Joseph Lang, *Polyanthea nova* [1607]

Title: *Polyanthea nova*, that is, a collection of the most celebrated sayings—both Greek and Latin—adorned with the sweetest flowers.

Author: Joseph Lang (Langius) (c. 1570–c. 1615) [Alsatian humanist, philologist, and mathematician; professor at Freiburg im Breisgau], based on a compilation by Domenico Nani Mirabello, Bartholomaeus Amantius, and Franciscus Tortius.

Publisher: Frankfurt, at the expense of Lazarus Zetzner, bookseller; printed by Matthias Becker.

Year of publication: 1607.

Format: 33 cm.

Volume: [8], 1257, [3] pp.

Binding: Contemporary leather binding.

“Polyanthea” was the most famous compendium of quotations for preachers, orators, and teachers of rhetoric in the early modern period. The original version of this encyclopedia of maxims was published in 1503 in Savona by the Italian humanist Domenico Nani Mirabelli. Subsequent publishers, including Bartholomaeus Amantius and Franciscus Tortius, expanded it throughout the 16th century. Joseph Lang thoroughly revised it and significantly expanded it as “Polyanthea nova” (1604). He enriched the entries with maxims, apophthegms, proverbs, examples, emblems, hieroglyphs, and fables. He organized the material so that it would be easy to find a quotation on any topic. Between 1503 and 1681, the work had approximately forty editions in Paris, Basel, Lyon, Cologne, and Frankfurt. The Frankfurt edition from 1607 presented here was published by Lazarus Zetzner. He was a Strasbourg bookseller, known primarily for his edition of *Theatrum Chemicum*, a seminal collection of alchemical writings.

Joseph Lang was born in Kaysersberg, Alsace—hence his nickname “Caesaremontanus.” He was educated at a Protestant gymnasium and academy in Strasbourg, where he earned a Master of Philosophy degree in 1584. In 1599, he took up a chair in mathematics and physics there. In 1604, he converted to Catholicism and moved to Freiburg im Breisgau as a professor of mathematics and Greek. Before his death, he also earned a doctorate in medicine. His compilations—“Adagia,” “Anthologia,” and “Polyanthea”—remained in use throughout the 17th century.

Provenance: old annotations on the title page; scattered pen notes within the text—evidence of active use of the volume.

This is a monumental folio, one of the most important encyclopedias of humanistic knowledge of its era, in a contemporary binding. A must-have for scholars of rhetoric and humanistic culture, historians of 17th-century books, and collectors of early Frankfurt prints.

The text block is complete. The title page is damaged and has been entirely pasted onto new paper. Margin and corner losses on approximately 45 leaves have been reinforced with paper; the last leaf, with numerous losses affecting the text, has also been reinforced. Traces of water damage and occasional mold from the beginning to p. 200, from p. 300 to 1055, and from 1137 to the end. Contemporary leather binding, glued at the joints; a patch of different leather at the headband, with losses and scuffs; no clasps remain.

Catalog ID: 14445-33-B-Y