36. GUARINUS VERONENSIS (1374–1460). Regulae grammaticales. Florence: [Bartolommeo di Libri? or Antonio di Bartolommeo Miscomini?], 1494.

This book is the only surviving copy of this popular elementary Latin school book. Such instructional books are extremely rare, as they were handed down to incoming students each year until their pages were worn out by use. Today, 67 fifteenth-century editions of this text are known, but only 91 copies exist; most of the editions survive in just a single copy. Bridwell Library’s unique school book retains its inexpensive fifteenth-century binding, a thin strip of leather tacked onto two bare wooden boards. Inside, one of the book’s early owners wrote “questo libro es di Matteo di Matteo di Bergamii.”

15th-century school book binding.