Abrahe Avenaris Iudei astrologi peritissimi in re Iudiciali Opera, ab excellentissimo philosopho Petro de Abano post accurata[m] castigationem in Latinum traducta (Works on Judicial Astrology by that Most Expert Jewish Astrologer Abraham ibn Ezra, Translated into Latin after Careful Corrections by that Most Excellent Philosopher Pietro d'Abano)

Venice: Peter Liechtenstein, 1507. First edition. Hardcover. Good. Small quarto. A-Z4 AA4 (blank Z4). xcvi ff. Text in double columns. Second colophon verso xci: “Venetijs: arte & ingenio solertis viri Petri Lichtenstein, 1507 pridie kal[end]as Iunias”. Woodcut lettrines. Expertly rebound to style in full chocolate brown paneled calf, ruled in gilt; spine with raised bands, lettered and tooled in gilt. Old marginalia (occasionally trimmed) and a touch of doodling. Some smudges and old ink stains. Dampstain at bottom fore-corner throughout (somewhat heavier and more extensive at several leaves). Overall, a good copy, complete with blank Z4.

(truncated) First collected edition of a systematic presentation of astrology composed by the celebrated Jewish polymath Abraham ibn Ezra. Originally written in Hebrew at Béziers between 1146 and 1148, the present compilation includes an introduction, a book on general principles, and five books on particular branches of the subject. It derives chiefly from the Latin translation made at the close of the thirteenth-century by Pietro d’Abano. The French version of 1273 upon which d’Abano’s translation is based, was also translated into Latin by Henry Bate and Arnoul de Quinquempoix (Levy & Cantera). “The presentation appears to have been planned as an integrated whole, with cross-references throughout, including references to subsequent books in the future tense. Each of the books is known in two versions, so it seems that at some point Ibn Ezra also created a revised edition of the series” (Sela).

In addition to the numerous references to matters astrological which can be found scattered throughout Ibn Ezra’s biblical commentaries, the works here collected comprise a virtual encyclopedia of judicial astrology. Their powerful influence is attested by both the survival of an extraordinary number of early manuscripts, and the wealth of citations in literature by Jewish and Christian savants throughout the early modern period. The Venetian printer Petrus Liechtenstein was active from 1498. While his list was heavy with liturgical works for export to central Europe, learned books in scientific fields comprised an important segment of his considerable production (Norton). References: Adams A-38. Cantamessa (2007) 1: 2205: “formidabile tratatto di astrologia”. Enc. Jud. 3: 792. Houzeau & Lancaster 3927: “rare”. Proctor-Isaac 12998. R. Levy and F. Cantera, The Beginning of Wisdom (Johns Hopkins Press, 1939), 14. Sarton 2.1: 145: “[Abraham ibn Ezra’s] philosophical influence was restricted to the Jewish world; to the Christians he was known mainly as an astrologer.” 3.1: 439 (Pietro d’Abano’s translations). Stillwell, The Awakening Interest in Science, 2. Thorndyke 2: 917; 927 (suggesting that the relationship between the Latin translations of d’Abano and Bate is complex). For a detailed recent discussion see: S. Sela, “Encyclopedic Aspects of Ibn Ezra’s Scientific Corpus”, in S. Harvey (ed.), The Medieval Hebrew Encyclopedias of Science and Philosophy: Proceedings of the Bar-Ilan University Conference, 158ff. (Inventory #: 48874)