Ailianou ta heuriskomena hapanta. Claudii Aeliani praenestini pontificis et sophistae, qui Romae sub imperatore Antonio Pio vixit aut Meliphtongus ab orationis suauitate dognominatus, opera, quae extant, omnia

First edition from this publisher. Printer's device of Andreas Gesner on title page and on verso of final leaf; this device also appearing on verso of the leaf preceding the index. Bilingual edition with double-column printing, Greek on one side, Latin translation on the other; the two Greek columns form the middle of the book. Edition produced by Conrad Gesner, celebrated Swiss naturalist, printed by Andreas Gesner and published by Hans Jakob Gesner. At colophon: Tiguri per Andream Gesnerum f. et Iacobum Gesnerum fratres. The translations from Greek are by Theodore Gaza (1400-1475), Sebastian Guldenbeck (died 1565) and Pierre Gilles (1490-1555).
The De militaribus text is illustrated with several in-text figures, including a large double-page plate (military camp). Note also the fine historiated initials.
Armorial copy with the arms of the University of Paris, on upper cover: three fleur-de-lys, on lower cover two crossed quills.
Full brown sheep binding of the 17th century. Raised band spine richly decorated (gilding partly faded). One title-label in red morocco, a second in brown morocco. Cracked joints with various lacks. Headcaps worn. Corners bumped. Title page reinforced on verso at margin. An old paper strip in the middle on first leaves. Leaf 605 restored at margin.
Edition that gathers the works of Claudius Aelianus, Roman orator and historian writing in Greek, died 235. Only two of Aelian's works survive, On the Nature of Animals (De natura animalium) in 17 books, which is a natural history book, the author citing 70 species of mammals, 109 species of birds, about fifty reptiles and approximately 130 fish (Pierre Gilles and Conrad Gesner are the commentators). Aelian's second work is entitled Miscellaneous History (Variae historiae), a collection of anecdotes on highly varied subjects (Commentator: Justus Vultejus). The edition also provides a third text by Aelian, De Militaribus, but Claudius Aelianus is not actually the author; it is by Aelian the Tactician, a Greek writer who lived a century earlier, but who was only identified in the 19th century; his treatise on tactics is most valuable, being an exposition on the Macedonian army in the Hellenistic period. This treatise would enjoy great success during the Renaissance, from its first Latin translation in 1487 by Theodore Gaza, which Gesner's edition adopts in a presentation by Robortello dating from 1552. The works of Claudius Aelianus are actually compilations of curious anecdotes extracted from ancient authors, but have the merit of informing us about many rare authors who have disappeared. This type of work would furthermore be abundantly copied and plagiarized during the Renaissance, notably by Polydore Vergil, The Book of the Inventors of Things which also gathers knowledge in all fields in the anecdotal style.
Finally, the work, eager to be absolutely exhaustive on the Roman author, also assembles Aelian's correspondence that has come down to us: Epistolæ rusticæ, in a translation by Guldenbeck.