Aldus Manutius, or Aldo Manuzio, has probably enjoyed more esteem than any other 15th-century printer apart from the inventor of printing himself, Johann Gutenberg. The 500th anniversary of Aldus’s death in 1515 was marked by several exhibitions and conferences in his native Italy. But the products of Aldus’s press have long attracted the interest of scholars and collectors elsewhere, not least in Britain. This exhibition explored Aldus himself and the life of his press in the context of College Library’s collection of early printing more widely. The strength of the collection – one of the finest in the country – also enabled us to show various ways that Aldus’s books have been treated by owners and collectors, and to look at how Eton’s collection was put together. 

Curated by John Goldfinch, Acting College Librarian and Dr Stephanie Coane, Deputy Curator of Modern Collections, Eton College.