1
HOURS OF THE VIRGIN.
Quarto, in Latin.
This is a superb volume, printed by Simon de Colines, with borders and
illustrations 'à l'antique,' perfect in taste and in the execution of the
engravings. The book was, in all probability, printed by Tory and Colines
on joint account, as copies are extant in the name of each.
Following are descriptions of three sorts of copies which I have seen,
and which have been mistakenly assumed by bibliographers to be distinct
editions.
[Illustration]
I. HORÆ, IN LAUDEM BEATISS. SEMPER VIRGINIS MARIÆ SECUNDUM
CONSUETUDINEM CURIÆ ROMANÆ. VBI ORTHOGRÁPHIA, PUNCTA & ACCENTUS SUIS
LOCIS HABENTUR.
[Illustration]
Below is Colines's large mark with the rabbits and the letters S. D. C.
in the centre, and at the foot, S. DE COLINES. The imprint is:
'Parisiis. Apud Simonem Colinæum. M.D.XXIIII.
[Illustration]
The first page is ornamented with a special border, which we shall find
in others of Tory's books. The only copy of this form of the book which I
have had an opportunity to examine, namely, the one in the Bibliothèque
de l'Arsenal, although it is bound in paper only, has a beautiful drawing
in miniature which occupies the whole of this page. It represents two
printers working at a press, and a compositor in front of his case. None
of the printing has been retained, save the five lines of the title,
'Horæ,' etc., which are enclosed in a scroll hanging from the upper
branches of two trees which form the frame of the miniature. I do not
know the name of the fortunate recipient of this gift. One sees only his
initials (R. P.) in a heart above the press.
On the verso of the title we find, in accordance with custom, the table
of Easter Days, etc., from 1523 to 1551. The border of the page has, in
three small reserved scrolls in the midst of the arabesques, the words:
GEOFROY--TORY--SIC VT NON PLVS, which recur from time to time on
the following pages. This border is reproduced on the title-page of each
part of the book.
The license occupies the whole of both sides of the second leaf, which is
without borders, for a special reason: it is printed in gothic type of the
period (to imitate the script of the diploma) and that style of type would
have quarrelled with the antique arabesques of Tory, whose refined taste
avoided incongruities of that sort.
An extract from the license follows:--
'Francoys, by the grace of God King of France, to the Bailli and Provost
of Paris, the Seneschal of Lyon, and all other justiciars, officials,
or their deputies, and to each of them in his jurisdiction, and as to
him shall appertain, greeting. Our dear and well-beloved maistre Geofroy
Tory, bookseller, living at Paris, hath now caused it to be made known
and shown unto us that he hath of late made and caused to be made certain
pictures and vignettes "à l'antique," and likewise certain others "à la
moderne," to the end that the same may be printed and made use of in
divers books of Hours, whereupon he hath employed himself a very long
time, and hath made divers great expenditures, and outlay. Wherefore,
and to enable him to recover a part of the outlay that he hath made and
undergone while employed in procuring the aforementioned drawings and
vignettes to be made; and to the end that he may have the wherewithal
to live with more ease, he hath most humbly caused to be laid before us
his petition and request that he alone and no other may have authority
to cause the aforementioned drawings and vignettes to be printed, for
the space and term of six years, beginning on the day of the printing of
said Hours, and that all booksellers be forbidden to make or to cause to
be made any impression thereof, whether on a white, grey, or red field,
not omitting any of the said black vignettes, or to reduce them "a petit
ou grant pied"; humbly beseeching us to that end. Wherefore we, having
duly considered these matters, and generously acceding to the petition
and request of the said petitioner, and likewise in recognition of his
learning, literary talent, and the excellent and praiseworthy report made
to us of his person, and of his talents, competency, loyalty, wisdom, and
goodly diligence, have granted to him the privilege that he and no other
may print and cause to be printed the said vignettes and drawings, and
do forbid all booksellers and printers whomsoever within our realm, to
make or procure to be made and printed the said vignettes and drawings,
on pain of a fine of five and twenty silver marks to be paid to us, and
confiscation of the Hours, vignettes, and pictures by them so printed.
Given at Avignon, the XXIII day of September, in the year of
grace one thousand five hundred twenty-four, and of our reign the tenth.'
[Illustration]
The third leaf contains some details concerning the calendar, which begins
on the fourth leaf and ends on the ninth. The border of the lower part of
leaf Avij is turned upside down. The Hours begin on the tenth leaf.
The book is a quarto, but the sheets are folded two by two, after
the style introduced by Pierre Schoiffer himself, which gives it the
appearance of an octavo. The signatures run from A to T, which makes
eighteen folds, or one hundred and forty-four leaves.
