Jewels in the Crown: Roman and Canon Law

Bartolo, Commentaria, vol. 1, Venice, 1590.

For centuries, Roman and canon law were the heart of academic legal training on the European continent, and Roman law is at the foundation of civil law codes today. The Center boasts a fine collection of Roman and canon law, including several works first printed in the fifteenth century. These early titles, called incunabula (literally "swaddling clothes"), date from the "infancy" of European movable type printing. Included in our collection are commentaries by illustrious jurists, a number of important collections of consilia (or opinions on particular cases), discrete treatises, court decisions and dictionaries. Shown in the exhibit are a volume of consilia and a great illustration from the renowned medieval jurist Bartolo’s discussion of legal rights.  

    

Sigismondo Loffredo (1480-1539).  Consilia Loffredi.  Venice, 1569.

Bartolo da Sassoferrato (1313-1357).  Commentaria.  Vol. 1.  Venice, 1590.

   - Ryan Greenwood, Curator of Rare Books and Special Collections