Gastronomy.- Obsopoeus (Vincent)

De arte bibendi, second edition, includes Greek letter, some marginal light staining, occasional spotting, small, repairs to first 2 leaves, & N2-3, ex libris Georgius Aurius in a early hand, marginalia, including small drawings, in a contemporary German hand throughout, slightly later vellum boards, ink title to spine, soiled, [Vicaire 636; Simon 1137; Oberle 1017; Adams O 210], 4to, Johann Petreius, Nuremberg, 1537.

*** Scarce second edition of this poem about the art of drinking without getting drunk, first printed by Petrius the previous year. Obsopoeus, or Heydnecker (ca. 1498-1539), was a German humanist, Latin poet and translator active in the Reformation. The present work is a classical manual for drinking with pleasure and discrimination. Obsopoeus argues that moderation, not abstinence, is the key to lasting sobriety, and that drinking can be a virtue if it is done with rules and limits. Obsopoeus teaches us how to manage our drinking, even how to win drinking games, quoting personal experience.