[De Institutione Oratoria]

Venice: House of Aldus & Andrea Torresani. Very Good with no dust jacket. 1514. First Edition Thus. Vellum. [iv], 230 ff. Signatures *4, a-z A-E8, F6 (includes blank *4). Quarto. In 1700s vellum with hand written title in brown ink to the spine. First Aldine edition, (the only one produced by Aldus Manutius himself). Register and colophon, dated August 1514, on leaf 230 recto; Aldine device on verso. Leaves 17, 44, 46, 107, 109, 126, 154, and 226 misnumbered 11, 41, 47, 99, 101, 226, 148, and 225 respectively. Normal shelf wear on vellum which has a nice patina, small split at upper rear joint, corners lightly rubbed. Pastedowns and free endpapers have some worming, very small worm hole on the first and last leaves, small ink stain in margin of D quire, leaf F6 partly detached, some light humidity marks in upper margin at the beginning of the book, otherwise clean and unmarked, red speckled edges. Aldus's important first edition of the complete text of Quintilian's De oratoria, on the teaching of speaking and writing of oratory, edited by humanists Andrea Navagero and G. B. Ramusio, to whom Aldus addresses his preface. Quintilian (ca. 35-ca. 100) was a Roman rhetorician from Hispania, much admired in the Roman era, and particularly in the medieval and Renaissance eras when he served as the template for proper writing of classical Latin in both Christian monasteries and Humanist schools. In many ways, Quintilian’s book on oratory is a reaction against the flowery language of his times. As such, this was a surprisingly modern work, arguing for speech and writing that actually says something, instead of the muddy, ornate, and shoddy speeches we all too often hear today. In addition, Quintilian deals not only with the theory and practice of rhetoric, but also with the foundational education and development of the orator himself, and so this book is a window into the life and learning of educated Romans. From the middle of the first century BC to Quintilian's time, there had been a flowering of Roman rhetoric. But by Quintilian's time, the current of popular taste in oratory was rife with what has been called "silver Latin," a style that favored ornate embellishment over clarity and precision. Quintilian's Institutio Oratoria can in many ways be read as a reaction against this trend; it advocates a return to simpler and clearer language. In the 12th century Quintilian appeared in the reading lists of English classical scholars such as Alexander Neckham and John of Salisbury; he was deeply admired by Petrarch, who possessed only an incomplete copy, and influenced Erasmus. OCLC 493630430, Brunet III-181; 8vo 8" - 9" tall .