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 FIFTEENTH CENTURY.

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uneeitain as to the exact time of his appearing. Hsttaiie mentions some bibles, and a lew other books, printed here without printers' names.

1470. Anthony Zarot introduced the art of printing into Milan. He is esteemed the inren- tor of sifnatures, or alphabetical letters at the bottom of ereiy sheet, as a guide to the binder : he placed them at first under the last line of the page; but alerwaids he put them at the end of the last line. This whim of his, however, was not followed by any other printer, nor by himself kmg ; for he soon returned to the first method. Antnors are divided in opinion as to the exact date when ^gnatures were first introduced in any work. It appears they were inserted in an edhion of Terence, by Zarot, in 1470 ; Chevillier sajs, they were first introduced by Zarot in 1476, in a work entitled PUatea de Uturit. An edition of BaUi Lectura luper Codic, jrc. was printed at Venice, by John de Cologne and Jo. Manthen de Oheiretzem, in 1474 ; it is in folio, and the dg- natores are not introduced till the middle of the book, and then continued throughout. Abbe Reve ascribes the discove^ to John Koelhofi', at Co- logne, in 1472. They were used at Paris, in 1476; and by Caxton, in 1480. Zarot's main pnmnce was printing of classics, which he exe- ented with extraordinary dilip;ence and accuracy. He is said to be the first person that printed missals or mass-books for the use of the clergy. The chief corrector of Zarot's press was the fa- vmcm Peter Justin Philelpbus, a person of learn- ing and great application, especially in correcting the faulty editions which were procured at Rome and other places. His next corrector was the ieamed P. Stephen Dulcinio, prebend of Scala, who teDs the marquis of Palavicino, to whom he dedicates the second edition of Manilius, in 1499, that he had corrected that author in above three hondied places, and cleared it from the barba- risms, and other faults of the transcribers, as far as it was possible to be done in a very corrupt and mutilated copy. Zarot continued printing till the year 1500, when he is supposed to have died. 1470. The art of printing was begun in the city of Paris by Ulric Gering, and his two asso- ciate, Martin Crantz and Michael Friburger. These Germans, at the instance of Ouillaume Kchet and Jean de la Pierre, came to settle at Pkris ; and had an establishment assigned them in die college of the Sorbonne ; of which society their two patrons were distinguished members.

CheviUier enumerates eleven distinct books pinted by Gering, Crantz, and Friburger, in the Soibonne, in the years 1470, 1471, and 1472. The list is increased by Panzer to eighteen. Tbese constitute what is called the first series of

fGering's impressions ; of which bibliographers ivetfae precedency to Gamarini Pergamemu 'putolartaa opui. The works of these printers are generally without date ; though Panzer ex- lubtts some exceptions. What is more remark- able, none of them are printed in the Gothic chaiacter. On the contrary, they are in a hand- fame Roman letter, formed in imitation of the cfaaiacters of the Augustan age, as exemplified

in the medab and other monuments of those classic times. They are all printed in the same large and bold Roman character, with types cast from the same matrices. Some letters indeed appear imperfect ; and some words but half printed, and afterwards finished by the pen. There are no capitals. The initial letter of each book or chapter is omitted, such omissions being intended to be supplied by the ingenuity of the illuminatoT. They abound in abbreviations ; which is the case «ith ancient impressions in general. The paper is not of a fine whiteness, but strong, and well sized. The ink is of a glossy blackness : and some instances of red letters occur occasionally. Some of these works commence on the/u/to verm. They are all with- out titles, cyphers, and signatures.

Louis Xl. having thus witnessed the intro- duction into his own capital of an art so impor- tant to literature, had afterwards the gratification of seeing it carried to a considerable degree of perfection, by several industrious and skillful ^ographers, whom he honoured with his special favour. Whatever might be the political cha- racter of this monaroh, he appears to have been a friend and protector of learning. For literary works he entertained also a particular predilec- tion. He caused to be brought from Fontain- bleau to Paris, all the manuscripts which his predecessors Charles V. and VI.* had been at great pains in coUecting. He established in the Louvre a spacious and noble library, the super- intendance of which he gave to Robert Gaguin general of the order of the Holy Trinity. It be- came one of the principal objects of his magnifi- cence to augment it as much as possible, both with manuscripts and printed books. As a fur- ther proof of his zeal and earnestness in such pursuits,it is recorded, thathaving been informed that the sendemen of the faculty of medicine of Paris, hM in their possession an original manu- script of Rasis a celebrated Arabian physician of the tenth century, he directed that part of his silver plate should be pledged as a security, in order to obtain permission of having it transcribed, and the king was obliged to procure a nobleman to join with him as surety in a deed, by which he bound himself to return it under a consider- able forfeiture. At this period a few manuscript volumes were deemed of sufiicient value to form thegreater part of a daughter's marriage portion.

'the early typographens we are told, met with great opposition in the commencement of their labours at Paris from scribes or copyists, whose gains were likely to be diminishea, or rather almost annihilated, by the introduction of the

of thla time was Alain Chartier a native of Normaod;, and secretary to Charles V. VI. and VII. kings of France. His extraonlinarr talents piocoredblm great esteem, both at court and throogboat the vhole kingdom.
 * The moM esteemed Frencb poet, Uitorian, and orator,

He is said to have been one of the nj^liest persons of his age. Yet Margaret of Scotland, wife of the daaphin oS France, aftenraids Loiis XI. finding him asleep in an l^nItment tbrongb wlUch she chanced to pass, kissed his lips : alledging, as Pasqoler relates, that she did not con- sider herself to have kissed the man who was so ugly and deformed in his whole person ; bat the month from which had issoed so many golden czptessloos.

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