Maggs Brothers (London)
[Stock catalogues, numbered series: 1141] Early printed books, 1483-1597 : continental books including items from a Fugger Library, incunabula, fine bindings, illustrated books and Greek printing
London, Maggs Brothers, 1992
(24 cm), (4) 89 (3) pp., illustrations. 163 items; priced. Publisher’s printed wrappers. - The books of Fugger provenance (Items 1-64) were obtained at a sale of the residue of the family’s library conducted by Sotheby’s, Fine Continental Books and Manuscripts, London, 5 December 1991. “All books present here have a late 18th century mss. shelf-mark, some come from the monastic library of the provost of Fulda, von Clodh, whose entire collection was incorporated into this particular Fugger collection. Some books have 18th century armorial Fugger stamps or 19th century Augsburg Fugger stamps. A few of the books are bound in the characteristically unpretentious calf bindings, executed for Marcus Fugger in Paris (items 48, 57) or are indeed bound in a very similar way (items 4, 16, 23, 51) which would suggest an ownership by Marcus Fugger. A group of Italian vernacular books is unusually bound in a very soft and pale vellum, with gilt edges, their titles written in a neat humanist hand on the covers…” (Catalogue preface). The Fugger Library had descended to the princes of Oettingen-Wallerstein, and its finest books were sold in Munich by Karl & Faber in 1933-1934. Others were sold en bloc in 1980 to Freistaat Bayern, for the benefit of Augsburg University Library.