The engravings consist of sixteen complete borders, one of which
is repeated on the recto and verso of each of the first sixteen
leaves, embracing thirty-two pages of text, after which the same
decorations reappear. They are composed of arabesques in which,
from time to time, these words appear at the sides: SOLI
DEO--LAVS--HONOR--GEOFROY--TORY--NON PLVS. At the foot of certain
pages we see a crowned F (the first letter of the king's name), a crowned
C (the first letter of the name of Queen Claude, daughter of Louis XII),
and a crowned dolphin (daulphin), in allusion to the title of the king's
eldest son. Queen Claude died before the book was finished, perhaps even
before the printing was begun; but Tory did not choose to waste the
woodcut of her, so it was preserved and was used for more than fifteen
years, as we shall see. These three subjects are reproduced in Dibdin's
'Bibliographical Decameron' (vol. i, page 99); there are two others in
the same work (vol. ii, page 65). At the foot of the other pages are
arabesques, among which we find the Pot Cassé, no. 2. In the text there
are thirteen large drawings, which harmonize admirably with the borders.
All the illustrations, or almost all, borders and drawings alike, are
signed with the Lorraine cross.
The book ends on the recto of a leaf on the verso of which is this
colophon: EXCVDEBAT SIMON COLINÆVS PARISIIS E REGIONE SCHOLARVM
DECRETORVM: ANNO A CHRISTI IESV NATIVITATE M. D. XXV. XVII. CAL. FEBR.
This date coincides with January 16, 1525. We have seen that the
title-page bears the date 1524, that is to say, the year when the book was
begun. These two dates, cited separately, have led bibliographers astray,
and have given rise to a theory that there are two different editions of
the same book.
Here and there throughout the volume we find figures in the borders. These
figures are: 16, which appears on the inner side of leaves Ai verso and
Cvij recto and verso; 3, on the outer side of the border of leaves Aiiij
recto and verso, and Ciiij recto and verso; 10, at the foot of leaf Biij;
12, on the outer side of the border of leaf Bvi. Here and elsewhere,
to make my descriptions more clear, these books having no pagination,
I assign signature letters to the eight sheets of each fold; but it is
common knowledge that they actually appear on the first four only. I feel
justified in concluding from these figures that at first certain numbers,
running from 1 to 16, were engraved, and repeated on each compartment of
the same border, in order to enable the compositor to assort the pages
properly. Later these numbers were probably deemed to be of no use and
were cut off. The four that I have noticed, having inadvertently been
left, were finally removed before the printing was concluded. The scheme
of repeating each border on the recto and verso of the same leaf was very
ingenious, for it permitted the imposition of a larger number of pages
without calling attention to the repetition, as the two similar pages
were never seen at the same time. This required no more work, for it is
very clear that the borders were not added to the pages until the very
moment of printing, so that they might not be exposed to the accidents
inherent in the preparatory handling. M. Willemin has reproduced several
specimens of these borders in his 'Monuments Français Inêdits' (folio,
1839), page 296.
[Illustration]
The book contains, as we have said, thirteen large cuts (all of which
except the second are signed with the Lorraine cross). They are as follows:
1 and 2. The Angelic Salutation, in two plates facing each other.
3. The Visitation of the Virgin, with the device 'non plus' in a scroll
suspended from a tree.
4. The Birth of Jesus.
5. The Adoration of the Shepherds.
6. The Adoration of the Magi.
7. The Circumcision.
[Illustration]
8. The Flight into Egypt.
9. The Coronation of the Virgin.
10. The Crucifixion of Jesus. This design has five compartments. In
addition to the Crucifixion, there are bees at work, birds building their
nests, a peasant ploughing a field, and another shearing sheep. Each of
these four is accompanied by the device 'sic vos non vobis.'
11. The Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles, with the device 'non
plus' on the pediment of a temple.
12. The Penance of David, with the same device, and the word 'peccavi' in
a scroll suspended from a tree.
13. The Triumph of Death. This last cut represents Death, armed with a
spear treading on corpses. A crow on a tree above him has the words 'cras,
cras,' issuing from its beak. At either side are the devices 'non plus'
and 'sic ut,' on neighbouring buildings.
* * * * *
II. There are two sorts of copies in Tory's name. The first are
identical in every respect with those of Colines, except as to the first
page, where, after the title: 'Horæ ... habentur,' we find this imprint:
'Parisiis, apud Magistrum Gotofredum Torinum Bituricum. Ad insigne vasis
effracti, in via Iacobæa; gallice, Au pot casse, en la rue sainct Iaques.'
Here the Pot Cassé, no. 3, with the device 'menti bonæ deus occurrit' at
the top, and 'non plus' at the foot.
