The Printers of Basle in the Fifteenth. and Sixteenth Centuries.
By C. W. Heckethorn. (T. Fisher Unwin. 21s. net.)—This is a learned book, as nearly exhaustive of its subject as the nature of that subject admits (there is no knowing whether some new pro- ductions of any particular press may not tarn up), handsomely illustrated with printers' marks, initials, Sc., and generally in its form a credit to the art of which it treats. Basle cannot claim the honour of being among the first towns to harbour the printing-press. Still, it comes high up in the list, and is distin- guished by the enterprise of some of its printer citizens. Though Mayence, where Guttenberg's Bible was published in 1456, ranks first, and is followed by Rome, Paris, Venice, Augsburg, and other cities, all claiming precedence over Basle, it may be doubted whether any place has possessed more zealous followers of the art. Mr. Heckethorn gives an account of between thirty and forty, who flourished between 1472, when Bertoldus was at work and Peter Perna, who had to leave Lucca on account of his opinions, and died at Basle in 1582. The most famous exponent of the art during this period was Joannes Froben, a Bavarian, who set up his press in 1491. In the course of the twenty years that followed Froben published some thirty books, almost all of them Bibles or theological works. In 1513 he sent out the " Adagia " of Erasmus, a publication noticeable for its being his first use of the italic type which Aldus of Venice had made popular. Erasmus was highly pleased by being styled on the title-page " Germania) decus," and intro- duced himself to Froben under the disguise, which, however, was easily penetrated, of Erasmus's friend. The acquaintance soon grew into friendship ; Erasmus took up his residence in Froben's house, and helped him in the correcting, or, as we should say, the editing, of books. This led to a very remarkable increase in the activity of the Basle Press. Froben lived thirteen years after Erasmus's arrival, and the catalogue of his books at his death (1527) numbered more than two hundred and fifty. Not only the number of the publications, but the range of their subjects, was largely increased. Among the books may be men- tioned the " Encomium Morin," of which more than seventeen hundred copies were sold in the course of four or five weeks. "sop's Fables " in Greek and Latin, "Historire Augusta) Scriptores," Erasmus's edition of the New Testament, the works of Ambrose and Tertullian, and an edition, of which the printer seems to have been especially proud, of the " Rana " of Aristophanes. Of the most important of all, Erasmus's complete edition of the works of Augustine of Hippo, Froben lived to see only two out of the ten parts. Froben's son, Hieronymus, carried on his father's work for more than thirty years longer. Hieronymus, who has the distinction of having been the first Swiss citizen of Basle—the city was admitted into the Swiss Con- federation just before his birth—inherited the friendship of Erasmus, who died in his house in 1535.
Previous page
