COMENIUS, John Amos (1592-1670). Orbis sensualium pictus trilinguis. Levoča

COMENIUS, John Amos (1592-1670). Orbis sensualium pictus trilinguis. Levoča: S. Brewer, 1685. Rare trilingual edition of Comenius' popular textbook for the study of Latin, German and Hungarian, with numerous attractive woodcuts. These include an early depiction of real tennis, also chess and other board games, a printer's shop and a bookseller. This adaptation of Comenius's 1633 Janua linguarum reserata has the Hungarian translation provided by Stephanus Benjamin Szilagyi. Brewer's press, established in 1625 and active until 1718, was at number 26 in Maestro Pavol Square in Levoča, and many of Comenius' works were printed there. Brunet II, 181. Octavo (156 x 100mm). Parallel Latin, German and Hungarian text, 152 woodcuts, woodcut of the barber's shop on K5v partially hand-coloured (woodcut on A5 verso not printed, short tears without loss to F8 and G5, some light browning throughout). Old vellum boards (front hinge cracking, boards lightly soiled). Provenance: George Hincker (old ink inscription on front pastedown). Sale: Sotheby's 26 Nov 1987, lot 24, to: – H.P. Kraus.