"By way of conclufion to the foregoing notices of the more curious editions of Livy, the reader may be pleased to learn the progreffive additions and improvements, which feverally diftinguifh them, as I have been able to glean the information from Ernefti, Harles, and other writers on the fubject.

"Sweynheym and Pannartz's edition of 1469, for they, to whofe judgment in thefe matters I pay the highest deference, affign it to this year, contains 29 books. The firft ten books, from the 20th to the 30th inclufive, and from the 30th to the 40th, wanting the 33d book. All the fucceeding editions want this 33d book, till that of Mentz by Schoiffer, in 1518. Yet it is to be observed, that in fome editions the number of 40 books appears to be complete, which is to be thus explained. In the Venice editions of 1495 and 1506, the 31ft book is divided into two parts, and the fecond part of the 31 being called the 32d, the 32d book is called the 33d; but the 33d book had not then been difcovered.

"In quibufdam editionibus hujus claffis, Liber xxx1 in duas partes fciffus eft, et alteri parti titulus Lib. xxx11 eft additus, ut e xxx11 fieret xxx111, qui tum nondum inventus erat." Ernefti Fabric. vol. i. p. 282.

"I know no difference between the edition by Ulric Han and that by Sweynheym and Pannartz, except that fome conjectures of Laurentius Valla were received into the text of the former.

"The fecond edition by Sweynheym and Pannartz of 1472, appears to be a mere tranfcript of the firft, wanting, as I before obferved, the prefatory epiftle by the Bifhop of Aleria. The fame perhaps may be faid of the Milan edition of 1478, by Philip Lavagna, and of 1480 by Zarotus, except that the latter had. the corrections of Philelphus.

"I do not find that any edition had the advantage of a new manufcript before that of Venice 1491, with annotations by Sabellicus, but it does not appear that any of the loft books were here difcovered.

"The year 1518 prefents a new æra, and introduces a new clafs of the editions of Livy. Schoiffer, the grandfon of Fuft, availed himself of an old manufcript, which was found in a monaftery of the City of Mentz, and written "Langobardicis literis," and which enabled him to produce a new edition of the Hiftorian with important additions.

"Thefe additions were the 33d book, with the first 17 chapters in a very mutilated ftate, and the latter part of the 40th book from C. 37.

"I have before obferved, that to this moft valuable edition two prefaces were prefixed by Erafmus and Nic. Carbachius. The preface by Erafmus, in particular, is a very remarkable one, and often quoted. It exhibits the teftimony of this great and learned man, who lived fo near the time, in favour of the claims of

Menta

Mentz and of Fuft to the honour of the invention of printing, In it are thefe remarkable words:

"Atque hujus quidem laudis præcipua portio debetur hujus pene divini dixerim opificii repertoribus quorum princeps fuiffe fertur JoANNES FAUST, avus ejus cui LIVIUM hunc tum auctum duobus voluminibus, tum innumeris locis ex codice vetuftiffimo caftigatum debemus."

"The year 1531, and the edition of Livy printed by Frobenius, and fuperintended by Sim. Grynæus, forms a third clafs. The 41ft, 42d, 43d, 44th, and 45th books here for the first time appear. Grynæus fortunately discovered a very old manuf cript, containing thefe important additions, and which is now depofited in the Imperial Library of Vienna.

"According to Ernefti, the books which we now want of this Historian existed in the time of Symmachus and Sidonius, and it is exceedingly to be regretted, that the Differtation promised by Lambecius on 12 MS. of Livy, which, with 32 of the most valuable editions of this author, are to be found in the Imperial Library at Vienna, never was published.

"Since the edition of 1531 by Frobenius, notwithstanding the anxious zeal of fcholars and their moft indefatigable researches, very little indeed has been added to Livy.

Five books of the fifth Decad were printed by Junta in Florence in 1532, but unaccompanied by any preface, and with no other notice of this new increafe to the works of the Hiftorian than what is conveyed in the title. "T. Livii Patavinii Hiftoriarum ab urbe condita Decadis quintæ Libri quinque, nunc primum excufi."

