Extremly rare - Probier Büchlein , auff Gold, Silber, kupffer, vnd Bley - 1535
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€ 19,950
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Selected by Volker Riepenhausen
Specialist in travel literature and pre-1600 rare prints with 28 years experience.
Estimate € 55,000 - € 65,000
 | €19,950 | |
|---|---|---|
 | €1,150 | |
| €1,030 | |
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This illustrated German volume contains the anonymous 1535 *Probier Büchlein, auff Gold, Silber, kupffer, vnd Bley* and Petrus Kertzenmacher’s *Alchimia* (1570).
AI-assisted summary
Description from the seller
“Probier Büchlein, auff Gold, Silber, kupffer, vnd Bley, Auch allerlay Metall wie man die zů nutz arbayten vn Probieren soll.” 1535.
Without author. Augsburg, Heinrich Steyner.
VD16: P 4872
With title woodcut vignette and additional text woodcuts.
Additionally: „Alchimia, Das ist, Alle Farben, Wasser, Olea, Salia, und Alumina, damit mann alle Corpora, Spiritus unnd Calces Prepariert, Sublimiert unnd Fixiert, zubereyten“ 1570.
Petrus Kertzenmacher, printed by Egenolffs Erben, Frankfurt am Main.
VD16: K 780.
With several recurring woodcuts.
Extremely rare edition of a probe book from the 16th century.
The work deals with the practical testing and processing of gold, silver, copper, lead and other metals and is aimed at Mintmasters, Wardeine, goldsmiths, miners, and other professions involved in metal extraction and the testing of metals.
The work ranks among the earliest printed writings on the art of testing. The book appeared more than two decades before Georgius Agricola’s famous “De re metallica.”
The present copy is catalogued by the SLUB Dresden and the Fachtexte-Datenbank with the year 1535.
Schuh’s Bio-Bibliography of Mineralogy, however, does not list a 1535 edition in its bibliographic overview. All editions recorded there are explicitly described as “Extremely rare.”
Only very few copies of the work are documented on the international auction market. An earlier edition from the Haskell F. Norman Library was auctioned at Christie’s on 18 March 1998. The probe-book was included in a binding with another work; the volume realized a total of $90,000, with the probe-book representing the more valuable part of the volume (and the second work being incomplete). Another earlier copy was sold at Sotheby’s in December 2025 for $95,000.
The accompanying work is attributed to Petrus Kertzenmacher and counts among the rare German-language alchemical writings of the 16th century.
The book contains practical instructions for alchemical and chemotechnical procedures, including the separation of gold and silver, the preparation of colors and inks, as well as the processing of metals and precious stones.
At the beginning there are a few water stains. The remaining pages are mostly lightly speckled, mostly well preserved. The second work is uniformly lightly browned. Numerous pages show slight marginal wear.
The title page of the first work and the following leaf show, in the lower area, small to medium-sized missing portions with slight text loss. The title page also has a small missing area at the upper corner.
Leaf 57 of the first work is missing. Leaf 45 has a small to medium-sized loss outside the text in the upper margin.
Occasionally there are minimal wormholes in the lower margin outside the text.
The second work begins with leaf 10 and ends with leaf 71.
Leaf 24 has a larger tear in the middle of the page, without text loss.
Leaf 71 has a larger missing portion in the margin, outside the text.
Bound in a rubbed and used later paperboard binding. Front and back covers show material loss as well as light missing portions in the lower area. The front cover is slightly loose.
Collation: 60 (of 61) numbered pp., 1 leaf, 3 unnumbered pp.; 62 (of 79) pp., 6 unnumbered pp.
Dimensions: 14.5 x 9 cm
https://fachtexte.kallimachos.de/Probierkunst
https://mineralogicalrecord.com/ new_biobibliography/probier-b252chlein/
https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/4ELCC2LKLFTLB67PFETYSIVUVDHFWOBX
https://digital.slub-dresden.de/werkansicht/dlf/13429/9?tx_dlf%5Bdouble%5D=0&tx_dlf%5Bpagegrid%5D=1&cHash=5985bc4a56f7cf2f32125f1e526c3f13
https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2025/the-library-of-barry-yampol-a-first-selection-part-1/probier-buechlein-of-the-utmost-rarity-duveen
https://www.christies.com/en/auction/the-haskell-f-norman-library-of-science-and-medicine-part-5583/browse-lots?page=2&sortby=lotnumber
https://www.christies.com.cn/en/lot/lot-924103
https://mineralogicalrecord.com/ new_biobibliography/probier-b252chlein/
https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2025/the-library-of-barry-yampol-a-first-selection-part-2/kertzenmacher-petrus-alchimia-the-rare-fourth"
“Probier Büchlein, auff Gold, Silber, kupffer, vnd Bley, Auch allerlay Metall wie man die zů nutz arbayten vn Probieren soll.” 1535.
Without author. Augsburg, Heinrich Steyner.
VD16: P 4872
With title woodcut vignette and additional text woodcuts.
