1628 Rare Book - Georgii Buchanani - Scottish Poems by George Buchanan

Author: George Buchanan.
Title: Georgii Buchanani Scoti, Poemata quae extant. Editio postrema.
Publisher: Lugduni Batavorum: Ex officina Elzeviriana, 1628.
Language: Text in Latin.
Size: 4x2.5 inches.  
Pages: 561 pages.
Binding: Good contemporary full calf leather binding, framed in double gilt fillet borders. The spine with five raised bands, gilt floral tooling within compartments, and gilt-lettered title “BVCHANANI / POEMATA.” (hinges fine, overall worn and scuffed mainly at corners - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover.  A pleasing 17th-century binding.
Content: Good content (tight and clean, rare light foxing, toning and staining - as shown, the first three leaves including the engraved title have small chips to their extreme lower outer corners not affecting the printed text or border - as shown, one blue Ex Libris ink stamp (“EX LIBRIS ... ET AMICORUM”) on an early leaf - as shown, the free marbled endpapers (front and rear) have been removed, leaving the marbled pastedowns visible - as shown).
Illustrations: Fine engraved architectural title page with portrait medallion of Buchanan flanked by putti and an ornamental cartouche; decorative initials and typographic ornaments throughout the text.

Estimate: (USD 250 – 400).

The book: A compact and elegant Elzevir printing of 1628, collecting the complete Poemata of George Buchanan, the renowned Scottish humanist, Latin poet, historian, and tutor to King James VI. This edition represents the final and most complete gathering of Buchanan’s Latin works, including his Paraphrases of the Psalms of David, tragedies Jephthes and Baptistes, and numerous lyric and epigrammatic poems, as well as versions of Euripides’ Medea and Alcestis. The engraved title page and precise Latin typography exemplify the clarity and refinement of early Elzevir craftsmanship.

The author: George Buchanan (1506 – 1582) was a Scottish scholar, poet, and reformer, among the most brilliant Latinists of the Renaissance. Educated in Paris and St Andrews, he became a prominent voice of humanism, known for his fearless criticism of tyranny and his mastery of classical form. His influence extended across Europe; in Scotland, his History of Scotland and his mentorship of the young James VI left a lasting intellectual legacy.