There is no date on the title-page, but there is one on the last
page,--the same that we find in the copies in Colines's name (see page
111). I have seen a copy of this book in the collection of M. Double,
who kindly allowed me to study it in detail. It is still in its antique
binding, and on the covers, in large roman letters, is this device, which
is believed to be that adopted by the unfortunate Dolet:
D[OMI]NE REDIME ME A CALVMNIIS
HOMINVM VT CVSTODIAM
MANDATA TVA.
D[OMI]NE IVSTICIA TVA IVSTICIA
IN ETERNVM ET LEX
TVA VERITAS.
III. Other copies in Tory's name have a title-page in French,
with no border. This title-page reads as follows:--
'HEURES, A LA LOUANGE DE LA VIERGE MARIE, SELON LUSAGE DE ROME.
ESQUELLES SONT CONTENUES LES QUATRE PASSIONS, LE SERUICE COMMUN POUR LE
TEMPS DAPRES PASQUES, ET POUR LE CARESME, LE SERUICE DE LADUENT, ET DUDIT
ADUENT JUSQUES A LA PURIFICATION NOSTRE DAME. PAREILLEMENT, LES HEURES
DE LA CROIX, ET DU SAINCT ESPERIT, LES SEPT PSEAUMES, VESPRES, VIGILES,
ET COMMENDACES DES TRESPASSEZ, AVEC RAISONNABLE NOMBRE DORAISONS, ET
SUFFRAGES DES SAINCTZ ET SAINCTES.
A la fin sont les heures de la Conception nostre Dame, et le symbole de
Athanase. Le tout au long, sans y rien requerir, est tres correcte, en
bonne orthographie de poinctz, daccens, et diphthongues situez aux lieux a
ce requis. Et sont a vendre par Maistre Geofroy Tory de Bourges, libraire
demourant a Paris sus Petit pont, ioignant lhostel Dieu, a lenseigne du
Pot Casse.' Then follows the device 'menti bonæ devs occvrrit,' and the
Pot Cassé in the same form as that on the title-page of the preceding
number.
The order of the contents of the first signature is here a little
different from that followed in numbers one and two. On the verso of the
title the license begins, set in roman letters, which Tory preferred to
the gothic; it occupies two pages, as in the other copies, but those pages
are supplied with the antique borders. On the verso of the second leaf
is the table of Easter-Days, from 1525 to 1552. It is more conveniently
placed here than on the verso of the title, where it is separated from
the calendar by the license. Advantage was taken of the reprinting of
the first signature to remove the figure 16 from the border of the page
containing the table of Easter-Days, and to set right the lower section of
the border of page A vij recto, which is upside down in the other copies.
The figure 3 was not removed from page A iiij, probably because the second
side of that signature was not reprinted; but the 10 has disappeared from
page B iij, which would seem to show that the second side of signature B
was reprinted. The first side of signature T was reprinted also, in order
to change the colophon on the last page, for which this is substituted:
'Ces presentes heures a lusage de ROME furent acheuees de
imprimer le MARDY dixseptiesme iour de IANVIER Mil cinq
cens vingtcinq: pour maistre GEOFROY TORY de BOURGES,
libraire demorant a PARIS sus PETIT PONT, ioignant
lhostel DIEU, a lenseigne du POT CASSE.' (The words
printed in small capitals are printed in red in the book.) This is
followed by the mark no. 5, with the two mottoes ('menti,' etc., and
'sic,' etc.), which accompany that mark on page 43 of 'Champ fleury.' (See
supra, p. 21.)
Tory had several copies printed on vellum; I myself have seen one of them,
belonging to the collection of M. Sauvageot.[244]
It will be seen from the date affixed to these copies that they were not
printed until the day following the printing of those which bear the
name of Colines; for it is worth noting that the Tuesday, January 17, is
of 1525, and not of 1526 new style, as would have been the case had the
'use of Paris' been followed. But Tory thought, doubtless, that he should
follow the Roman usage in a book of Hours to the use of Rome.
I imagine that this reprinting of three signatures of the Hours of
1524-1525 was done mainly to direct the attention of the public to
Tory's new establishment 'sus Petit Pont.' And this circumstance leads
me to believe that it was done subsequent to January 17, 1525, for it
is not conceivable that Tory would have left his former address, rue
Saint-Jacques, on the copies printed as late as January 16, if he was to
be settled 'sus Petit Pont' on the 17th. He retained that date on the
reissue, although it really took place later, in order to conform to
the terms of the license, which imposed upon the beneficiary the duty
of specifying on the books the date when they were first published, so
that the date of its expiration might be fixed, unless the term should
be extended, as was done in the case of this very book of Hours; witness
the license of 'Champ fleury,' dated September 5, 1526. Indeed, my own
opinion is that Tory did not remove to the Petit-Pont until about the
date last mentioned. We shall see that he remained there until 1530, when
the installation of his printing-office required him to take more roomy
quarters. However, when he opened his shop on the Petit-Pont he did not
abandon his place on rue Saint-Jacques, which he still occupied at least
as late as 1531.
