Marcellinus - Rerum Gestarum - 1552

THE EMPIRE TOLD BY AMMIAN MARCELLINUS, IN THE HUMANIST WORKSHOP OF LYON
This 1552 edition of Ammianus Marcellinus’ Res gestae, printed in Lyon by Sebastian Gryphius, represents one of the most important testimonies of the humanistic revival of late antique historiography. Ammianus, the last great Latin historian of the Roman Empire, is here restored to the European public in an elegant and compact editorial form, intended for circulation among scholars and researchers. The volume, with its clear typography and ornate woodcut initials, fully embodies the model of the humanistic book of the sixteenth century: a tool for study, but also a refined object. The work, which narrates imperial events up to the reign of Valens, forms a fundamental source for understanding the crisis and transformation of the Roman world.
MARKET VALUE
The sixteenth-century editions of Ammianus Marcellinus printed in Lyon by Gryphius generally range between 500 and 900 euros. The presence of an era-bound binding and good internal condition represent a factor of value.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Era-bound in full leather on boards, with blind-tooled fillets on the covers and a small central decorative motif; spine with raised bands showing evident wear. Presence of ornate initials in woodcut. Frontispiece with the Gryphius printer’s device (winged griffin on a book) and the motto “Virtute duce, comite fortuna.” Pages with some browning, foxing, and a few ancient marginal notes (including annotations at the frontispiece and running headings).
In old books, with a long history, a few imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description. Pp. 736; 4nn; (6).

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Ammiani Marcellini rerum gestarum libri decem et octo.
Lugduni, apud Sebastianum Gryphium, 1552.
Ammianus Marcellinus.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
Ammianus Marcellinus (4th century AD) is considered the last great Latin historian of antiquity. His Res gestae cover the period from Nerva to the death of Emperor Valens (378 AD), offering a direct and often critical testimony of the Roman imperial machine during a time of profound transformation. Gryphius’ edition fits within the Renaissance of classical studies in the sixteenth century, when long-neglected or fragmentary texts were recovered, emended, and spread thanks to printing. Lyon, a European editorial crossroads, was one of the main centers of this cultural operation. Symbolically, Ammianus’ text—which recounts the decline and tensions of the Empire—finds a new life in an era reflecting on its roots and Europe’s political destiny.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Ammianus Marcellinus (ca. 330 – after 395 AD) was a Roman historian of Greek origin, probably born in Antioch. An officer in the Roman army, he participated in campaigns under Constantius II and Julian the Apostate. His main work, the Res gestae, constitutes one of the most important sources for the history of the late Roman Empire, notable for its rigor, critical spirit, and vivid narration.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
Ammianus’s works were rediscovered in the course of the Quattrocento and first printed in Rome in 1474. In the sixteenth century there followed numerous editions, including Gryphius’ lionese (Lyon) editions, intended for an international humanist audience. Sebastian Gryphius’s workshop was one of the most active and prestigious of its time, specializing in the production of Latin classics in a portable and precise format.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
ICCU/OPAC SBN: copies registered for Ammianus Marcellinus, Lyon, Gryphius, 1552 (collation to be verified).
WorldCat: Ammianus Marcellinus, Lyon, 1552.
Adams, Catalogue of Books Printed on the Continent of Europe, A-1110 (Ammianus, Gryphius editions).
USTC (Universal Short Title Catalogue): records for Lyonese editions of 1552.
Graesse, Trésor de livres rares, I, p. 122.
Brunet, Manuel du libraire, I, col. 283.
Catalogues of BnF and British Library for the sixteenth-century editions of Ammianus.