Kreutterbuch Jetz Hochgelehrten und Weitherühmbten Herrn D. Petri Andreae Matthioli

Franckfurt am Mayn [Frankfurt, Germany]: Nicolao Hoffman, in Verlegung Jacob Fischers, 1611. Hardcover. Good -. [10], 460, [27] leaves: many in-text emgraved illustrations; 39 cm. (folio). Contemporary pigskin? binding with seven spine compartments between raised bands. Elaborate blind-rolled and -tooled decoration around central medallion on both boards. Front board includes initials "CBC" in upper portion and date of binding "1620" in lower portion. Handwritten note on back pastedown by binder, dated 1620. Part of the decoration includes human figures and the words "cari," "spes," "fides," and possibly "fort." Printer and publisher from colophon. Includes "Von Distillier und Brennöfen" on leaves 456-460. A German translation by Georg Handsch of the botanical portion of Mattioli's Commentaries, without the text of Dioscorides, but having the Epistola Nuncupatoria in Latin, prefixed. Illustrations by Joachim Camerarius. References: Krivatsy, NLM 17th century, 7575; Nissen, Botanische Buchillustration, 1311; Pritzel 5990. Armorial bookplate of former owner, Pendleton Bowler, on front pastedown with motto "Est meruisse satis." Many marginal notations in German script and related underlining in a small old hand in ink. Contains examples of haselwurtz, baldrian, and a number of other plants between the leaves at the appropriate locations in the book. A heavy book; for international shipping, it will have to be sent by priority international. In Good- Condition: binding is quite worn: rubbed and very soiled, lacking some leather from spine and separated for over half of back joint, and separated from back board (compressed paper); lacking title page and 6th leaf (part of Epistola Nuncupatoria); first 4 leaves are detached with creasing along edges but minimal loss of printing; 6-cm. closed tear from lower edges of leaf 114 and leaf 306 and fore-edge of leaf 357; 13-cm. tear from lower edge of leaf 361; 7-cm. closed tear from lower edges of leaf 386 and leaf 420; leaf 457 has 18-cm. closed tear from lower edge around to gutter, and closed 9-cm. tear from fore-edge; closed 12-cm. tear from fore-edge of second leaf of Register der Teutschen Namen; final 4 leaves are detached with creasing; final 5 leaves have some loss of text at edges; the majority of leaves are intact with minor soiling and contemporary annotations.