FR EN
1 / 2
an open book with several pages of text on itan open book with several pages of text on it
Premium Jeschke Jádi Auctions Berlin

8 - Incunabula – Post-incunabula Octavo sheet from the Halbersta…
See original version (German)

Estimate €1,500 - €2,000
Sale commission
Description
Incunabula – Post-incunabula Octavo sheet from the Halberstadt Breviary. Printed sheet from the Psalter (section GG, folios 49–56). Nuremberg, Georg Stuchs, 13 November 1515. Unbound, uncut sheet, in octavo format (8 leaves = 16 pages), printed on both sides in red and black. Two columns, 36 lines and column headings, Gothic type, red Lombard capitals and larger red initials. Arabic folio numbering (including 50, 52, 54, 56), signatures GG ii and GG iiii. Watermark: ox’s head with a mirrored ‘P’. – 56.5 x 40.6 cm. - Some fold marks. - With the margin. VD16 B 8148 (listed there as 4°). Post-incunabulum, not in ISTC or GW. - Extremely rare; complete printed sheets are extremely difficult to find. - Contains Prime with Preces and Confiteor, Terce, Sext and None with Psalm 118, together with psalm titles printed in red, as well as Sunday and Monday Vespers. On fol. 50r is the rubric specific to Halberstadt Cathedral: ‘Hic in choro ecclesie Halberstaden. aliquando leguntur septem psalmi .’. Identical in composition to the copy held at the Bavarian State Library in Munich (Liturg. 1450). The Breviarium Halberstadense contains the texts of the Liturgy of the Hours according to the rite of the Diocese of Halberstadt and its cathedral, St Stephen and St Sixtus. It was a liturgical manual for the cathedral chapter and clergy of the diocese. The breviary brings together the texts that make up the Liturgy of the Hours and is organised according to the times of day and the liturgical year. The hours include Prime, Terce, Sext, None and Vespers. Such a book consists of several parts: the Calendarium, the Psalterium (weekly psalter), the Proprium de tempore and de sanctis, and the Commune. The Halberstadt edition of 1515 contains one of these parts: the Psalterium. - Georg Stuchs (also Stüchs, Stöchs) was born around 1460 in Sulzbach in the Upper Palatinate and died in Nuremberg in 1520. In 1484, he acquired Nuremberg citizenship. He became one of the city’s most prolific printers and, alongside Erhard Ratdolt, was one of the most important printers of liturgical works in Germany. His main focus was on breviaries for many dioceses, including Prague, Salzburg, Magdeburg and Lübeck. From around 1508, he scaled back his printing activities considerably and worked in the metal trade. His son Johann continued to run the workshop. – Uncut octavo sheets from the post-incunabula period are extremely rare. In the early 16th century, surplus or faulty sheets were not collected but were sent as waste paper to bookbinders, who used them as endpapers, flyleaves or spine reinforcements. What has survived in this way usually takes the form of a trimmed, fragmented binding fragment. A complete, unfolded sheet with a deckle edge, on the other hand, still reveals the imposition layout – that is, the arrangement of the pages on the sheet – and makes the production process visible. In the case of Stuchs’ Halberstadt sheet, there is the added factor that the edition itself is rare and the VD16 lists only a few locations. The Church Library in Barth holds, within its incunabula collection comprising some 4,500 volumes and over 150 single-leaf prints, an outstanding, uncut eight-leaf printed sheet from a study edition of the ‘Laborintus’ by Ebrardus Alemannus, which Wolfgang Stöckel printed in Leipzig in 1497 and which is listed in the General Catalogue of Incunabula under the number GW 0920910N. Octavo sheet from the *Breviarium Halberstadense*. Printed sheet from the *Psalterium* (quire GG, ff. 49–56). Nuremberg, Georg Stuchs, 13 November 1515. Unbound, uncut sheet, in octavo format (8 leaves = 16 pp.), printed on both sides in red and black. Two columns, 36 lines and running titles, Gothic type, red Lombardic capitals and larger red initials. Arabic foliation (including 50, 52, 54, 56), signatures GG ii and GG iiii. Watermark: ox’s head with a mirrored ‘P’. Partly showing fold marks. With the deckle edge. VD16 B 8148 (listed there as 4to). Post-incunabulum, not listed in ISTC or GW. Of the utmost rarity; complete printed sheets are extremely rare to find. – Contains Prime with Preces and Confiteor, Terce, Sext and None with Psalm 118, including the psalm titles printed in red, as well as Sunday and Monday Vespers. On f. 50r is the rubric peculiar to Halberstadt Cathedral: ‘Hic in choro ecclesie Halberstaden. aliquando leguntur septem psalmi .’. Identical in typesetting to the copy in the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich (Liturg. 1450). The Breviarium Halberstadense contains the texts of the Divine Office according to the rite of the Diocese of Halberstadt and its cathedral of St Stephen and St Sixtus. It served as a liturgical working book for the cathedral chapter and the clergy of the diocese. The breviary brings together the texts that make up the Divine Office and is organised according to the hours of the day and the liturgical year. The hours include Prime, Terce, Sext, None and Vespers. Such a book consists of several parts: the Calendar, the Psalter (weekly psalter), the Proprium de tempore and de sanctis, and the Commune. The Halberstadt edition of 1515 contains the Psalter as one of these parts. – Georg Stuchs (also Stüchs, Stöchs) was born around 1460 in Sulzbach in the Upper Palatinate and died in 1520 in Nuremberg. In 1484 he acquired Nuremberg citizenship. He became one of the city’s most prolific printers and, alongside Erhard Ratdolt, one of the most important printers of liturgical books in Germany. His work focused on breviaries for many dioceses, including Prague, Salzburg, Magdeburg and Lübeck. From around 1508, he significantly reduced his printing activities and worked in the metal trade. His son Johann continued to run the workshop. - Uncut octavo sheets from the post-incunabula period are exceptionally rare. Surplus or faulty sheets were not collected in the early 16th century. They were sent as waste to bookbinders, who used them as pastedowns, endleaves or spine linings. What survives in this way is mostly found as trimmed, cut-up binding fragments. A whole, unfolded sheet with a deckle edge, by contrast, still reveals the imposition scheme – that is, the arrangement of the pages on the sheet – and makes the production process visible. In the case of the Halberstadt sheet by Stuchs, the edition itself is also rare, and VD16 lists only a few locations. The Church Library in Barth holds an outstanding uncut eight-leaf printed sheet from a study edition of the ‘Laborintus’ by Ebrardus Alemannus, printed by Wolfgang Stöckel in Leipzig in 1497 and recorded in the Gesamtkatalog der Wiegendrucke (Union Catalogue of Incunabula) under number GW 0920910N. The sheet forms part of its incunabula collection, comprising some 4,500 volumes and more than 150 broadsides. This lot is subject to standard tax. A 24.95% buyer’s premium is payable on the hammer price, and 7% (Books and Art) or 19% VAT (Manuscripts, Screenprints, Offset Prints, Photographs) is payable on the final invoice amount within the European Union. This lot is subject to the standard tax regime. A 24.95% buyer’s premium applies to the hammer price, and 7% (books and art) or 19% VAT (manuscripts, screen prints, offset prints and photographs) applies to the final invoice amount within the European Union.
See original version (German)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
About the sale Valuable books, prints, historical photographs
Auction location
Auction time 10/24/2026 at 10:00 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
You may also like