M. Niel owns a copy of this book, in which the cuts are coloured in
water-colour, lined with gold. M. Niel thinks that the arabesques are
adapted from those of Raphael in the Vatican, which had lately been
reproduced; the lamented Renouvier, who agreed with M. Niel in attributing
the colouring to Tory, considered it an admirable piece of work.
It will not fail to be noticed, moreover, that Tory calls attention on
the title-page of his copies to the excellent orthography of his book: an
additional proof that this reimpression was subsequent to 1525.
Tory lent his borders and his engravings to several printers, who
frequently removed his mark therefrom. I will mention particularly five
publications of Simon de Colines on the title-pages of which we find
Tory's borders.
I. 'Divi Joannis Chrisostomi liber contra Gentiles,' etc.;
quarto, 1528. The title-page is surrounded by one of Tory's borders,
with the crowned F at the foot, and the broad upright section with
the two scrolls containing the words 'Geofroy Tory,' which have been
removed.--There is a copy of this volume, in vellum, in the library of M.
Solomon de Rothschild, who has kindly sent me this information.
II. 'Rodolphi Agricolæ Phrisii de inventione dialectica libri
tres, cum scholiis Joannis Matthæi Phrissemii'; quarto, 1529 and 1538.
Border composed of two broad upright sections, one of which was used in
the preceding. A crowned F at the top, and another broad section at the
foot.
III. 'Laurentii Vallæ de linguæ latinæ elegantia libri III';
quarto, 1535 and 1538. Same border as in the preceding.[245]
2
In 1527 Tory published a new edition of his Hours, in one volume,
octavo, printed as before by Simon de Colines, in roman type, with
vignettes of the same sort, but much smaller. There is a copy on vellum
at the Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal; unluckily it lacks the first and last
leaves. According to M. Brunet,[246] to whom M. Tosi, of Milan, sent the
description of a perfect copy, also on vellum, the first page reads:
'Horæ in laudem Beatiss. Virg. Mariæ ad usum Romanum venales extant
Parrhisiis ad insigne vasis effracti.' And the last: 'Hujusmodi Horæ nuper
absoluebantur a prælo Colineo, die vicesima prima Octobris anno Domini
1527, pro magistro Gotofredo Torino Biturigico Bibliopola ad insigne vasis
effracti Parrhisiis commorante, ubi venales beneuolis omnibus amicabiliter
extant.'
We give herewith an extract from the license of this new publication,
which license included also 'Champ fleury' and the Hours of 1524-1525:
François, by the grace of God King of France, to the Provost of Paris,
the Bailli of Rouen and the Seneschal of Lyon, and to all our other
justiciars and officials and their deputies, and to each of them as to him
shall appertain, greeting. Our dear and well-beloved maistre Geofroy Tory
de Bourges, bookseller, living at Paris, hath now caused it to be made
known and shown unto us that, in order to proclaim, exalt and embellish
the Latin and French tongues, he hath not long since made and composed
a book in prose and in the French language entitled: 'Lart et science
de la deue et vraye proportion des lettres attiques, autrement dictes
antiques et vulgairement lettres romaines, proportionnees selon le corps
et visaige humain'; the which book he hath caused to be placed before
us, soliciting and requesting us to grant unto him leave, permission and
license to print, or cause to be printed the said book, together with
certain drawings and vignettes 'à l'antique and à la moderne'; likewise
friezes, borders, crowns and scrolls; also to cause to be printed books
of Hours, in such form and of such size as to him shall seem good, during
the time and term of ten years, beginning on the day of the printing of
said Book and said Hours; together with an extension for the same term
for certain drawings and vignettes by him heretofore printed.--We hereby
give you to know, that we, in consideration of the foregoing, generously
acceding to the petition and request of the said maistre Geofroy Tory,
and having regard to the toil, labour, outlays and expense which it hath
behooved him to undergo and sustain, as well in the composition of the
said books, as for the engraving of the said drawings, vignettes, friezes,
borders, crowns and scrolls to accompany the said Hours, as hereinbefore
mentioned, in divers forms and sizes,--have granted to him the privilege
of printing the said books, enjoining you not to allow any other printers
or booksellers within our realm, domains and seignories to print the said
books and Hours, on pain of one hundred silver marcs to be paid to us,
and of confiscation of said books. Given at Chenonceau the fifth day of
September, in the year of grace one thousand five hundred twenty-six, and
of our reign the twelfth.
