Lot no. 2
ATHENS.
ΔΕΙΠΝΟΣΟΦΙΣΤΩΝ ΒΙΒΛΙΑ ΠΕΝΤΕΚΑΙΔΕΚΑ [...] Deipno Sophistarum Libri Quindecim, cum Jacobi Dalechampii Cadomensis latina interpretationes [...] Editio postrema ; in qua ultra ea quae antè Isaacus Casaubonus recensuit [...] Lyon, Antoine de Harsy, 1612. Large folio of [48]-811-[1bl.]-[48] pp. Woodcut portrait of Jacques Dalechamps.
New edition of the translation by the famous Norman physician and botanist Jacques Dalechamps (1513-1588), considered to be one of the most erudite scholars of the 16th century (1513-1588): well versed in ancient languages, he also sought to compile an inventory of all the botanical knowledge of his time. It contains the commentary by Isaac Casaubon (1559-1614), a Protestant humanist and scholar from Geneva, which had been published in an earlier edition (1598).
The grammarian Athenaeus (c. 170-c. 230), a native of Naucratis (Egypt), produced this important work as a compilation of anecdotes and quotations from ancient authors, many of whom have been lost, making it a first-rate source. Particularly noteworthy are the Deipnosophistes ("Banquet of Scholars"), a veritable treatise on the gastronomy of antiquity. "Let us now say a few words about this 'Banquet', which should take its place in any gourmet library. Athenaeus deals with a host of subjects relating to gastronomy. The names of the most famous gourmands and famous cooks are cited; the virtues and qualities of vegetables, fish and animals are the subject of long dissertations, as are wines and the customs accepted at meals and epicurean feasts. There is also information on the Apicius. (Vicaire Gastron. 51.)
Hardback: CASAUBON (Isaac), Animadversionum in Athen. Dipnosophistas libri XV [...] Secunda editio postream [...] Lyon, Veuve Antoine de Harsy et Pierre Ravaud, 1621. [6] ff, 998 col, [39] pp. index.
Marbled basane, spine ribbed and decorated, red tr. (18th c. binding). Binding worn with tears and spotting. Paper slightly browned, light marginal spotting, foxing, small worm gallery in margin of last ff.
