Dialogus creaturarum

Dialogus creaturarum optime moralizatus, nowadays usually done in the literature as Dialogus creaturarum, is the title of a printed in the incunabula collection of 122 Fables in Latin, from various ancient sources and is presented in the form of dialogues.

The collection and its dissemination

Each of the fables of the Dialogus creaturarum opened in the dialogue of anthropomorphic creatures, from the sun, moon and stars over the elements, to plants and animals, an event and ends with a moral explanation. It covers general human questions that will be answered according to the Bible, the Church Fathers or of classical philosophy. In the last two fables also people have their say. The author of the collection originated in 1400 is unknown; the basis of the information in some printing were Maynus de Mayneriis ( Mayno de ' Mayneri, a Milanese doctor, † 1376 ) and Nicolaus Pergamenus / Pergaminus ( Bergamo ) suspected.

The collection was provided in 1480 in Latin and printed in Gouda with woodcuts by Gerard Leeu; a Dutch version issued Leeu 1481. More editions of his Dialogus printed Leeu 1486 and 1491 in Antwerp, where he had moved his Offizin 1484. Also in 1481 appeared an edition in Cologne. By December 20, 1483 Johann Snell dated in Stockholm its pressure of the collection; it is provided with colored woodcut illustrations and was the first book printed in Sweden. Between 1500 and 1511 more prints in Geneva, Paris and Lyon appeared.

The Lübeck printer Hans van Ghetelen used in the printing of the Reynke de vos in 1498 some woodcuts from the series of the Stockholm edition, which proved to be laterally inverted copies of illustrations Gerard Leeu had used for his Dialogus prints.

Expenditure

  • Dialogus creaturarum. Konrad Winters, Cologne 24 X 1481 ( digitized ).
  • Dialogus creaturarum moralisatus. = Dialog of the creatures on moral action. Latin - German. Edited, translated and commented by Birgit Esser and Hans -Jürgen Blanke. King & Neumann, Würzburg 2008, ISBN 978-3-8260-3621-7.
  • Dyalogus creaturarum moralizatus. 1483rd = Skapelsens sedelärande samtal. 1483rd Kommentarer: John Bernström; Översätting: Monica Hedlund. Michaelisgillet, Uppsala 1983, ISBN 91-7021-456-5 ( facsimile equipped with woodcuts Edition of Johann Snell, Stockholm 1483, with Swedish commentary and translation ).
Morality Gesamtkatalog der Wiegendrucke
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