Satyr
by PETRONIUS ARBITER Titus
- Used
- first
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
-
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
1694. First Edition . PETRONIUS ARBITER, Titus. The Satyr of Titus Petronius Arbiter, a Roman Knight. With Its Fragments, Recover'd at Belgrade. London: Samuel Briscoe, 1694. Octavo, contemporary full dark brown calf rebacked with original spine laid down. $6800.First edition in English of The Satyricon, translated by William Burnaby, in contemporary calf.The Satyricon was composed in Latin in the first century A.D. Classical scholars often describe it as a ""Roman novel,"" without necessarily implying continuity with the modern novel. (It is one of the two most extensive examples of the Roman novel, the other being the fully extant Metamorphoses of Apuleius.) The Satyricon has also served as a reliable source for the reconstruction of lower class life during the early Roman Empire; Petronius' characters, most of them laypeople, talk about the theatre of ancient Rome, the amphitheater, and the circus. ""The adventures of a certain Encolpius and his companions in the south of Italy, chiefly in Puteoli or its environs, are made a vehicle for exposing the false taste and vices of the age. Unfortunately the vices of the personages introduced are depicted with such fidelity that we are perpetually disgusted by the obscenity of the descriptions"" (Peck, 1220). While the text is interrupted by frequent gaps, 141 sections of consecutive narrative have been preserved. It is speculated that the original composition was approximately 1000 pages. Playwright and translator William Burnaby (1673-1706), together with an anonymous collaborator, gave his translation an ""idiomatic restoration flavor"" (ODNB). The ""fragments"" filling in the lacunae that were reportedly found at Belgrade and printed in the present edition are actually a forgery by François Nodot (1650-1710). Though the forgery was soon suspected, texts and translation of the Satyricon continued to incorporate Nodot's supplements until the early 20th century. With publisher's four-page catalogue at rear. Harris, 114. BMC 20, 157. Bookplate of American lawyer and book collector Robert S. Pirie.Text generally clean, expert restoration to contemporary calf. A very good copy with a nice provenance. Scarce.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Bauman Rare Books (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 119535
- Title
- Satyr
- Author
- PETRONIUS ARBITER Titus
- Book Condition
- Used
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First Edition
- Date Published
- 1694
Terms of Sale
Bauman Rare Books
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About the Seller
Bauman Rare Books
Biblio member since 2009
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
About Bauman Rare Books
In business since 1973, Bauman Rare Books now has locations in New York, Philadelphia and Las Vegas.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Bookplate
- Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
- Rebacked
- having had the material covering the spine replaced. ...
- 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...
- Calf
- Calf or calf hide is a common form of leather binding. Calf binding is naturally a light brown but there are ways to treat the...
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....