Name: The First Printed Edition of Isidore of Seville's 'Etymologies'
Author: Isidore of Seville

The Sunderland Collection

This is the first book printed in Günther Zainer's roman type: he had previously used it in a broadside calendar printed at the end of 1471. The rubrication of this copy, with its red and green initials, Maiblumen infill and exuberant flourishes, is characteristic of late-fifteenth-century Augsburg illumination. Stylistically, it recalls the decoration of several works from the press of Johann Schüssler, Augsburg's second printer, suggesting the same rubricator. Zainer’s decision to add woodcuts to his publication was initially opposed by the Augsburg woodworkers' guild until Zainer contracted them for the work.

This copy of the 'Etymologies', published 19 November 1472, contains the first printed world map in Europe. T-O maps often appear in medieval copies of the 'Etymologies', rendered carefully within the text or in the margins, drawn by monks and students studying his words on the layout of the continents in Book XIV of the 'Etymologies'.

In addition to the T-O map, wind and climate diagrams, the woodcut illustrations in this book include: diagrams of trees of consanguinity (which maps familial blood relations and establishes 'six degrees of separation'), the four elements, the four seasons, the microcosm, and a concordance between the Julian and Egyptian calendars.

This is a rare copy of the 'Etymologies' of Isidore of Seville, which is often referred to as the first encyclopaedia. In addition to geography, the work contains information on a very wide range of topics, including mathematics, astronomy, meteorology, botany, human anatomy, medicine, architecture, and more. The 'Etymologies' was a hugely influential source of knowledge for many centuries. In fact, Isidore was so admired for the breadth and depth of his knowledge that he was named the 'Patron Saint of the Internet' by Pope John Paul II (1997).

This copy of the 'Etymologies' is in original hand-colour. The use of stunning rubrication – applying red highlights by hand to significant printed capital letters – shows the intersection between handwritten manuscripts and the newly invented printing press. The T-O map illustrating this page is the earliest printed European world map. In traditional T-O format, it shows Asia at the top, Europe on the left and Africa on the right, surrounded and divided by oceans and rivers.

This book is a printed version of Isidore of Seville’s most famous work, the 'Etymologies', originally composed around the seventh century. Considered the first encyclopaedia, it was a primary resource for medieval map makers and thousands of manuscript copies survive. His work provided medieval and Renaissance scholars with a vast wealth of ancient scientific knowledge and lexicography, establishing itself as one of the main routes for the transmission of classical learning to the Middle Ages. In addition to geography, the work also explores mathematics, astronomy, meteorology, geology, botany, agriculture, human anatomy, medicine, shipbuilding, architecture, and other technological subjects.

Isidore's work retained much authority into the sixteenth century, but early printed works - such as the present edition - mark the coming twilight of his influence. As experimental science grew in popularity through the Early Modern era, with that, new methods and technologies replaced classical texts as primary tools to explore the created world.

T-O map: the first printed map

Rubricated letters

Illuminated letter

Circular diagram, Lineage tree

Lineage Tree

Illuminated letters

First printed edition of Isidore of Seville’s enormously influential encyclopaedia, a pioneer of this genre. As a printed book, this is also a forerunner, containing the first printed map on a T-O projection, and the first text to use Günther Zainer's roman type. This copy is enriched with contemporary colouring and rubrication - specifically rubricator's initials - the use of a contrasting red for emphasis.