* * * * *
In this new book of Hours there are thirty-two different borders, which
reappear on every second leaf--one hundred and twenty-eight in all. The
text is embellished by sixteen large subjects, naturally smaller, however,
than those in the quarto. In the copy at the Arsenal, the only one that
I have seen, these subjects are coloured. I did not discover Tory's mark
anywhere; but his mottoes do appear,--'menti bonæ devs occvrrit'; 'sic
vt, vel vt'; 'non plvs';--which proves that these plates were engraved for
him, if not by him.
A list of the drawings follows:--
1 and 2. The Angelic Salutation; two plates on adjoining pages, as
in the quarto of 1524-1525.
3. The Visitation of the Virgin.
4. The Birth of Jesus.
5. The Annunciation to the Shepherds.
6. The Adoration of the Magi.
7. The Circumcision.
8. The Flight into Egypt.
9. The Coronation of the Virgin.
10. St. Joachim and St. Anne Embracing (this is not included in the
edition of 1524-1525).
11. The Crucifixion.
12. The Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles.
13. The Penance of David.
14. The Triumph of Death.
15. The Holy Trinity.
16. The Virgin and the Child Jesus.
(The last two are not included in the edition of 1524-1525.)
The signatures run from A to Z; that is to say, there are twenty-three
octavo sheets.
The copy of the octavo Hours of 1527 at the Arsenal is a lovely volume
printed on vellum, with a number of manuscript prayers in French added at
the end. The calligraphic execution of these prayers, which are surrounded
by borders in imitation of those in the book, is wonderfully fine. The
colouring of the plates and the illuminating of the initial letters and
of those at the ends of paragraphs make the volume of great value. It is
still in its original binding (once very sumptuous, but now sadly out of
repair), on the covers of which one can distinguish interlaced C's, barred
S's, and star-shaped figures formed of two triangles turned end for end.
Can it have belonged to Catherine de Médicis, who became the consort of
Henri II in 1533? Unluckily it lacks two essential leaves, the first and
the last.
3
In the same year, Tory had printed by Simon Dubois ('Silvius') a quarto
edition of this same book of Hours, 'suivant l'usage de Paris.'
It is dated October 22, 1527. It contains the new license, and comprises
thirty-six quarto sheets, folded two by two according to custom, and
forming eighteen octavo signatures, A to S. The book is printed throughout
in the gothic type of that time, with the borders 'à la moderne' mentioned
in the license of 1524, consisting of arabesques of flowers, insects,
animals, etc. There are twenty-six complete borders, which recur in
regular order. We find again here, as in the first quarto, thirteen large
subjects interspersed through the text. But a noteworthy fact is, that
although these subjects, with two exceptions,[247] are the same as those
in the first quarto, they are of entirely different designs, appropriate
to the 'modern' borders and type. It would be difficult to carry further
the love of artistic harmony. Neither the borders nor the illustrations
bear Tory's mark, and I doubt whether they are his. Perhaps the design was
Perreal's and the engraving by one of the artists employed by Tory, who
must then have had an organized workshop, if we may judge from the number
of works which he produced about that time.
Dibdin speaks enthusiastically of this edition of the Hours, in his
'Bibliographical Decameron'; he even reproduces four of the large cuts
by which it is illustrated.[248] He says that it is the 'most beautiful
work' of that sort that he has ever seen, and expresses great surprise
that the arabesques have been cast aside. I confess that I do not share
his feeling. The book seems to me badly done, both from the artistic and
from the typographical standpoint: the borders do not harmonize, they
are out of proportion, and the engraving does not impress me as beyond
reproach. But Dibdin's opinion is, as everybody knows, very unreliable;
his carelessness is proverbial. Indeed, he gives us a striking instance of
it in this very passage: for he tells us that this book was published by
Tory of 'Bruges,' and that it has on the title, the Pot Cassé of Simon du
Bois[249]; two errors in one line!
Among the small cuts at the foot of the pages, we observe the shield of
France; the crowned F; the crowned salamander; the crest of the king's
mother, 'party' of France and of Savoy, with her widow's girdle; her
initial (L), crowned; the shield 'party' of Navarre and of France, with
the letters H and M intertwined (the initials of Henri d'Albert, King of
Navarre, and Marguerite, sister of François I, whose marriage had been
celebrated January 24, 1526[250]); the Pot Cassé, no. 1, that is to say,
in its simplest form, etc.
The exact title of this book is as follows: 'Hore in laudem beatissime
Virginis MARIE: secundum consuetudinem ECCLESIE PARISIENSIS.' (Here the
Pot Cassé, no. 9.) 'Venales habentur PARRHISIIS, APUD MAGISTRUM GOTOFREDUM
Torinum Biturigicum: SUB INSIGNE VASIS EFFRACTI: GALLICO SERMONE AU POT
CASSE.'--All the words here printed in small capitals are printed in red.
