Reuchlin, John. De rudimentis hebraicis. 1, 621, 1 p., 2 p. (with the additional half turn-on sheet p. 589/90). With large woodcut printer mark at the end and large, half-sided coloured coat of arms woodcut, isolated rubrication with red and blue initials and alinea characters. 28 x 20,5 cm. Blind-embossed pigskin d. Z. (stronger rubbed and especially on the corners) over four double frets and on fasted wooden covers (without closing). Pforzheim, Thomas Anshelm, 1506. VD16 R 1252. Adams R-383 od. R-384. Proctor 11754. Tank VIII, 228.9. Gasoline, Reuchlin 90. Knaake II, 920. – First edition of the famous work of John Reuchlin (1455-1522) on learning the Hebrew language in a special specimen: The numerous handwritten notes testify to an intensive examination of the work. The uniformly painted initials in print and manuscript prove the planned origin of the codex. The coat of arms woodcut is carefully old coloured. Although the work is written in Latin, the leaf count runs from right to left, as in Hebrew books. The handwritten register A-Z runs from left to right. Reuchlin's "De rudimentis hebraicis" is considered fundamental to Christian Hebraistics and was also used by Martin Luther. The work is also significant in print history because it is considered the first book printed with movable Hebrew letters in the German language area. The printer Thomas Anshelm appeared in Strasbourg in 1488 as a printer, changed 1496/ 1500 to Pforzheim, in 1511 to Tübingen and in 1516 finally to Hagenau, where he probably printed until 1522. In 1523 Johann Setzer took over his printing plant. In addition to Johannes Froben, Thomas Anshelm is considered the most important humanist German printer (Schottenloher, NDB 1, 1953, p. 312). The old coloured woodcut shows the coat of arms of Reuchlin, which was awarded to him by Emperor Friedrich III at the elevation to the stand of a court Palatinate. – Mirrors and resolutions with numerous contemporary and early hs. Entries, other numerous contemporary margins, underscores and notes passim in the text. The front joint with a stripe of waste from a manuscript of the 13th century. ==References== The book block at the beginning and at the end slightly stained, partly with a slight wet edge. Last leaves with larger worm canal in the fret bar, without text loss. Small wormhole in woodcut. Two text sheets with tear, a text sheet with a flaw in the white footbridge. Cover with contemporary ten-line hs. Entry on the front cover (mostly unreadable). 42 sheets were pre-bound, 21 of them with a four-column, approximately 50-line Latin register A-Z with approximately 8,000 (!) entries in a very smooth and clean contemporary manuscript. This register was provided with initials painted in red and blue by the same hand as the printed text, so it was an integral part of the book before binding. The other leaves contain an incomplete Latin register under Hebrew chapter letters from another early hand. About Provenance: This specimen comes from the humanistic environment of the early 16th century. ==References====External links==* Official website A scientific study of handwritten contributions may lead to a more accurate attribution. Among the numerous entries on the front mirror is an approximately half-page text under the title: Ad hebrey lingua studiu(m) exhortatio (An admonition to study the Hebrew language). Thereafter, two owners can be found: M. Christopher Vogel, theology student, Weißenfels/ Meissen 1664 and C. D. Hassler, theology student from Degenfelde-Wattenberg, Leipzig 1822 (both hs. Entries on the title).