Sigonius, Carolus ( Sigonio, Carlo) (c. 1524-1584): Caroli Sigonii Historiarum De Occidentali Imperio Libri XX . Ad illustris et excellentis…….cum indice copiosissimo rerum, et verborum. – Old and Rare

Carolus Sigonius (c. 1524 – 1584) HISTORIARUM
DE OCCIDENTALI IMPERIO LIBRI XX.
Bologna, Societatem Typographiae, MD.LXX.VIII (1578).

Description : [in Folio] – pp. 564, (48) ROMAN HISTORY.

A very well preserved copy of this sixteenth century treatise in its
first edition on the history of the roman empire from the
Emperor Diocletianus, who divided the empire in East and West
to the death of Justinianus and the destruction of the Empire upon the longobard invasions.
The treatise is the work of the Italian humanist Carolus
Sigonius born in Modena around the year 1524. He
attended the philosophical schools of Bologna and Pavia,
and in 1545 was elected professor of Greek in his native
place in succession to Franciscus Portus of Candia . In 1552
he was appointed to a professorship at Venice, and then to
the chair of Eloquence at Padua in 1560. Sigonius’s
reputation chiefly rests upon his publications on Greek and
Roman antiquities, very detailed works, among which is
worth remember : Fasti consulares (1550), with an extended commentary, from the regal
period to Tiberius, based on the study of fragments of old bronze tablets dug up in 1547 on
the site of the old Forum. De antiquo jure Romanorum, Italiae, provinciarum (1560) and De
Romanae jurisprudentiae judiciis (1574), De republica Atheniensium (1564) and De Atheniensium et
Lacedaemoniorum temporibus (1565), the first well-arranged accounts of the constitution,
history, and chronology of Athens and Sparta along with which may be mentioned a similar
work on the religious, political, and military system of the Jews (De republica Ebraeorum) and
his history of the Kingdom of Italy (De regno Italiae, 1580) from the invasion of longobards
(568 AD) to the end of the 13th century. In order to obtain material for these works, Sigonius
consulted all the archives and family chronicles of Italy as well as public and private
libraries. At the request of Pope Gregory XIII he undertook to write the history of the
Christian Church, but did not live to complete the work. The most complete edition of his
works is that by P Argelati (Milan, 1732-1737), which contains his life by L.A Muratori. The
Historiaum de Occidentali Imperio had 3 editions in the xvi century of which the present copy is
the first edition (1578, Bologna) it was further reprinted in 1579 ( Basilea, 2nd ed. quarto ) and
then 1593 (Frankofurti) . Wonderful copy in excellent conditions, very clean interiors,
woodcut printer´s device on titlepage, beautifully carved woodcut decorated initials at the
beginning of each Liber, text entirely framed in double-ruled borders, quarter vellum
binding with titlepiece on spine and pale yellow coloured edges. An attractive copy in
excellent antiquarian conditions. FIRST EDITION.

Cfr.: FRANCIOSI, Della vita e delle opere di Carlo Sigonio Modena, (1872); HESSEL, De regno Italiae
libri XX. von Carlo Sigonio, eine quellenkritische Untersuchung (1900); ADAMS, Catalogue of books
printed on the continent of Europe, 1501-1600 in Cambridge Libraries. Cambridge, (1977). S 1117 ;
NUC, National Union Catalogue , Mansell (1968-1981) Vol. 546, 18.