Saturday 14 June 2014

Archinto Catalogue Online

Some time ago I was pleased to discover that Google Books included an 1863 auction catalogue of books from the library of Count Carlo Archinto of Milan, as I had encountered important medieval manuscripts from this library at the Bodleian and Getty Museum.

Those I have seen are in distinctive green vellum-covered bindings. Two of the three Archinto MSS in Digital Scriptorium have such a binding, for example:
Typical Archinto binding
San Francisco, State of California, Sutro Collection MS 7
Source
Archinto book-plate; typical green Archinto binding somewhat visible
Philadelphia, Free Library of Philadelphia, Rare Book Department, Lewis E 138
Source
It turns out that the digitized catalogue does not contain the books I had known, and indeed contains very few medieval manuscripts, but a few of them do have some interest, and it may therefore be worth listing them.

They are the following lot numbers:
  • 3: Psalms in Latin and Greek, 4to, on paper, s.xiv
  • 9: Noted Missal, Use of Évreux, with two full-page miniatures; in-fol.; s.xiii ex.; formerly owned by N.J. Foucault
  • 12: Book of Hours, Use of Rome, small 8vo, s.xv; arms and inscription of Giangaleazzo Malatesta
  • 92: Petrarch, Sonetti, Canzoni e Trionfi, in-fol., s.xv; includes an inscription recording the assassination of Galeazzo-Maria Sforza in 1476
  • 98: Francisci de Arsochis, Carmen bucolicorum, in Italian, 4to, with colophon: " ... scriptus per me Baxianum de Villanis Florentiæ, 1468" (i.e by the same scribe as lot 136, below)
  • 134: Guglielmo Ruffino, Prima hedification de cita; Inuentore de mensure e pondi e termini de la terra [etc.], on paper, in-fol., s.xv
  • 136: "Bassiano de Villanis, Storia Romana" (actually a commentary by Petrarch by Poggio Bracciolino) on paper, in-fol, "transcriptus per me Bassianum de Villanis et finitus die xxiii octobris 1480 hora noctis quinta"; at the front is an interesting inscription "Hic liber est mei Bassiani de Villanis quem manu propria scripsi exceptis primis tres quinternis quos portavi ex Florentia nam dono dati fuerunt". (i.e by the same scribe as lot 98, above). Now Chicago, Newberry Library, MS 70.5, described here.
  • 153: Oratio Preti Boscha Romæ ... in celebritate victoriæ Malachitanæ per serenissimos Ferdinandum et Helizabeth ... 1487, paper, 4to, 6 leaves.

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