COLUMELLE (Lucius Junius Moderatus). The Twelve... Lot 35

COLUMELLE (Lucius Junius Moderatus). The Twelve books of Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella of rustic things. Paris, Guillaume Morel, for Jacques Kerver, September 25, 1551. In-4, green morocco, twisted garland in frame, smooth spine decorated, burgundy morocco title-piece, red speckled edges (18th century binding). Title decorated with a woodcut grotesque frame, (9) ff. 681 pp, (5) ff. with woodcut printer's mark. Born in Cadiz in the first century, Columella, an agronomist and landowner, traveled throughout the Iberian Peninsula, Gaul, Italy, Greece, Cilicia, Syria and the vicinity of Carthage to study the agricultural traditions, various customs and techniques of these peoples. Installed in Rome, he wrote his treaty in 42. In these XII books, Columelle approaches all the aspects of the rustic life: management of the grounds, roles of the Master and the servants, agricultural councils... Certain passages are true treaties, concerning the vine (books III and IV), the fields and the cattle (V), the cheese (VI), the farmyard (VIII), the apiculture (IX), the tenant farm (XI), and various councils on the house and various receipts: vinegars, mustard, mead, cheese, dry fruits, wine making, how to make oil, to preserve the olives and other vegetables and fruits... (XII). Book X is a poem in verse about gardens. First French edition, translated by Claude Cotereau; it will be republished the following year. A jurisconsult and later a canon of Notre-Dame de Paris, Claude Cotereau (1499-1551) was a friend of Étienne Dolet who published his books; he died before the publication of his translation, but his friend Jean Brèche, a lawyer in Touraine, finalized this edition. On p. 524, a blank piece of paper has been glued to the final paragraph. Small holes on the title (handwritten bookplate scratched off). Tiny angular tear to last two leaves. Small stains on the first cover. Faint wetness. Some underlining in colored pencil in the first few leaves of the text. Numerous contemporary notes in the margins. Vicaire, 192 - Bitting, 96 (1556) - Cioranesco, 6997 - Simon, Gastr. 324 - Simon, Bach. II, 609 - Oberlé, Bachique, 16.