[Law. Alciato] Convolute of 6 works by Andrea Alciato,

all published in Lyon, S. Gryphius, 1541-1546. All with woodcut printer's device at the beginning and end. Contemp. blindstamped calf with central gilt griffin and gilt corner fleurons on both boards, folio.

Some annotations in early hand on upper flyleaf and in margins. Rebacked, leather sl. edgeworn. Comprises: (1) De verborum significatione Libri quatuor. Eiusdem in tractatum eius argumenti veterum iureconsultorum commentaria. 1546; (2) Ad rescripta principum commentarii (...) de quinque pedum praescriptione. 1541; (3) In digestorum sive, pandectarum lib. XII. Qui de rebus creditis (...). 1542; (4) [Parergon] Iuris libris tres. 1543; (5) Paradoxorum ad pratum, libri sex. dispunctionum, lib, IIII (...). 1543; (6) [Parergon] Iuris libri VII posteriores. 1544. We could not trace the small griffin on the boards of our convolute; it could of course be a reference to the printer of the works, perhaps being a (very rare) inspection specimen for the customers of booksellers, printers or publishers, kept ready bound at their offices. Alternatively, it could be the device of the 16th-century owner of the book, which could by chance also be a griffin (a relatively common animal stamp on bookbindings). With a lovely provenance: all works with the owner's entry in pen of Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun (1655-1716), Scottish bibliophile, globetrotter, author of political works, member of parliament and friend of the philosopher John Locke. The greater part of the huge library (6000 books across a wide range of subjects, often bought during his travels) was sold in the 1960s. See P.J.M. Willems, Bibliotheca Fletcheriana, the extraordinary library of Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun, Reconstructed and Systematically Arranged (1999). We have a number of books with this exact owner's entry in this auction. A rare mid 16th-century convolute of the very finely printed collected works of Andrea Alciato (1492-1550), Italian humanist and lawyer, best known for his emblem books.