Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 4.djvu/867

 DIDRON

783

DIDYMUS

was b. in Paris, 1689, and d. 1757. In 1713 he opened a bookstore on the Qviai des Grands-Augus- tins, the sign of which was "A la Bible d'or". The celebrated Abbe de Boriiis served for a time there as a clerk, after leaving the seminary. Francois Didot was a learned man, and held by his colleagues in so great esteem that he was elected to the dignity of syndic of the Booksellers' Corporation in 1735. He received his printer's charter from the king in 1754. Among the books he published should be mentioiied the "Histoiredes voyages" (20 vols., quarto), the first seventeen volumes of which are attributed to the Abb(5 Prevost.

Fr.w^'oi.s-Ambroisb Didot, b. 1730; d. 1804, suc- ceeded his father Frangois, and w.as appointed printer to the clergy in 1788. All the lovers of fine books highly appreciate the editions known as "D'Artois" (Hicueil de romans frangais, 64 vols.) and "du Dau- phin", a collection of French cla.ssics in .32 vols., ed- ited by order of Louis XVI. He also published a Bible. He invented a new printing-press, improved type-founding, and was the first to print on vellum paper.

PiBniiE-FRANfoi.s Didot, b. 1732; d. 1795, brother of the preceding, foundeil the paper factory of Essonne and made iinproveMii-nts in type-foiuiding. The most important of !iis pulilications are: " L'Imitation de Ji'sus-C'hrist" (folio), "Telemaque" (quarto), "Tal)leau de L'Empiro Ottoman" (folio). One of his daughters married Beniardin de Saint-Pierre.

Henki DiDOT,b. 1765, d. 1852,sonof Pierre-Frangois, made a name as engraver, founder, and (Miginc-maker. When si.Kty-six years old, he engraved the micro- scopic type vi'hich was used for the editions of the "Maximes" of La Rochefoucauld and Horace's works. This type was so small that, to cast it, he had to invent a new mould which he called jmb/amati/pe (181'J), because it founded one hundred letters at a time. He engraved the tisxiijniit'i, the paper money used during the French Revolution.

Saint-Leoer Didot, b. 1767; d. 1829, second son of Pierre-Francois, tlevoted his attention to paper- making in the famous factory of Essoime, and, after ten years of patient experiment, invented a machine to make "endless" paper.

Edoiiard Didot, b. 1797; d. 1825, son of Saint- L<^ger, made a good translation of John.son's "Lives of the Poets", which was printed by Jules Didot.

Pierre Didot, b. 170; d. 18,53, eldest son of Fran- cois- Ambroise, ol)tained a gold medal at the exhibi- tion of 1798, for his edition of Virgil. By order of the Cjovenanent, his presses were established in the lyouvre, where they remained during the Consulate. The celebrated Louvre editions are Virgil, Racine, Horace, and La Fontaine. The board of examiners of the 1806 exhil)itin pronounced the Racine edition "the most perfect typographical production of all ages". Pierre Didot was also a poet and transl.ited in verse the fourth book of Oeorgics, the first books of Horace's Odes, and also wrote a number of original poems.

Jules Didot, b. 1794; d. 1871, son of Pierre, is famous for his invention of round-edged initials, to take the place of the sharp-edged ones. In 1825 he tiKik his printing plant to Brussels and founded the Hoy.-d Printing IIou.se.

FiRMiN Didot, b. 1764; d. 18.36, second son of Frangois-Ambroisc was the inventor of stereotypog- raphy, which entirely changed the book trade, and was the first to engrave slips of so-called "English" and roimd hand-writing. Among the works which i.ssued from his press were "Ia'x mines de Pomp^'i", " Lc pantheon T'gj-ptien" of Ch.iinpollion-Fige.ac, and "Ilistorial du jongleur", printed in Gothic type, with taibi)ieces and vignettes, like the eflilions of the fif- teenth century. In 1827, Fimiin Didot gave up busi- ness to devote himself to politics and literature. He

was a member of the Chamber of Deputies and wrote tragedies ("La Reinede Portugal", "LaMortd'Anni- bal") and essays on literary topics.

Ambroise-P'irmin Didot, eldest son of Firmin, b. 1790; d. 1876, followed first a diplomatic career and was for a time attache of the French Embassy at Constantinople. He took advantage of his position to visit the East and Greece, being the first to discover the location of Pergamacum. When Ms father re- tired in 1827, he, together with his brother Hyacinthe, took the maiiag<'rnent of the jiublisliing "business. They published "Bibliotheque des auteurs Grecs", "Bibliotheque des auteurs Latins", and "Biblio- theque des auteurs frangais", an immense collection of two hundred and fifty volumes. Their greatest work was a new edition of the "Thesaurus Gra>CiE Lingua'", of Henry Stephens, edited by Boissonade, Dindorf, and Hase (9 vols., 1855-59).

PiTON, Famillc Fimiin-lHdol (Paris, 1856); Webdf.t. Etude bionraphiqiw sur la famille drs DMot (Paris, 1864); BnuNET, Firmin Didot et sa famillc (Paris, 1870).

Louis N. Delamarre.

Didron, Adoi-phe-Napoli^:on, also called Didron atnf, arch.T2ologist, together with Viollet-le-Duc and Caumont, one of the principal revivers of Christian art in France; b. 13 March, 1806, at Hautvillers, near Reims, where his father was a collector of taxes ; d. at Paris, 13 November, 1867. After completing his early studies at the preparatory seminaries of Meaux and Reims, he went to Paris in 1826, became there a professor of history, and devoted his leisure hours to following courses of law, medicine, etc. The reading of Victor Hugo's "Notre Dame de Paris" gave him a taste for the study of the antiquities of the Middle Ages. Having been admitted to the circle of the poet in 1829, he there formed the plan of a tour in Nor- mandy, a province noted above all others for its his- toric^al buildings. His reading of the legends of the saints, his knowledge of Scripture, an<l cert,-un ab- stract notions of theology directed the young amateur to the study of iconography. In 1835 Guizot named him secretary to the committee entrusted with the publication of the unedited documents concerning the history of France. Didron publi-shed, entirely un- aided, the first four volumes of the reports of the committee. In 18.39 the portion concerning the icon- ography of the monumental monographs of the cathe- dral of Chartres w;is reserved for him. This work did not appear in complete form. In 1838 he opened a course of iconography at the Royal Library. He pub- lished (under the title of "Manuel d'Iconographie") a French version of the famous " Painters' Book of Mount Athos ", discovered there by him, and wrote the "llistoire de Dieu", the first part of a more general work. His greatest work is the review known as "Annales archdologiques", in which are to be found accounts of his travels and numerous studies in iconography. For many years Didron [luhlished in the " Univers " letters on archa'ology. He also founded a library of areha;ological literature, and finally, in 1849, constructed a glass-manufactory, which pro- duced some remarkable pieces of work and continued to exist after his death. He also produced some good examples of work from the goldsmiths' workshop which he had established in 1858, but which was short-lived.

His principal works are: "Bulletin archtologique du comity des arts et monuments" (4 vols., Paris, 1840-1847); "Histoire de Dieu, iconographie des personnes divines" (Paris, 1843); "Manuel d'Icono- graphie chr^tienne, grecque et latine" (Paris, 1845); ".'Vnnales arch^ologiques" (Paris, 1844-81). See also "Ann. arch." (1881), XXVIII, 184.

GoiLUBRMY, Didron in Ann. arch. (1868), XXV, J77-395.

R. Maehe. Didymus. See Thomas, Saint, Apostle.