Augustini episcopi hipponensis ecclesie; a few old wormholes without consequence in the margins of the first and last leaves. Dark blue morocco, triple gilt fillet framing the boards, large gilt arms stamped at the center, spine with raised bands decorated alternately with the crowned monogram and the arms of Prince Eugene of Savoy, gilt edges, inner roll, gilt edges over marbling.

306 x 212 mm.

Saint Augustine. Epistolae.
(Basel), Johann Amerbach, 1493.

Second edition of Saint Augustine's Letters printed by Johann Amerbach in Basel in 1493.

The first edition was published in Strasbourg by Johann Mentelin in 1471.

Goff, A-1268; Hain-Copinger, 1969; Proctor, 7599; BMC, III, 755; GKW, 2906; Pellechet, 1483; Polain (B), 383; IGI, 995.

From the vast correspondence of Saint Augustine (354–430), we have 206 letters addressed to 50 correspondents.

“This correspondence is of the greatest help in delving into the intricacies of the life and mind of this remarkable figure; moreover, it confirms his influence and doctrines. Purely friendly correspondence occupies only a small place there, but all the letters are infused with the same ardor in the pursuit of truth and in exhorting to perfection; others are, in fact, little treatises. Nowhere else, as in these Letters, writes Ebert, does the considerable importance enjoyed by Augustine among his contemporaries appear so clearly. Bishops and scholars consult him as an oracle; he gives advice in the face of the imminent invasion of the Vandals. Theologians have classified the letters as: theological, polemical, exegetical, ecclesiastical, moral, philosophical, historical, and familiar. But it can be said that, in each of them, Augustine brings together all these literary genres” (T. F. Lesort).

The Letters of Saint Augustine provide essential insight into the work and mind of this extraordinary individual.

Precious copy bound for Prince Eugene of Savoy (Paris, 1663 – Vienna, 1736).

This prince, who signed as Eugenio von Savoie to recall his three adopted homelands, assembled one of the most magnificent collections of art objects and curiosities, rare books, and precious manuscripts.

Upon his death, Prince Eugene bequeathed his book collection to Emperor Charles VI.

As such, they became part of the Imperial Library in Vienna. Later on, a sort of revision took place and, with little respect for a great legacy, volumes which, besides their own merit, had the advantage of splendid bindings were sold off as duplicates. As for the others, they were stripped of their original binding and covered in grey cardboard.

Besides the armorial bearings and the monogram of Prince Eugene, the volume bears the embossed stamp of the Imperial Library of Vienna.