Alberto Magno - [Post Incunable] Mariale - 1507

ABSTRACT
This rare Lyonese edition of 1507 of the Mariale attributed to Albert the Great stands out not only as testimony to the persistence of manuscript culture, but also as an object of extraordinary visual refinement. Overlaid on the typographic structure is a decorative system of high quality: rubricated initials, a significant colored miniated initial with elegant flower motifs, and a woodcut emblem that marks the workshop’s identity. In this exemplar, textual and figurative dimensions are deeply intertwined, transforming the book into a device of visual meditation as well as theological reflection. The extensive handwritten annotations, together with the decorative interventions, create a unique whole in which word and image participate in the construction of meaning, revealing a living continuity between medieval illuminated tradition and Renaissance typographic culture.
MARKET VALUE
Post-incunabula Lyonese editions of devotional texts attributed to Albertus Magnus are relatively rare on the market. Standard copies typically range between €2,000 and €4,000. However, copies that preserve a high-quality decorative apparatus—rubricated initials, contemporaneous illuminated interventions, and well-impressed typographic signatures—combined with a rich codicology, can reach a bracket between €5,000 and €9,000, with further increases in the presence of particularly refined miniatures or striking aesthetic impact, elements highly sought after in the antique-book collecting market.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Later binding in parchment, taken from an old antiphonal leaf, illuminated and rubricated. Text in Gothic type in two columns. Rich decorative apparatus: rubricated initials in red with guide marks and a large colored miniated initial with refined marginal floral decoration. Presence of a woodcut printer’s mark with initials “IC,” of notable engraving quality. The overall decorative components contribute to a strong visual valorization of the volume, which presents itself not only as a book to read but to contemplate. Important manuscript apparatus: Latin annotations spread along the text and about 10 additional pages entirely handwritten, including a final “Finis Marialis Alberti.” Some browning and wear. Pagination: (2); 12 nn.; 156; (2). In ancient books, with a multisecular history, a few imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description.

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Mariale Alberti Magni in evangelium super Missus est Gabriel angelus.
Lugduni, Johannes Clein, 1507.
Albertus Magnus (attributed).

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
The Mariale attributed to Saint Albertus Magnus belongs to the great tradition of medieval Marian devotion, built around the exegesis of the Gospel passage of the Annunciation. In this Lyonese edition, however, the value of the work lies not only in its theological content but also in its visual dimension: the rubricated initials and the floral miniature are not mere ornaments but tools of orientation and meditation, capable of guiding the reader’s eye and mind. The illuminated decoration, still deeply connected to manuscript models, testifies to how, in the early decades of the sixteenth century, the printed book continued to absorb and reinterpret the medieval figurative language. Added to this is the imposing manuscript apparatus, which establishes a continuous dialogue with the text and its visual components, transforming the volume into a space of interaction between word, image, and interpretation. The result is a complex object in which theology is expressed as much through discourse as through visual form.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
St. Albert the Great (c. 1200–1280), Dominican, was one of the greatest thinkers of the Middle Ages. Master of Thomas Aquinas, he contributed decisively to the diffusion of Aristotelian thought in the West. His encyclopedic work spans theology, philosophy, and natural sciences. The works attributed to him, such as the Mariale, enjoyed wide fortune in the following centuries, becoming fundamental tools for theological formation and devotion, even when the attribution was uncertain.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
Printed in Lyon in 1507 by Johannes Clein, this edition sits in a phase of full transition between manuscript book and modern book. Lyon, a foremost typography center, was particularly active in producing religious texts for a cultivated audience. Editions of the Mariale were already widely circulating in manuscript and incunabula form, but it is precisely in these early sixteenth-century prints that a significant integration between typographic and decorative elements is observed. The presence of miniatures and hand rubrications shows how the printed book continued to be perceived as an object to be completed and visually valorized. The exemplar, with its decorative and manuscript apparatus, suggests circulation in environments where the book was not only read but also enriched and personalized.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
GW (Gesamtkatalog der Wiegendrucke), entries related to Albertus Magnus, Mariale, for the incunabula tradition (see GW 1541–1548, related textual groups).
Hain-Copinger, Repertorium bibliographicum, II, pp. 11–15 (Albertus Magnus, Mariale and related works).
USTC (Universal Short Title Catalogue), Lyonese editions 1500–1520 under Albertus Magnus, Mariale.
ICCU / OPAC SBN, catalogs of Lyonese editions of Marian texts attributed to Albertus Magnus.
Baudrier, Henri, Bibliographie lyonnaise, Lyon, 1895–1921, vols. IX–X (lesser Lyonese printers, Johannes Clein).
Gültlingen, Sybille von, Bibliographie des livres imprimés à Lyon au seizième siècle, Baden-Baden, volumes on the early Sixteenth Century.
Alexander, J.J.G., Medieval Illuminators and Their Methods of Work, New Haven, 1992 (on the context of late-medieval manuscript practices).
Wieck, Roger S., Painted Prayers: The Book of Hours in Medieval and Renaissance Art, New York, 1997 (on the role of medieval illumination in devotion).
De Hamel, Christopher, A History of Illuminated Manuscripts, London, 1994 (continuity between manuscript and illustrated prints).
Auction catalogs of Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Librairie Sourget, for comparable examples with contemporaneous illuminated decoration and rubrication."}