"In 1616, the mutilated heads of the first xv11 Chapters of the xxx111 book were reftored from a newly difcovered manuscript, and feparately printed in octavo by Zanetrus at Rome.

"A fragment of the xc1 book was printed at Rome in 1773, by Cafalettus, the editor of which was Jac. Bruns; but fince that period, notwithstanding the curiofity of the learned has been much excited by various reports of the entire works of Livy having been found in an Arabían verfion, the hopes excited have terminated in difappointment." P. 49.

Mr. Beloe defcribes no less than fixteen rare Editions of Salluff before the year 1480, which is the limit he in general prefcribes to himfelf; De Bure defcribes but eleven, antecedent to this year; Santander eight, and Dibdin four.

The thir article, namely, the account of the early editions of Latin Tranflations of the Greek Hiftorians, Geographers, &c. is exceedingly curios, and as far as we are able to recollect, to be found in no other publication of this country. The fame may be oblerved of the article which

fucceeds

fucceeds, the introduction to which well deferves a place in our pages.

"The early editions of the works of the venerable Bishop of Milan are very numerous. Panzer defcribes no less than twentythree before the year 1500.

"In the felection which I make from these, and from the very numerous early publications of the works of other Fathers of the Church, I fhall confine myfelf to fuch as from the places in which they were refpectively edited, the perfons by whom they were printed, or from particular circumstances belonging to them, may appear to deferve the attention of Collectors. Confidering the period in which the art of printing was invented, the objects to which the learning which then exifted was directed, and the comparative ignorance prevailing throughout almost the whole of Europe, it must be expected, that the firft efforts of this won derful invention fhould be exercifed in the production of pieces of no real or intrinfic value. Accordingly we find the first rude fpecimens, thofe I mean, which by the impreffio tabellaris, or block-printing, led the way to the use and almoft fudden perfecting of the prefent art of printing with moveable types, were confined, with the exception of a Donatus, exclufively. to the fuperftitious devotion of a barbarous age. Such are the Speculum humanæ Salvationis, the Ars Moriendi, the Apocalypfis, and two or three other books, which are defcribed by many Bibliographers, and particularly by the accurate and industrious Heineken. Some copies of these ftill remain in the cabinets of the curi ous, and are juftly confidered to be very valuable. Specimens alfo of the blocks themfelves have been preferved, for instance, of a Donatus, which was in the collection of the Duke de la Valliere; and a fimilar treasure exifts in the Library of Lord Spencer, the first article in point of antiquity in a collection, which, in an uninterrupted fucceffion to the end of the 15th century, contains every thing that is curious and valuable in ancient typography.

"These rude attempts however, which are nothing more than what is prefumed to have been previously effected by the Chinese and even by the Romans, were foon fuccceded by that important, and feemingly obvious improvement, of cutting each letter fepa rately, and of the formation of a line or a page, by the union of them. The materials were at firft the fame, and books ftill exift, which, from their rude and imperfect appearance, appear to have been formed from wooden types. The fubjects of thefe books are mostly the fame with the others, and these also, though fometimes confounded with the uncouth attempts of later printers, are objects of curiofity and research.

"The attention and ingenuity of thofe, who foon proved themfelves to be artifts of a fuperior defcription, was thus excited.

The

The art of founding metallic letters in matrices, or molds, was excogitated by Guttemburgh and Fuft. Somewhat of obfcurity hangs on the history of thefe extraordinary men, as well as on the precife year in which their first productions appeared; but their claim to the invention is indifpatable. If we confider that moft antient edition of the Vulgate tranflation of the Bible, which has been described under the title of the Mazarine Bible, as their first work, they appear at once to have arrived at a perfection to which little has fince been added. This is almoft incredible, yet, as there are original documents to prove that they actually begun their labours by printing the Bible, as no book is in existence, which can be looked upon as a previous attempt, and a prelude to this large volume, our doubts on this fubject must at leaft be fufpended.

