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The Philobiblon of Richard de Bury / translated by Andrew Fleming West
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REF.BC.1612
80 p. ; 26 cm.
1945
Bury, Richard de, 1287-1345. Philobiblon. English
The Philobiblon is a collection of essays written by Richard de Bury shortly before his death, discussing the acquisition, preservation, and organization of books. The title is is separated into twenty chapters, each covering a different topic relating to book collecting and book treatment.
Contents: That the treasure of wisdom lieth especially in books -- What love is reasonably due to books -- How in buying books the price is to be fixed -- The complaint of books against the clerks lately promoted -- The complaint of books against the religious possessioners -- The complaint of books against the religious mendicants -- The complaint of books against war -- Of the manifold opportunity we have had for gathering a multitude of books -- That though we love more the works of the ancients yet we have not condemned the studies of the moderns -- Of the successive perfecting of books -- Why we have preferred the books of the liberal arts before the books of law -- Why we have taken such diligent care to amend the books of grammar -- Why we have not wholly neglected the fables of the poets -- Who ought to be the especial lovers of books -- What benefit the love of books confers -- How worthy a task it is to write new books and repair old ones -- Of showing honourable respect in the care of books -- That we have gathered such a multitude of books for the common advantage of scholars, and not only for our own pleasure -- Of the manner of distributing our books to all students -- An exhortation to scholars to repay in supplications on our behalf the debt of piety they owe.
600 copies of this 600th anniversary edition were printed by Peter Beilenson, and each copy is numbered for one of the 600 years from 1345-1944. The title page and initial letters were designed by Valenti Angelo. This is copy number 475 / 600 (1820).