Ludvig Holberg: Peder Paars. Copenhagen 1772.
53,-314

Front cover	Title page	Fol. A1r: The beginning of book 1, 1st song	Between book 3, p. 244 and book 4, p. 245: Illustration for book 4, 1st song

Ludvig Holberg’s Peder Paars is a Danish parody of the classical heroic epic, in particular Virgil’s grand Roman epic the Aeneid. Peder Paars was published for the first time in 1719-1720 and soon new editions followed. The edition shown here, printed in 1772 in the Godiche printing house (at that time run by A.H. Godiche’s widow Anna Magdalena), is a masterpiece as regards illustrations as well as typography. Since the 16th century it had been customary in Denmark to print books in Danish (and German) in blackletter and books in Latin (and French) in Roman letters. The Godiche edition of Peder Paars by Holberg is an early example of Roman letters used in a book in Danish.
This copy is bound in a so-called mirror binding made of brown leather. This kind of binding features a dark marbled central panel (the mirror), surrounded by a blind or gold tooled frame and, outside of that, a lighter area that is also surrounded, but by a blind rather than a gold tooled line. These bindings were popular in Denmark in the 18th century.

25 x 19.5 cm.

© Det Kongelige Bibliotek 2003