Erasmus - Testamentum Novum [Rare female printer] - 1553

FIGURATIVE EDITION OF THE WIDOW REGNAULT, MATRIARCH OF 3 GENERATIONS OF TYPOGRAPHY-LOVING WOMEN
A jewel of French humanist typography of the sixteenth century, this edition of Testamentum Novum printed in Paris in 1553 preserves the charm of books intended for private reading. The woodcut apparatus, scattered along the gospel text, guides the reader through a continuous visual journey that is intensely narrative. Particularly interesting is the typographic context: the edition was produced by the widow of François Regnault, Madeleine Boursette, one of the first women printers active in French publishing history, followed by her daughter and granddaughter, who maintained the female leadership of the typography up to the cusp of the new century.
MARKET VALUE
Illustrated editions of Erasmus’s New Testament printed in Paris in the mid-16th century are especially sought after when they preserve decorative bindings of high quality, thanks to the quality of the woodcuts and the historical importance of the Regnault production. Similar copies typically range from 1,000 to 3,000 euros depending on completeness, binding, and condition.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Frontispiece with woodcut printer’s mark. Numerous woodcuts in the text. First leaves with old restorations to the inner margin and reinforcement traces; presence of humidity stains and scattered foxing in the text. Ownership stamp on the frontispiece and an old ex libris applied to the flyleaf. Text in Latin printed in crisp type. Back binding in full Moroccan leather with a straight grain, spine richly decorated in gold. An elegant copy with strong visual presence despite the missing leaves. Missing leaves C8, D1, D8, E1 and all leaves after Y4. Leaves 370.
Interesting ex libris on the flyleaf. The crest is strongly neo-Gothic, typical of 19th-century Romantic-era heraldic revival taste.
Main elements:
Giant crosses and lilies: recalling chivalric religious orders - Eight-pointed stars: symbol of truth, spiritual light and guidance. Upper flowers: allusion to purity - Motto “Veritas”: Truth as spiritual foundation.
The whole suggests an ex libris belonging to the Franco-Belgian milieu of the 19th century, influenced by French medievalism in the post-Romantic period.
In old books, with a centuries-long history, some imperfections may be present, not always noted in the description. This listing contains AI Visualizations. Refer to the original photographs to verify the actual condition of the item. The images are an integral part of the description.

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Testamentum Novum.
Parisiis, apud viduam Francisci Regnault via Iacobaea, 1553.
Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
This edition belongs to the long European fortune of Erasmus’s New Testament, the text that helped redefine the relationship between philology, faith, and biblical reading in the 16th century. The small format and the rich presence of woodcuts clearly show its private and meditative purpose, conceived as a personal reading object but also as a refined artifact.

Particularly important is the role of the printer Madeleine Boursette, widow of François Regnault. Although the title page simply says “widow,” the printer’s mark bears her initials. Boursette was one of the first French women printers and inaugurated a true female editorial dynasty, continued by her daughter and granddaughter. The volume thus acquires further historical interest as a testimony to the presence of women in Renaissance European publishing.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466-1536) was the most influential European humanist of the Renaissance. A philologist, theologian, and widely disseminated author, he promoted a critical rereading of Scripture grounded in recovering the original Greek sources and the use of philological reason. His editorial activity and his thought profoundly shaped 16th-century religious culture.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
Regnault workshops were among the main centers of Parisian religious printing in the 16th century. After François Regnault’s death, the activity was continued by the widow Madeleine Boursette, a pivotal figure in the history of European women’s publishing. The small illustrated editions of the New Testament circulated widely among clergymen, students, and learned readers, but their intensive daily use makes surviving figurative copies relatively rare today.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
Adams, H.M., Catalogue of Books Printed on the Continent of Europe 1501-1600 in Cambridge Libraries.
Renouard, Philippe, Imprimeurs et libraires parisiens du XVIe siècle, Paris.
Baudrier, Henri, Bibliographie lyonnaise.
Brunet, Jacques-Charles, Manuel du libraire et de l’amateur de livres, II.
Graesse, Johann Georg Theodor, Trésor de livres rares et précieux, III.
Bezzel, Irmgard, Erasmusdrucke des 16. Jahrhunderts.
McMurtrie, Douglas C., The Book: The Story of Printing & Bookmaking.
USTC – Universal Short Title Catalogue, Erasmus editions, Paris, Regnault, 1553.
CERL Thesaurus, entries “Regnault, François” and “Boursette, Madeleine”.
BnF – Catalogue général.
WorldCat – international inventories of Regnault editions.
ICCU / EDIT16 – catalogs of 16th-century French editions present in Italian libraries.
Studi sulla tipografia femminile francese del XVI secolo.