Early Printing & Manuscripts / Natural History & Science

PORTA, Giovanni Battista della. De hum. Physiognomonia ... De humana physiognomonia libri IIII ...
Vico Equense, Giuseppe Cacchi, 1586. Folio (32.5 x 23 cm). With a full-page engraved portrait of the author on the title page, set within an architectural frame incorporating animal and human heads, a full-page engraved portrait of the dedicatee, 85 engraved illustrations throughout, including four full-page plates, a woodcut diagram of a syllogism, and numerous woodcut historiated initials, headpieces, and tailpieces throughout. Contemporary vellum. [4], 265 (=272) pp. Full description

RINGELBERG, Joachim Sterck van. Institutiones astronomicae ternis libris contentae. Quorum primus sphaerae ac mundi naturam declarat: secundus orbium: tertius circulorum.
Cologne, Petrus Quentell, 1528. Small 8vo. With a richly decorated architectural woodcut border on the title page, a large woodcut printer's device on the final leaf, four decorated woodcut initials, and four woodcut headpieces. Modern blueish-grey paper over boards. [7], "92" [=94], [3] pp. Full description

SALVIANI, Ippolito (Hippolito). Aquatilium animalium historiae, liber primus [all published], cum eorumdem formis, aere excusis.
Rome, Hippolito Salviani, 1554 (colophon: January 1558). Folio. With an engraved title-page and 98 figures on 81 full-page engravings (plate size 33 x 22.5 cm) printed on integral leaves, a Salviani's woodcut device on the last page, and about 100 decorated pictorial woodcut initials (2 series) including repeats. Recased in 18th-century(?) sheepskin parchment. [8], 256 ll. Full description

SCHÖNER, Johannes. De iudiciis nativitatum libri tres ... Item praefatio D. Philippi Melanthonis ...
Nuremberg, Johann vom Berg and Ulrich Neuber, 1545. Folio (ca. 29 x 19.5 cm). With a woodcut headpiece and vignette on the title page, a large woodcut printer's device with the Latin motto "Hic est filius meus dilectus: in quo mihi bene complacitu est" on the verso of the last leaf. Further with numerous envelope horoscope diagrams, letterpress tables (incorporating the signs of the zodiac), and decorated woodcut initials in the text. Modern gold-tooled sprinkled leather. [8], CLII ll. Full description

SPANGENBERG, Cyriacus. Jagteuffel. Bestendiger und Wolgegründter bericht, wie ferrn die Jagten rechtmessig und zugelassen. Und widerumb, warinn sie ... gottloss, gewaltsam, unrecht und verdamlich seind, ...
(Colophon: Frankfurt am Main, heirs of Georg Raben and Weygand Hanen), 1566. 8vo. With the title-page printed in red and black and with a woodcut illustration. 18th-century vellum. 132 ll. Full description

[TELESFORO DA COSENZA]. Livre merveilleux, contenant en bref la fleur et substance de plusieurs traittez, tant des propheties & revelations, qu'anciennes croniques, faisant mention de tous les faictz de l'Eglise Universelle, co[m]me des scismes, discords & tribulations advenir en l'Eglise de Rome, & d'un temps auquel on ostera & tollira aux ge[n]s d'eglise & clergé, ...
Paris, Thibault Bessault, 1565. 8vo. With Bessault's woodcut device on the title-page. 18th-century French grained red morocco (ca. 1745?), gold-tooled spine with pointillé ornaments, each board framed with thin-thick-thin fillets with a rosette(?) stamped over their intersections at the corners, gold-tooled turn-ins, gold fillets on the board edges, gilt edges. [54] ll. Full description

THEODOSIUS. Sphaericorum libri tres, nunquam antehac graece excusi.
Paris, André Wechel, 1558. Small 4to (21 x 14 cm). With woodcut publisher's Pegasus device on title-page (repeated on last page), numerous woodcut mathematical diagrams in text, woodcut headpieces and decorated initials. 18th-century tanned sheepskin, gold-tooled spine and board edges. [8], 54, [2], 70, [2] pp. Full description

THOU (THUANUS), Jacques-Auguste de. Hieracosophioy, sive de re accipitraria libri tres.
Paris, Mamert Patisson, Kings Printer "in officina Robert Estienne", 1584. Small 4to (22 x 15 cm). With the late Robert I Estienne's large woodcut device on the title-page. With the poem and Thou's 11-page verse letter to Philippe Huralt in italic type and the preliminaries and some end matter in roman. Half parchment (ca. 1892). [4], 95, [13] pp. Full description

TRITHEMIUS, Johannes and Gabriel de COLLANGE (translator). Polygraphie et universelle escriture cabalistique.
Including:
(2) TRITHEMIUS, Johannes and Gabriel de COLLANGE (translator). Clavicule, et interpretation sur le contenués cinq livres de Polygraphie, & universelle escriture Cabalistique.
(3) COLLANGE, Gabriel de. Tables et figures planispheriques, extensives & dilatatives des recte & averse, servants à l'universelle intelligence de toutes escritures tant methathesiques, transpositives, mythologiques, numerales, anomales, que orchemales.
Paris, Benoît Prévost for Jacques Kerver, 1561. 3 parts in 1 volume. 4to. Printed in red and black, the main title and the titles of parts 2 and 3 set within a woodcut decorated border, 3 woodcut portraits of the translator, 13 large volvelles in part 3, numerous woodcut headpieces, and numerous woodcut decorated initials. 18th-century gold-tooled reddish-brown morocco, with the title and author lettered in gold on the spine, marbled endpapers, gold-tooled board edges, red edges. [18], 300 ll. Full description

VENETUS, Paolo Nicoletti [and Restoro d'AREZZO]. Summa philosophie naturalis ... una cu[m] libro de co[m]positione mundi qui astronomie ianua nuncupari potest ... [at the head of the page:] Primus liber incipit De co[m]positione mu[n]di.
Paris, Jean Lambert (colophon: printed by Thomas Kees, 14 November 1513). Small 4to (28 x 20.5 cm). With 55 woodcut illustrations in the text, including 12 northern and 12 southern pictorial constellations with stars. Flexible wrap-around paperboards (ca. 1750?), sewn on 3 tanned leather supports. [35], [1 blank] pp. Full description