C. Crispi Sallustii Catilinaria et Jugurthina Bella.

Sallust

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Paris: Didot, Firmin, 1819. Folio. (vii), 217pp. Printed with great clarity and precision, this is an impressive large-format edition of Sallust's "Catiline" and "Jugurtha," the earliest historical monographs. Includes extant fragments of his other works and an index. Firmin Didot was the younger son of Didot l'Ainé, who revolutionized type design in the eighteenth century. His international reputation was such that Benjamin Franklin sent his grandson to learn printing from Didot, and the boy engraved his first punch under the tutelage of the young Firmin. Firmin Didot himself, influenced by the strong contrast between thick and thin lines of his father's matrices, cut the famous types used by Didot in the early nineteenth century. He was also a Latin scholar and translator. Light foxing and occasional toning to pp. 200-217, else fine in early dark-blue paper boards, carefully re-backed in cloth, with original spine laid-down. Lower corners bumped. Gilt rolls and red leather lettering piece on spine, which show slight chipping. (Item ID: 11006)