Additionally: „Alchimia, Das ist, Alle Farben, Wasser, Olea, Salia, und Alumina, damit mann alle Corpora, Spiritus unnd Calces Prepariert, Sublimiert unnd Fixiert, zubereyten“ 1570.
Petrus Kertzenmacher, printed by Egenolffs Erben, Frankfurt am Main.
VD16: K 780.
With several recurring woodcuts.
Extremely rare edition of a probe book from the 16th century.
The work deals with the practical testing and processing of gold, silver, copper, lead and other metals and is aimed at Mintmasters, Wardeine, goldsmiths, miners, and other professions involved in metal extraction and the testing of metals.
The work ranks among the earliest printed writings on the art of testing. The book appeared more than two decades before Georgius Agricola’s famous “De re metallica.”
The present copy is catalogued by the SLUB Dresden and the Fachtexte-Datenbank with the year 1535.
Schuh’s Bio-Bibliography of Mineralogy, however, does not list a 1535 edition in its bibliographic overview. All editions recorded there are explicitly described as “Extremely rare.”
Only very few copies of the work are documented on the international auction market. An earlier edition from the Haskell F. Norman Library was auctioned at Christie’s on 18 March 1998. The probe-book was included in a binding with another work; the volume realized a total of $90,000, with the probe-book representing the more valuable part of the volume (and the second work being incomplete). Another earlier copy was sold at Sotheby’s in December 2025 for $95,000.
The accompanying work is attributed to Petrus Kertzenmacher and counts among the rare German-language alchemical writings of the 16th century.
The book contains practical instructions for alchemical and chemotechnical procedures, including the separation of gold and silver, the preparation of colors and inks, as well as the processing of metals and precious stones.
At the beginning there are a few water stains. The remaining pages are mostly lightly speckled, mostly well preserved. The second work is uniformly lightly browned. Numerous pages show slight marginal wear.
The title page of the first work and the following leaf show, in the lower area, small to medium-sized missing portions with slight text loss. The title page also has a small missing area at the upper corner.
Leaf 57 of the first work is missing. Leaf 45 has a small to medium-sized loss outside the text in the upper margin.
Occasionally there are minimal wormholes in the lower margin outside the text.
The second work begins with leaf 10 and ends with leaf 71.
Leaf 24 has a larger tear in the middle of the page, without text loss.
Leaf 71 has a larger missing portion in the margin, outside the text.
Bound in a rubbed and used later paperboard binding. Front and back covers show material loss as well as light missing portions in the lower area. The front cover is slightly loose.
Collation: 60 (of 61) numbered pp., 1 leaf, 3 unnumbered pp.; 62 (of 79) pp., 6 unnumbered pp.
Dimensions: 14.5 x 9 cm
https://fachtexte.kallimachos.de/Probierkunst
https://mineralogicalrecord.com/ new_biobibliography/probier-b252chlein/
https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/4ELCC2LKLFTLB67PFETYSIVUVDHFWOBX
https://digital.slub-dresden.de/werkansicht/dlf/13429/9?tx_dlf%5Bdouble%5D=0&tx_dlf%5Bpagegrid%5D=1&cHash=5985bc4a56f7cf2f32125f1e526c3f13
https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2025/the-library-of-barry-yampol-a-first-selection-part-1/probier-buechlein-of-the-utmost-rarity-duveen
https://www.christies.com/en/auction/the-haskell-f-norman-library-of-science-and-medicine-part-5583/browse-lots?page=2&sortby=lotnumber
https://www.christies.com.cn/en/lot/lot-924103
https://mineralogicalrecord.com/ new_biobibliography/probier-b252chlein/
https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2025/the-library-of-barry-yampol-a-first-selection-part-2/kertzenmacher-petrus-alchimia-the-rare-fourth"
Details
Number of books
1
Subject
Science
Book title
Probier Büchlein , auff Gold, Silber, kupffer, vnd Bley
Author/ Illustrator
Extremly rare
Condition
Fair
Publication year oldest item
1535
Height
14.5 cm
Edition
Illustrated Edition, Other edition
Width
9 cm
Language
German
Original language
Yes
Binding/ Material
Hardback
Number of pages
246
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The seller was informed by Catawiki about documentation requirements and guarantees the following: - the object was legally obtained, - the seller has the right to sell and/or export the object, as relevant, - the seller will provide the necessary provenance information and arrange required documentation and permits/licenses, as applicable and as per local laws, - the seller will notify the buyer of any delays in obtaining permits/licenses. By bidding, you acknowledge that import documentation may be required depending on your country of residence and that obtaining permits/licenses may cause delays in the delivery of your object.
The seller was informed by Catawiki about documentation requirements and guarantees the following: - the object was legally obtained, - the seller has the right to sell and/or export the object, as relevant, - the seller will provide the necessary provenance information and arrange required documentation and permits/licenses, as applicable and as per local laws, - the seller will notify the buyer of any delays in obtaining permits/licenses. By bidding, you acknowledge that import documentation may be required depending on your country of residence and that obtaining permits/licenses may cause delays in the delivery of your object.
