Beinecke MS 611
Italy, s. XV 2
Aesop, in two Latin translations

1. f. 1r-v	Magnifico domino Laurentio Lavina Rinucius felicitatem. Ad duo potissimum 
nititur genus humanum, divitias scilicet et sapientiam ... Vale, atque meliori particul@ ut 
intendas (sicut a parvulo fecisti) in diem studiosius ac ardentius te hortor.

2. ff. 1v-2v	Alia epistola. Reverendissimo in Christo patri et domino suo precipuo, domino 
A(ntonio) tituli sancti Crysogoni presbitero cardinali, Rinutius se commendat. Quo tempore 
sanctissimus dominus noster Nicolaus pontifex quintus, dum erat in minoribus ... non dubito quin 
hunc Esopum nostrum, tuo hortatu factum Latinum, non modo ut hospitem, sed ut familiarem 
carum habebit. Vale.

3. ff. 2v-39r	Vita Esopi Latina per Rinucium facta ad reverendissimum patrem et dominum, 
dominum Thomam, tituli sanct@ Susann@ presbiterum cardinalem, hodie Nicolaum papam 
quintum, feliciter incipit. [f. 3r :] Prohemium. Novas nimirum merces, reverendissime pater, sed 
haud ignava opum pondera nuper e Grecia in Latinum convexi, vitam scilicet Esopi fabulatoris 
clarissimi ac eius fabulas ... [f. 4r :] Argumentum. Vitam Esopi fabulatoris clarissimi his 
longioribus noctibus simul cum fabulis feci Latinam ... Esopi fabulatoris clarissimi vita incipit. 
Qui per omnem vitam vit@ studiosissimus fuit, is fortuna servus, natione Frigius,ex Ammonio 
Frigi@ pago, fuit Esopus, vir preter c@teros faciem longe deformis ... Preterea principes Greci@ 
ac provinci@ presides, audita morte Esopi, Delphos profecti, habita diligentius inquisitione, 
dignis suppliciis ulti sunt eos qui mortis Esopi auctores fuerunt.Vita Esopi finit foeliciter. 
Sequntur fabule.

4. f.39v	Vit@ Esopi commentarium super fabulis instar argumenti incipit. Esopus fabulator 
clarissimus natione quidem Frigius, fortuna vero servus, colore niger ac facie supra modum 
deformis ... Nam imprimis fabulam narrat, tum quid fabula significet compendiosius exponit, 
atque ordinem alphabeti in Greco secutus, qui in Latino sermone servari non potest, hinc sumit 
initium.

5. ff. 40r-66v	Incipiunt fabule, et primo [these words on f. 39v] de aquila et vulpe. Aquila et 
vulpes conflata inter se amicitia in proximo habitare constituunt, firmiorem amicitiam ex frequenti 
conversatione fore putantes ... [De viro et uxoribus ] ...  Fabula significat quod nulla melior 
sanus [l. salus] senibus existit quam feminis carere et maxime iunioribus, nisi penitus obrui se 
velint.

6. f. 67r	Totius operis anacephaleosis. Habes vitam pariter et fabulas Esopi fabulatoris 
eximii, beatissime pater, per me nuper verbis Latinis translatas ... Sed ut ait poeta noster eximius : 
Et iam tempus equum fumantia solvere colla. Vita Esopi una cum fabulis per Rinucium e Greco in 
Latinum translata finit feliciter. Laus Deo. Amen.	f. 67v blank

Artt. 1-6: Aesop (Aesopus, 6th cent. before C.), Vita et fabulae, Latin translation by Rinuccio da 
Castiglione (Rinucius Aretinus, c. 1395 - after 1456). Same text as in the incunable editions 
Rome, c. 1475 (GKW 336), c. 1485 (GKW 342) and 1487 (GKW 343). The prefaces are to 
Lorenzo Lavina (art. 1), Antonio de la Cerda (d. 1459, art. 2) and Tommaso Parentucelli (the 
later Pope Nicholas V, 1447-1455, art. 3).

7. f. 68r-69r	Prefatio fabularum Esopi eiusdem materi@ cum precedentibus sed divers@ 
traductionis. Respicienti mihi @tatis pristin@ viros et eorum mores crebra usurpatione repetenti, 
qu@ domi studia habuerint, que belli facinora gesserint ... Nunc autem libellum istum, queso, ita 
suscipias, ut in eo si quid forte dignum inveneris, Victorino prestantissimo viro id omne 
contribuas.

Preface to art. 8, addressed to Giovanni Francesco Gonzaga, Marquis of Mantua (d. 1444).

8. ff. 69r-100r		De vulpe et aquila. Vulpes et aquila amicitiam inierant. Propinquas igitur 
ponere sedes statuerunt, fundamentum sibi amiciti@ consuetudinem iudicantes ... [De pecudibus 
et pastore.] ...  Fabula docet nonnullos homines ignotis et alienis hominibus prodesse, 
familiaribus vero et benefactoribus officere videmus. Finis. Laus Deo. M CCCC XVII [this fancy 
date written on erasure by a later hand].

Artt. 7-8: Aesop, Fabulae, Latin translation by Ognibene Leoniceno (Omnibonus Leonicenus, 
1412-1481). Incunable editions: Venice, c. 1470/1 (GKW 333) and Brescia, 1492 (GKW 334).


Paper, ff. I + 102 + II, 210 x 145 mm. In-4ø folding. Watermarks: Briquet 2472??; var. Briquet 
7918??; other (scissors and scale). 

I-VI 10 (ff. 1-60), VII 8 (- 8, blank,  ff. 61-67), VIII-IX 10 (ff. 68-87), X 8 (ff. 88-95), XI 8 (- 8, 
blank; the right order is: ff. 97, 96, 98-102). Horizontal catchwords in the lower right corner, 
sometimes lost due to the trimming of the book. There are two sections: (I) quires I-VII, artt. 1-6; 
(II) quires VIII-XI, artt. 7-8.

Board ruling for one column; in Section I for 24 lines below top line, type 33, 144 x 73 mm.;  in 
Section II almost invisible, for 25 lines below (?) top line, c. 150 x c. 78 mm.

Copied by two hands: Section I in unusual Humanistica Cursiva Libraria with the features of  
Humanistica Semitextualis; Section II in Humanistica Cursiva Libraria; the latter scribe begins his 
copy with the invocation "[Ihesus] Maria".

Pale red headings in Section II only (the headings in Section I are in black ink). Pale red 
paragraph marks. 2- or 3-line pale red plain or slightly decorated initials, with guide-letters in the 
left margin.

Binding s. XVIII: half leather over cardboard, the paper covers decorated with a lozenged 
pattern of black and red dots. Gold-tooled spine with brown leather title-label with gold-tooled 
inscription "ESOPI FABBUL. ***7".

There are Nota-marks and marginal corrections and notes (a very extensive one on f. 37r). In art. 
3 a few marginal notes partially in Greek (the Greek letters in pale red). Belonged in the 
eighteenth century to Iohannes Bianchinus (signature at top of f. 1r). Library of St. Joseph's 
Seminary, Dunwoodie, Yonkers, New York. Purchased 12 Oct. 1979 from Laurence Witten on 
the Edwin J. Beinecke Fund, the Chauncey Brewster Tinker Fund and the David Wagstaff 
Memorial Fund.

Bibliography: Faye and Bond, p. 414.
Shailor, "Acquisitions", p. 98.

Albert Derolez

R 04.06.08