On the verso of the title-page is the license, dated September 5, 1526. At
the end of the book is the following: 'Ces presentes Heures a lusage de
Paris, privilegiees pour dix ans commenceans a la presente date de leur
impression, furent achevees dimprimer le vingt deuxiesme iour Doctobre,
Mil cinq cens vingt sept, par maistre Simon du bois, imprimeur, pour
maistre Geofroy Tory de Bourges, qui les vend a Paris a lenseigne du Pot
Casse.' (Here the same mark as on the first page.)
It will be noticed that, although Tory felt bound to give the title of the
book in Latin, he could not forbear to print his address in French.
This is the order of the plates, all of which measure nine centimetres by
six:--
1 and 2. The Angelic Salutation, in two plates on successive pages
(fol. f 3 verso, and f 4 recto).
3. The Sibyl of Tibur (see the description on page 123, note 1),
fol. g 8 recto.
4. Jesus on the Cross, fol. h 6 recto.
5. The Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles, fol. h 7 recto.
6. The Birth of Jesus, fol. i 1 recto.
7. The Annunciation to the Shepherds, fol. i 6 recto.
8. The Adoration of the Magi, fol. k 2 recto.
9. The Presentation in the Temple, fol. k 6 recto.
10. The Flight into Egypt, fol. l 2 recto.
11. The Coronation of the Virgin, fol. l 7 recto.
12. David Playing the Harp, fol. m 5 recto.
13. The Triumph of Death, fol. n 7 recto.
M. Brunet[251] mentions a copy of this book on vellum. The Bibliothèque
Nationale owns one on paper, bound by Capé, with tooling copied from
Tory's.
4
HOURS OF THE VIRGIN, in roman type, with borders and arabesques
'à l'antique' on each page. A small 16mo volume, printed by Tory, February
8, 1529 (old style).
Here is a description of this little gem, taken from the only copy that I
have seen, M. Niel's, which is on vellum.
The title reads thus:--
'HORÆ IN LAUDEM BEATISSIMÆ VIRGINIS MARIÆ, SECUNDUM USUM
ROMANUM.' Then the Pot Cassé, and at the foot of the page: 'Menti
bonæ Deus occurrit.'
On the verso of the title-page:--
'Rex christianiss. statuit ne quis alius a Gotofredo Torino Biturigico,
Bibliopola Parrhisiis habitante, imprimat aut imprimi faciat infra
decennium in toto regno hujusmodi coronamenta et figuras, sub pœna
gravissima, ut in diplomate ad hoc obtento latissime patet.'
Then comes an abstract of the pontifical license, undated; and on the
following leaf the table of Easter-Days from 1530 to 1552.
On the last page: 'Parrhisiis, apud Gotofredum Torinum Biturigicum, viii.
die febr. anno sal. M. D. XXIX,[252] ad insigne Vasis effracti.'
The signatures run from A to Y; that is to say, the book consists of 22
octavo forms, or 176 leaves. The pages, which contain 21 lines of brevier,
measure thus:--
Height, text alone 77 millimetres.
Height, with border 96 millimetres.
Width, text alone 29 millimetres.
Width, with border 48 millimetres.
The volume contains twenty-one small cuts, unsigned, but all engraved in
Tory's manner. Here is a list of them:--
1. Jesus on the Cross; a very small cut with five sections, like the
Crucifixion of the quarto of 1524-1525; that is to say, there are
bees at work, birds building their nests, a peasant ploughing, and
another shearing sheep.
2 and 3. The Angelic Salutation; two cuts facing each other, as in
the Hours of 1524-1525.
4 and 5. The Visitation (idem).
6 and 7. The Birth of Jesus (idem).
8 and 9. The Annunciation to the Shepherds (idem).
10 and 11. The Adoration of the Magi (idem).
12 and 13. The Circumcision (idem).
14. The Massacre of the Innocents.
15. The Coronation of the Virgin.
16. The Crucifixion.
17. The Descent of the Holy Spirit.
18. Bathsheba at the Bath.
19. The Triumph of Death.
20. The Trinity (small cut).
21. The Virgin in a halo, with an angel on each side.[253]
5
BOOK OF HOURS, quarto; same typographical arrangement as in the
quarto of 1524-1525. On the title-page, which has the border of those
copies of the earlier edition which bear the imprint of Simon de Colines,
we read:--
'HORÆ IN LAUDEM BEATISS. VIRGINIS MARIÆ. AD USUM ROMANUM.--PARRHISIIS,
APUD GOTOFREDUM TORINUM BITURIGICUM, REGIUM IMPRESSOREM. (Then comes
the motto: MENTI BONÆ DEVS OCCVRRIT, and beneath it the Pot
Cassé.) Cum privilegio summi Pont. et Regis christianiss. ad decennium et
ultra, ut in calce hujus operis patet.'[254]
On the verso of the title the list of Easter-Days, from 1531 to 1560; then
the Calendar, the type in which this is set being so large that it was
necessary to omit the arabesques with figures at the foot of the border
and substitute simple arabesques like those at the top.
