Egesippo - [Post Incunable] De Rebus a Ludaeorum Principibus in Obsidione Fortiter Gestis - 1525

The Jewish War and the Shadow of Cleopatra: The Fall of Jerusalem and Divine Revenge
Refined 1525 sixteenth-century edition of 'De rebus a Iudaeorum principibus in obsidione fortiter gestis', mistakenly attributed to Egesippo but actually a Latin translation and elaboration of Flavius Josephus's 'De bello judaico'. A splendid copy with the famous architectural frontispiece engraved by Anton Woensam, inspired by models of Hans Holbein, and with historiated initials attributed to the circle of Albrecht Dürer. The copy originates from a French monastic collection with contemporary annotations, serving as a direct testimony to the editorial success of a text that, blending devotion and propaganda, was one of the most influential Christian rewritings of ancient Jewish history.
Market value
Copies of this rare edition of Eucharius Cervicornus are now highly sought after for their woodcut quality and their placement within the typographic context of Cologne. Complete and well-preserved copies generally range between 3,500 and 5,500 euros, with higher prices for copies with wide margins or documented provenance. The frontispiece by Woensam, one of the most renowned of early 16th-century Germany, significantly increases the collectible value of the volume.

Physical description and condition
Next binding in half parchment, title in gold on the spine. Architectural woodcut frontispiece with allegorical figures, friezes, and lower scene with Cleopatra. Some restored tears, water stains on the first pages, and light scattered foxing. Contemporary marginal annotations in multiple points. Pp. (2); 16nn; 154; 2nn; (2).

Full title and author
About the matters of the Jewish leaders who bravely conducted during the siege.
Colony, Eucharium of the Cervicorns, 1525.
Egesippo.

Context and Significance
The work, traditionally known as De excidio Hierosolymitano, is a free Christianized paraphrase of Flavius Josephus's De bello judaico, reworked in an apologetic and moral key. The presumed author, called Pseudo-Egesippo, remained unknown for centuries: today, scholars identify the Latin version as a product of late antiquity, probably of Ambrosian origin, intended to integrate Jewish history into the providential view of Jerusalem's fall. The 1525 edition by Cervicornus, a printer active in Cologne, fits into the lively German humanist context of the early 16th century, characterized by interest in Christian and Jewish historical sources. The engravings by Anton Woensam and the initials in Dürerian style give the volume a monumental character, with the figure of Cleopatra placed at the bottom of the frontispiece as a symbol of the decadence of earthly kingdoms.

Biography of the Author
The author identified as Egesippo is actually an apocryphal figure. The name derives from a medieval misattribution: the work was composed in Latin by an anonymous author between the 4th and 5th centuries, possibly in the environment of Saint Ambrose of Milan. The text, originally a moral and Christian adaptation of Flavius Josephus' Jewish Wars, profoundly influenced late antique ecclesiastical historiography and the theological view of the destruction of Jerusalem as divine punishment.

Printing history and circulation
Printed in Cologne in 1525 by the workshop of Eucharius Cervicornus, one of the most active in disseminating theological and historical texts, this edition is remembered for its extraordinary woodcut quality and typographical precision. The borders and allegorical figures engraved by Anton Woensam and inspired by Hans Holbein represent a pinnacle of Rhenish woodcut art. The work circulated within monastic and university circles of the Holy Roman Empire and was reprinted in subsequent German and Flemish editions in the second half of the century.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
VD16 H 3091. — Adams H 310. — Graesse II, 471. — Brunet II, 953. — Hollstein, German Engravings, Woodcuts and Etchings, vol. 31, p. 171 (Woensam). — Panzer VI, 237. — Proctor 10412.