HYGINI - [FABULAE] Hygini Quae hodie extant adcurante Joanne Scheffero (...) dissertatione de vero hujus operis auctore 1674 [GREEK MITOLOGY].

Hygini Quae hodie extant, adcurante Joanne Scheffero Argentoratensi, qui simul adjecit notas, hic admodum necessarias, cum indice verborum locutionumque rariorum, & dissertatione, de vero hujus operis auctore. Accedunt & Thomae Munckeri in fabulas Hygini Annotationes

Gaius Julius Hyginus (born c. 64 BC, died c. 17 AD) was a Roman writer and mythographer. Two works attributed to him, "Fabulae" and "De astronomia," have survived to our times.

Among modern scholars, the prevailing belief is that "Fabulae" was created by a different author. The first known edition of the work, dated 1535, was based on a manuscript dating to about 900 AD, found in the Abbey of Freising. It is likely that Jacob Micyllus, who translated it, gave it the title it is known by today and attributed the authorship to Hyginus.

Regardless of the actual authorship, the "Fabulae" is an extremely valuable source of information because of its references to Greek works that no longer exist and its full descriptions of myths. It was probably created for school use as an abridged and greatly simplified study of some 300 Greek myths, and contains the minimum knowledge that any educated Roman should have about Greek mythology.

The 1674 edition of the "Fabulae" presented here includes annotations and an index of rarer words and expressions by Joannis Schefferi Argentoratensi. He also created the several-page dissertation on the authorship of the 'Fabulae, which is included after the introduction. There is also a dissertation on the work (with its own title page) by Thomas Muncker at the end of the book.

The frontispiece with engraving shows Hyginus pointing to the busts of Greek gods placed on the shelves; including Hermes and Dionysus

Year of publication: Hamburg 1674, Ex Officina Gothofredi Schultzen; Amsterdam 1674, Apud Joannem Janssonium a Waesberge

s. [36], 338, [126], 68, frontispiece with engraving.

Format: 18 x 11 cm

Binding: period parchment/ stained page edges

Condition: complete and consistent, rusty discoloration [foxing - no harm to text], on pp. 158-159 minor ink soiling [no damage to text], no signatures or underlining in text, minimal patterning at bottom edge of last page [crayon - no damage to text], minor foreign numerical signature [pencil] on title page, foreign signatures [pencil, pen] on front pastedown, minor paint mark/maze on front pastedown, minor dry mark of former flooding on front pastedown [no damage to book interior], [PROVENANCE: on the second page an early coat of arms stamp of the University of Lviv "C.R. Bibliothecae Universitatis Leopoliensis"], cover with rubbing and discoloration/soiling, minor cracking/splitting of cover edges, inscription "Sandae" on spine.