On the recto of the last leaf is the abstract of the licenses, papal and
royal, and on the verso this colophon, set in the border of the last page
of 'Champ fleury': 'Parrhisiis, ex officina Gotofredi Torini Biturigici,
regii impressoris, ad insigne Vasis effracti, anno salu[tis] M. D.
XXXI, die XX mensis octo[bris].' Then the Pot Cassé and at
the foot of the page:--
'Effracti, lector, subeas insignia vasis,
Egregios flores ut tibi habere queis.'
The volume consists of twenty signatures (A to V) of two sheets each,
set in the roman type used in 'Champ fleury'; borders of the Hours of
1524-1525; also the thirteen drawings of that edition, but with special
borders in the form of porticoes, which appear in other minor works of
Tory published in 1531, of which we shall speak in the following section.
It is a fact worthy of remark that we no longer find the name Geofroy
Tory on his borders, and that even his mark has disappeared from several
of the cuts, particularly the first cut of the Angelic Salutation,[255]
the Adoration of the Shepherds, the Adoration of the Magi, the Flight
into Egypt, the Coronation of the Virgin, the Penance of David, and the
Triumph of Death. This circumstance leads me to believe that Tory had lent
these plates to other publishers, as he had lent his borders to Simon de
Colines, and that they removed the marks in order to appropriate more
completely the publications in which the plates were used. This was what
Simon de Colines did, as we have already seen (page 120).
A no less interesting fact is that, in the borders, the crowned C's are
retained, which refer to Claude de France, the first wife of François I,
who died in 1524 and was succeeded in 1530 by Eleonora of Austria.
We find also in this edition four unsigned cuts which do not appear in the
quarto of 1524-1525:--
Fol. H 8. The Angelic Salutation; a special design, quarto size.
Fol. L 6. The Angelic Salutation; quite small, occupying only the upper
part of a page.
Fol. R 7. The Trinity; small, with a special border.
Fol. V 3. The Virgin; small, with a special border.
The last two are taken from the 16mo Hours of 1529. The floriated letters
are the same as in 'Champ fleury.'
Papillon, who speaks of this book,[256] without giving the title, and
attributes it to Woeiriot, who was not born in 1531, expresses himself
thus concerning it: 'I have seen an old book in which there are some of
his engravings; it is an octavo, each page of which is surrounded by a
decorative border, in compartments, of a beautiful gothic type. They are
engraved very correctly, even though it is line engraving, which is so
fine, so even and so accurate, that I am at a loss to understand how it
could have been done. There are in this book fifteen or sixteen large
cuts, also engraved in line; the drawing of the figures is passable. The
little Lorraine cross, which Woeiriot used as a mark, may be seen in
several places in the borders of this book.'
M. de Rothschild's copy of this edition has one interesting peculiarity:
it is enriched by a large plate, unsigned, printed on an oblong
half-sheet, representing the Triumph of the Virgin Mary, which seems to
be an imitation of the Triumph of Apollo in 'Champ fleury.' The Virgin
appears in a chariot drawn by unicorns; behind the chariot are the Captive
Women; around the chariot, Prudence, Temperance, Justice and Strength;
in front of the unicorns, Hope, Faith, Charity; and farther in front the
Nine Muses, the Seven Liberal Arts, the handmaidens of the Virgin. In
the background, we see the Virginal Palace, the Palace of Jesse, and the
Temple of Honour. Beneath the picture is an explanation in French verse,
which begins thus:--
'Les antiques Cesars triompherent par gloire,
Mais par humilite (ainsi le faut il croire)
La noble Vierge va triomphante en bon heur
Du palais virginal jusquau temple dhonneur.'
I have seen this engraving nowhere else except in a copy of the edition
of the Hours published in 1542 by Olivier Mallard, of which I shall speak
in the third part; but I have no doubt that it was included originally in
all copies of the edition of 1531, perhaps also in that of 1524-1525. Its
chances of preservation were injured by its being bound in the form of a
map. At all events this unsigned plate is in Tory's manner, and it can
hardly be denied that it belongs to him.
