Pope Leo X Bull against Martin Luther

Collection ID

PBK.000243

Type

Printed Book

Date

1520

Geography

Ingolstadt, (Germany)

Language

Latin

Medium

Printed on Paper

Dimensions

7.7 × 5.7 × 0.2 in. (19.6 × 14.5 × 0.5 cm)

Exhibit Location

On View in The History of the Bible, Revolutionary Words

This edition of the 1520 bull issued against Martin Luther by Pope Leo X was printed with the mandate of Gabriel von Eyb, bishop of Eichstädt. The impression of the red wax seal is still visible inside the pamphlet. Luther infamously burned the bull outside of the Elster gate in Wittenberg, Germany. The bull is one of the first books printed in Ingolstadt. Andreas Lutz printed two editions of the bull at the same time, one with the mandate of the bishop of Augsburg and another with the mandate of the bishop of Eichstädt.

Printed in 1520 by Andreas Lutz, Ingolstadt, Germany.[1][2] Acquired by 1960 by A. Wevers, Jr. (1875–1960), Enschede, the Netherlands;[3] Donated between 1960 and the early 2000s to the Oudheidkamer Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands;[4] Purchased by 2010 by Sebastiann Hesselink, Antiquariat FORUM BV, the Netherlands;[5] Purchased in 2010 by Green Collection, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, under the curatorial care of Museum of the Bible, Washington, DC.

Notes: [1] The title page contains two illegible initials and an inscription which reads: “D(omi)no […] In Bergen.” The remnants of a seal in red wax are visible on fol. 2r. Various notes and library-type reference numbers appear throughout. It is unclear when the seal and notes were created. [2] Inscriptions on fols. 9v–10r suggest that (a) the notary Ioannes [X]wirtt (perhaps S/I/Juuywirtt) has compared the copy of the bull with the printed version, signed it, and impressed it with the bishop’s seal; and (b) the vicar Gregorius has approved it for publication. The trimmed pages partially cut off the inscriptions. [3] A. Wevers Jr’s bookplate appears on the front flyleaf. [4] Via correspondence with Laurens Hesselink, Sebastiann Hesselink’s son, Antiquariaat FORUM BV. Oudheidkamer Twente has not provided any additional information. [5] Via correspondence with Laurens Hesselink, Sebastiann Hesselink’s son, Antiquariaat FORUM BV, Sebastiann Hesselink purchased this book from the Oudheidkamer Twente approximately 20–25 years ago, placing the date somewhere between the mid-1990s and the early 2000s.

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