"But we do not only owe to them this improvement of the art but the introduction, in their own exercise of it, of more important and valuable publications, and gradually, by the example which they fet, of the fineft remains of antiquity. From the Bible, the two Pfalters of 1457 and 1459, and the Durandus of 1459, they proceeded to another clafs of Literature, and by their edition of the Catholicon of 1460, proved that the Belles Lettres were the next objects of their attention. From the very few early editions of the Claffics, which were printed in Germany, we may conclude, that manufcripts of this defcription were very rare in that country; yet to them do we owe the first edition of any claffic author that ever appeared, and the very cir cumftance of the double date of 1465 and 1466 to the Tully's Offices printed by them, is a proof of the importance which they afcribed to this work, and, that their prefs was partly employed in it for two years. Had others of the fame fort been within their reach, we may reasonably prefume that they would have engaged their attention, and that an interval of fix or seven years would not have elapfed between the publication of this and Vale.

rius Maximus.

"The other productions of their prefs were, however, of a fuperior description to any that had preceded. They were fuch as were called for by the learning and the taste of the times, and however little refpect may now be paid to the Constitutions of Clement, the Decretals of Boniface, or the Scholaftic Divinity of Thomas Aquinas, the estimation in which thefe works were then held, may be concluded from the innumerable editions of them, which continued to appear even to the end of the century. From thefe, however, the Code of Juftinian must be excepted, which was twice edited by Schoiffer.

"The fame reafon may be affigned for the very copious collection of the clafs, on which I am now entering, which fills the Lift of Typographical productions of the 15th century. I have

already

already stated the method which I fhall obferve in the felection of fuch as appear to me to be worthy of notice." P. 125.

Notwithstanding the pains evidently beflowed upon this article, we are not without our fufpicions, that the King's Library contains fome early Editions of tracts of St. Auguf tin, which have efcaped Mr. Beloe's refearch. It will alfo be a matter of doubt with fome, whether the Author is ftrictly to be juftified for introducing the name of Thomas Aquinas in this facred lift; Mr. Beloe, has however the fanction of refpectable authority.

The matter in the article of the orators and epiftolary writers, moft worthy of attention, is the elaborate and curious Catalogue of the Works of Cicero, of which Mr. Beloe has enumerated and defcribed no lefs than twenty-four editions before the year 1480.

The account of the writers of Natural Hiftory and Philo fophy is made to comprehend one of the most curious compilations of the kind in English Literature. This is a Catalogue of the commentators upon Ariftotle, of which subject the following is the Author's Introduction.

"I am now about to undertake a new and arduous task, which I am the rather induced to do, becaufe, as far as my knowledg extends, it exhibits a novel feature in English Literature.

"I shall give a concife account of the Commentators on Ariftotle in Greek, Arabic, and Latin, in chronological order. It must be brief, for they are fe numerous, that an extended life would hardly fuffice for a careful examination of their contents. Their great number may easily be accounted for: Ariftotle was the firft who collected and animadverted upon the philofophic opinions of those who preceded him. He forms an æra in the hiftory of hu man wisdom, and for many fucceeding centuries the most accomplished of mankind exercifed their talents in investigating the dog.

of the Peripatetic fchool. The Stagirite, their mighty maf ter, was often abrupt, concife, and inconclufive in what he delivered. It was therefore the more effential to examine, explain, and illuftrate the maxims of him, who after all was conftantly referred to by the fages who fucceeded him in Greece, and after. wards in Egypt.

"To enter at all into the queftion of their relative merits would be an endlefs, and perhaps uninterefting employment. Their objects were infinitely multiplied and various. Some confined themfelves to animadverfions on the fimple text; others expatiated on the Ariftotelian doctrines; fome again endeavoured to reconcile the feeming contradictions between the fchools of the Stagirite and of Plato; others gave public lectures on his works

N

BRIT, CRIT, VOL. XXXV, FEB. 1810.

at