PEROTTO. Cornucopiae linguae Latinae.

Folio. 315x214mm. Quarter calf binding from the 18th century, gilt title within a cartouche on the spine. Leaves [16], 291. Collation: A–B8 a–z8 &8 [cum]8 [rum]8 A–O5. The last blank leaf O6 is missing. Printer’s device on leaf N6v. Explicit to leaf N6r: “Nicolai peroti pontificis Sypontini eruditissimi uiri Cornucopiae seu Commentariorum linguae latinae. Venetiis, per Baptistam de Tortis, 1490 die xix. octobri”. At leaf O1-6: “In … proemium Plynii commentariolus … Ad Antonius Moretus”. Roman and Greek type. Spaces for Initials, some with guide letters. Bookplate “A. Damevino” glued to the spine and inside cover. On the lower margin of page 1, an ancient handwritten note of ownership “Est sancti Bartholomaei Astensis”. Copy with wide margins.

Rare and important third absolute edition and first with the commentary on Plinius’ Natural History. The Cornucopiae is the most important work of the famous humanist of Sassoferrato: begun as a commentary on Marziale, it turned into a vast philological repertoire of the Latin language on which Perotto worked for the rest of his life. It is a summa of humanistic knowledge, source of the lexicons of Ambrogio Calepio and Robert Estienne, rich in linguistic and erudite discussions, as well as thousands of quotations from ancient authors, in part not handed down elsewhere. In the proem, his nephew Pirro recounts that his uncle had composed the work for personal use: he allegedly copied it secretly, adding the commentary to the more obscene verses of Martial and providing it with summaries of the epigrams, as well as rubrics and indexes. 

BMC: “The Commentariolus in Plinium is here for the first time appended to it”.

Goff P290; HC 12698*; IGI 7421; Hubay(Augsburg) 1588; Bod-inc P-104; Sheppard 3854; Pr 4640; BMC V 326; BSB-Ink P-217; GW M31105.

Cfr. J.-L. Charlet, "Observations sur certaines éditions du Cornucopiae de Niccolò Perotti (1489-1500)", Res Publica Litterarum, 11 (1988), pp. 83-96.