Aldus Manutius, 1502

SOPHOCLES (ca 496-406 B.C.) Tragaediae septem cum commentariis, in Greek. Venice: Aldus Manutius, August 1502 [or the following winter].

Editio princeps of Sophocles, most iconic of the Athenian tragedians. The plays now known as the Theban Cycle, about the family of Oedipus, still haunt our playhouses and our cultural metaphor. In the text of Antigone, an editorial intervention from Aldus has had a lasting influence on the reception of the play: line 572, assigned to Ismene in the Medieval manuscript tradition, is given instead to Antigone. While scholarly consensus has shifted back to Ismene, the play is still sometimes performed with the line said by Antigone. "The type used in this publication is the fourth and smallest Aldine Greek font, a miracle of microscopic typefounding; it is likely based on Aldus's own handwriting" (Clemons and Fletcher). The preface of this work is the first mention in print of the Aldine Academy. UCLA 60; Clemons and Fletcher 36.

Octavo (164 x 95mm). Greek and Roman types. Aldine anchor device on final leaf (occasional edge toning, two leaves with small repairs to upper). 19th-century brown morocco gilt by Clarke and Bedford, edges gilt (a little wear to extremities).