Folio.  Quires [1-13^{10}, 14^{12}], 142 leaves, 33 lines to the page, gothic letter, without signatures, catchwords, pagination, place or printer’s name.  Two- and three-line spaces left for capitals, which are supplied in red.  Paragraph-marks and initial-strokes in red.  Hain 7948, Pellechet 5366.  Brit.  Mus. 15th cent., II, p. 319 (IB. 5457).

Gregory’s Homilies, of which this is the first edition, and the three next following works bound with it, are from the press of Guenther Zainer, of Reutlingen, the first printer of Augsburg.  All are in the same type, the heavy-faced gothic of his second font, are rubricated by the same hand, and though two of them are undated, were all evidently printed at about the same time.  He was the first printer in Germany to make use of roman type, of which the earliest example seems to have been his “Calendarium pro anno 1472.”  He died in 1478, ten years after the appearance of his first dated book.

The Wodhull copy, bound by Roger Payne in russia gilt.  Leaf 12 x 8-1/4 in.  Mem. on fly-leaf:  “Payne’s sale.  L2.12.6, binding and restoring 17s.6d.  These four pieces were taken out of old monastic binding.  M. Wodhull, Jan. 5th, 1795.”

6.  PSALTERIUM LATINUM. [Augsburg, Guenther Zainer, c. 1473.]

Fol. 1^a:  Prologus beati jeronimi p_re_sbiteri in psalteriu_m_ q_uo_d ipse de hebraico transtulit in latinu_m_ [E]Vsebius jeronim_us_ soffronio suo salutem. Fol. 1^b:  Explicit p_ro_logus beati jeronimi.  Incipit psalterium Psalmos dauid primus. Fol. 51^a:  Canticu_m_ Ysaie capitulo lxxij (sic), followed by cantica of Hezekiah, Hannah, Moses (2), Habakkuk. Fol. 54^a, COLOPHON:  Explicit tra_ns_lacio soli_lo_q_ui_oru_m_ siue psalterij beatissimi Ieronimi eusebii p_resbiteri_ q_uo_d ad peti_ci_one_m_ soffronij tra_n_stulit ut in ep_isto_la_m_ ante psalteriu_m_ imp_re_ssa p_rae_mittit_ur_ etc.

Folio.  Quires [1-5^{10}, 6^4], 54 leaves, 33 lines to the page, gothic letter, without signatures, catchwords, pagination, place, printer’s name or date.  Two- to four-line spaces left for initials, which are supplied in red.  Paragraph-marks and initial-strokes in red.  Hain 13470.  Brit.  Mus. 15th cent., II, p. 320 (IB. 5560).

Jerome’s final translations of the Old Testament books direct from the Hebrew were all adopted into the received Latin version, the Vulgate, except this of the Psalms.  Here his earlier revision of the old Italic version on the basis of the Septuagint had become so firmly established in liturgical use that the translation from the Hebrew, though more exact, could not displace it.  This appears to be the first printed edition.

Bound with No. 5.  Gregorii Homiliae.

7.  MODUS PERVENIENDI AD SUMMAM SAPIENTIAM. [Augsburg, Guenther Zainer, c.
    1473.]

Fol. 1^a:  [S]Entite de do_m_ino in bo_n_itate e_t_ in simplicitate cordis q_uae_rite illu_m_. Fol. 2^a:  Explicit prologus Incipit modus ad summam p_er_veniendi sapienciam. Fol. 24^a, l. 33, END:  sibi sparso diuinit_us_ in ip_sum_ ardentissime se extendit etc. Fol. 24^b, blank.