Page:History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the Catholic Vol. III.djvu/350

324 324 AFRICAN EXPEDITION OF XIMENES. II. PART various languages required, in his founderies at Alcala. '' The work when completed occupied six volumes folio ;'*' the first four devoted to the Old Testament, the fifth to the New ; the last containing a Hebrew and Chaldaic vocabulary, with other elementary treatises of singular labor and learning. It was not brought to an end till 1517, fifteen years after its commencement, and a few months only before the death of its illustrious projector. Alvaro Gomez relates, that he had often heard John Broccario, the son of the printer,^^ say, that when the last sheet was struck off, he, then a child, was dressed in his best attire, and sent with a copy to the cardinal. The latter, as he took it, raised his eyes to Heaven, and devoutly offered up his thanks, for being spared to the completion of this good work. Then, turn- ing to his friends who were present, he said, that " of all the acts which distinguished his adminis- tration, there was none, however arduous, better entitled to their congratulation than this."^^ ''0 Quintanilla, Archetvpo, lib. '^ Gomez, De Rebus Gestis, fol. 3, cap. 10. " 38. ''I The work was originally put The part devoted to the Old Tes- at the extremely low price of six tament contains the Hebrew origin- ducats and a half a copy. (Bihlia al with the Latin Vulgate, the Scp- Polyglotta Compluli, Prsefix.) As tuagint version, and the Chaldaic only t500 copies, however, were paraphrase, witii Latin translations struck off, it lias become 'exceed- by the Spanish scholars. The ingly rare and valual)le. According New Testament was printed in the to Brunei, it has been sold as high original Greek, with the Vulgate as jG63. of Jerome. After the completion 4^ " Induslria et solerti^ honora- of this work, the cardinal projected bilis viri Arnaldi Guillclmi de Bro- an edition of Aristotle on the same carlo, artis impressoris Magistri. scale, which was unfortunately de- Anno Domini 1517. Julii die de- feated, by his death. Ibid., fol. 39. cimo." Biblia Polyglotta Complu- ti. Postscript to 4th and last part of Vetus Test.