[Colophon:] Venice: Bernardinus Bindonus, 1537. First edition, an extraordinary copy of the greatest importance, signed and heavily annotated by the celebrated English polymath John Dee (1527-1608), and later acquired and signed by John Winthrop Jr. (1606-76), the first Governor of Connecticut, whose library was one of the most important in..... More
Item #5650

Maros Vásárhely [now Târgu Mureș, Romania]: Joseph and Simon Kaili, at the press of the Reform College, 1832-1833. First edition, the finest and most complete copy ever likely to come to the market, of “the most extraordinary two dozen pages in the history of thought” (Halsted), containing the independent foundation..... More
Item #4659

Leiden: Pieter van der Aa, 1690. First edition, first issue, of Huygens’ path-breaking exposition of his wave theory of light; this is an extremely rare large paper presentation copy inscribed by Huygens to Pierre Daniel Huet. Huygens had developed his theory of light in 1676 and 1677, and “completed the..... More
Item #5928

[Colophon:] Venice: Paganinus de Paganinis, 10-20 November 1494. First edition, first issue (see below), very rare, this is a remarkable copy in entirely original condition and with a distinguished provenance, having been in the famous Giustiniani family from publication to the present day. The Summa is a work of enormous..... More
Item #6284

Augsburg: [Philipp Ulhart the Elder], 1558. First edition, of the greatest rarity, of “one of the most impressive scientific treatises of the Middle Ages … the first extant treatise on the properties and applications of magnets” (DSB), containing the earliest description of the pivoted compass – this work was published..... More
Item #6212

Lyons: Jean de Tournes, 1552. Second edition of the Fabrica, the Norman-Freilich copy in a superb fanfare binding for Pietro Duodo. “The work of Andreas Vesalius of Brussels constitutes one of the greatest treasures of Western civilization and culture. His masterpiece, the Humani Corporis Fabrica … established with startling suddenness..... More
Item #5373