About our descriptions

Descriptions form the foundation of our business. We aim to provide nuance and detail to intrigue the seasoned expert in early print, as well as broader context to help the newcomer understand why we find a particular item compelling. We understand the multifaceted responsibilities of curatorial work, that experts in one field can quickly find themselves managing collections in less familiar territory. So we ground our descriptions in authoritative research, always citing our sources, so you can buy with confidence. Our well documented descriptions should also make plain that they are strictly human-generated.

Defects: All books are complete unless otherwise noted. We collate each item leaf by leaf, ensuring pagination and collation match mathematically. While pagination and collation statements may sometimes reflect Fredson Bowers’s notion of the ideal copy, we will always note defects in our condition statements.

Holdings: While we consider ourselves competent navigators of online catalogs, our scarcity statements should always be considered relative. We cannot account for copies in private hands, copies yet to be discovered, and copies that have been poorly or improperly cataloged (we’re looking at you, print copies attached to microform records!). Our search for institutional copies typically includes WorldCat, Karlsruher Virtueller Katalog, and the online national union catalogs of those countries most likely to hold copies (Catalogue collectif de France for French imprints, OPAC SBN for Italian imprints, etc.). We encourage you to use our holding statement as a starting-point for your own investigation.

Auction records: Notes about auction appearances are based on Rare Book Hub and Biblio’s Auction & Book Sales Archive (the heir to ABPC).

Transcription: Letterforms may be converted during transcription. For example, we may transcribe “vj” as “vi,” “Ivlij” as “Julii,” etc. Authorship statements may be omitted from title transcriptions without indication. For example, we may transcribe Marci Tullii Ciceronis officiorum libri tres simply as Officiorum libri tres. We may adjust punctuation in title transcriptions to facilitate comprehension. Imprints are typically Anglicized and shortened.

Size: Our measurements reflect approximate dimensions of the front board.

Photos: We are happy to provide images of available items to support any programming or collection needs, from virtual instruction to personal record keeping. Requests for additional images are always welcome. If you’d like a closer look at something by video chat, just ask.