6
At a time which I am unable to fix with precision, but not earlier than
the month of September, 1531, Tory printed another book, in octavo, with
borders made up of plants, animals, insects, birds, etc., like those in
the quarto Hours of 1527, but, naturally, on a smaller scale. I have
never seen this book, but its existence is established to my satisfaction
by the publication of a book of Hours, at a later date, by Olivier
Mallard, with the same borders and vignettes. I can give with certainty
neither the title nor the date of printing of Tory's book; but the date
of the engravings is readily determined approximately, thanks to certain
ornaments of Mallard's book. For instance, we find in it, as in the Hours
of 1527, the crowned F and the salamander of François I, the crowned L
and the biparted shield (France and Savoy) of his mother, who died in
1531, and a blank shield which suggests the widowhood of François, and
consequently proves that these cuts were designed before July, 1530. As
for my ascription of these cuts to Tory, it is due to the style of the
borders, which are copied from the Hours of 1527. Moreover, he has added a
special symbol, namely, the coat-of-arms of Bourges (three sheep, placed
two and one, and wearing collars), which appears now and again at the foot
of the page, beside the symbols of François I and his mother. As I have
said, I do not know the title of the book in which Tory first used these
cuts; it seems to me, however, that we may fairly conclude from the use
Olivier Mallard made of them that it was a book of Hours; Tory probably
decided to publish an octavo edition of his Hours 'à la moderne' of 1527,
as he had published in 1527 an octavo edition of his Hours 'à l'antique'
of 1524-1525. Indeed, it may be that the book in question is the one thus
described by M. Brunet: 'Horæ in laudem beatissimæ Virginis Mariæ ad usum
Rothomagensem.--Parisiis, ad insigne Vasis effracti. 1536.' Small octavo,
roman type, line engravings.
It will be seen that the book is said to be printed at the sign of the Pot
Cassé, without mention of the printer's name. This may mean that it was
printed by Tory's widow, who published Macault's work in the same way in
1535.
We shall speak elsewhere of Mallard's book, but this is the place to
mention the engravings it contains, which doubtless appeared also in
Tory's book. In Mallard's publication of 1541 there are sixteen different
borders, the same one being always placed on the recto and verso of each
leaf, and nineteen of the plates of the 16mo edition of 1529. The two
lacking are number 1 and number 21. [The engravings of The Visitation are
reproduced below.]
[Illustration]
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 244: It was bought for 3025 francs, exclusive of commissions,
for the Bibliothèque Impériale (in December, 1860). It is a superb copy,
still in its original binding. M. Brunet mentions two other copies: (1)
That of Baron de Heiss, the cuts in which were coloured, and which brought
only 60 francs in 1785. It was the same copy, apparently, which was sold
for 13 pounds at the sale of Richard Heber. (2) The McCarthy copy, extra
illustrated with 19 lovely miniatures from an old manuscript, has brought
450 francs.]
[Footnote 245: [The translator has before him a copy of an earlier edition
(1529) of this work, the title-page of which reads as follows: 'Lavrentii
Vallae de Lingvae Latinae Elegantia libri sex, iam tertiu de integro bona
fide emaculati. Eiusdem de Reciprocatione Sui & Suus libellus apprime
vtilis. Cum indice amplissimo. Parisiis Apud Simonem Colinæum.' 1529. The
border differs slightly from that described above. In this case Tory's
mark was not removed by Colines, but appears twice.]]
[Footnote 246: _Manuel de Libraire_, 5th ed., vol. v, col. 1658.]
[Footnote 247: The Adoration of the Shepherds is replaced, as in the
octavo edition, by the Annunciation to the Shepherds, and the Visitation
by an entirely different subject, taken from a Christian legend: the
Emperor Augustus, kneeling on the ground, holds one hand of the Sibyl of
Tibur, who with the other hand points to the Virgin and the Child Jesus in
Heaven.]
[Footnote 248: Vol. i, pp. 94-98.]
[Footnote 249: _Bibliographical Decameron_, vol. i, p. 98.]
[Footnote 250: This princess, born in 1492, was the grandmother of Henri
IV; she married, first, Charles, duc d'Alençon. She was famous for her
intellectual qualities, and we owe to her several noteworthy works.]
[Footnote 251: _Manuel de Libraire_, vol. iv, 4th edit., p. 802, col. 1.]
[Footnote 252: 1530 new style.]
[Footnote 253: In my first edition I described only 19 cuts, after the
imperfect copy of M. de Rothschild.]
[Footnote 254: Tory had already received licenses for twenty years for his
Hours (see supra, pp. 105-9, 121), so that he did not need this further
grant, which, indeed, he did not print at the end of his book.]
[Footnote 255: This cut, on the verso of a leaf of which the recto is
blank, is missing in many copies.]
[Footnote 256: _Traité de la Gravure sur Bois_, vol. i, p. 193.]
[Illustration]