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DE MEMORIA LIBELLUS, IN QUA NON TAM DOGMATA QUAM ET PRAESIDIA PRAESTANTISSIMA NARRANTUR
by (MEMORY). BIONDO, MICHELANGELO
- Used
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
-
McMinnville, Oregon, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Venetiis [Venice]: Giovanni Antonio & Pietro Nicolini da Sabbio, 1545. FIRST EDITION. 152 x 97 mm. (6 3 3/4"). 20 leaves.
Modern rose and cream-colored marbled paper boards. Verso of title page stamped in red ink: "Duplicate / ex-libris Bernard Zufall." Young, "Bibliography of Memory," p. 34. ◆Paper boards lightly soiled, negligible foxing to a couple of leaves, but a fine copy, clean and fresh in a sturdy binding.
This rare work on the preservation of memory offers advice to those seeking to optimize their cognitive functions, providing guidance about the best foods to eat and avoid, the best days and times for recollection according to the planetary hours, and, most interestingly, recipes to calm the mind and boost one's memory. This last section includes several formulas for various drams, salves, and confections that incorporate ingredients such as gingers, cinnamon, coriander, and rosemary. The compact size of this work suggests that it was meant to be portable and consulted frequently; our copy, however, has obviously been very little used and consequentially is extremely well preserved. Italian physician and polymath Michelangelo Biondo (or Blondus, 1497-1565) was the author of at least two dozen works on a variety of subjects, including art, astronomy, rhetoric, medicine, cognition, and philosophy. The present copy comes from the library of magician and memory expert Bernard Zufall (1894-1971), known as the "Human Encyclopedia." Zufall amassed the largest known collection of books on mnemonics, in excess of 1,000 titles, which (except for duplicates like the present work) he donated to Yale University. This appears to be a genuinely rare book: RBH records just one copy at auction, selling at Lyon and Turnbull in 2015 for £1,000 (approximately $1,640), all in..
Modern rose and cream-colored marbled paper boards. Verso of title page stamped in red ink: "Duplicate / ex-libris Bernard Zufall." Young, "Bibliography of Memory," p. 34. ◆Paper boards lightly soiled, negligible foxing to a couple of leaves, but a fine copy, clean and fresh in a sturdy binding.
This rare work on the preservation of memory offers advice to those seeking to optimize their cognitive functions, providing guidance about the best foods to eat and avoid, the best days and times for recollection according to the planetary hours, and, most interestingly, recipes to calm the mind and boost one's memory. This last section includes several formulas for various drams, salves, and confections that incorporate ingredients such as gingers, cinnamon, coriander, and rosemary. The compact size of this work suggests that it was meant to be portable and consulted frequently; our copy, however, has obviously been very little used and consequentially is extremely well preserved. Italian physician and polymath Michelangelo Biondo (or Blondus, 1497-1565) was the author of at least two dozen works on a variety of subjects, including art, astronomy, rhetoric, medicine, cognition, and philosophy. The present copy comes from the library of magician and memory expert Bernard Zufall (1894-1971), known as the "Human Encyclopedia." Zufall amassed the largest known collection of books on mnemonics, in excess of 1,000 titles, which (except for duplicates like the present work) he donated to Yale University. This appears to be a genuinely rare book: RBH records just one copy at auction, selling at Lyon and Turnbull in 2015 for £1,000 (approximately $1,640), all in..
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Details
- Bookseller
- Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Medieval Manuscripts
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- ST19432b
- Title
- DE MEMORIA LIBELLUS, IN QUA NON TAM DOGMATA QUAM ET PRAESIDIA PRAESTANTISSIMA NARRANTUR
- Author
- (MEMORY). BIONDO, MICHELANGELO
- Book Condition
- Used
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- FIRST EDITION
- Publisher
- Giovanni Antonio & Pietro Nicolini da Sabbio
- Place of Publication
- Venetiis [Venice]
- Date Published
- 1545
Terms of Sale
Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Medieval Manuscripts
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About the Seller
Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Medieval Manuscripts
Biblio member since 2006
McMinnville, Oregon
About Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Medieval Manuscripts
Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books an Manuscripts was established in 1978 on a ping pong table in a basement in Kalamazoo, Michigan. From the beginning, its founder was willing to sell a range of material, but over the years, the business has gravitated toward historical artifacts that are physically attractive in some way--illuminated material, fine bindings, books printed on vellum, fore-edge paintings, beautiful typography and paper, impressive illustration. Today, the company still sells a wide range of things, from (scruffy) ninth century leaves to biblical material from all periods to Wing and STC imprints to modern private press books to artists' bindings. While we are forgiving about condition when something is of considerable rarity, we always try to obtain the most attractive copies possible of whatever we offer for sale.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Marbled Paper
- Decorative colored paper that imitates marble with a veined, mottled, or swirling pattern. Commonly used as the end papers or...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Leaves
- Very generally, "leaves" refers to the pages of a book, as in the common phrase, "loose-leaf pages." A leaf is a single sheet...
- Soiled
- Generally refers to minor discoloration or staining.
- Title Page
- A page at the front of a book which may contain the title of the book, any subtitles, the authors, contributors, editors, the...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Verso
- The page bound on the left side of a book, opposite to the recto page.
This Book’s Categories
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