purdt
Tausent vierhundert vn im siben vn sibenczigte iar.

[Illustration: Frontispiece of the first German Edition.]

The copy which I have examined is in the Grenville Library, No. 6787.
(Vide _Bib. Grenvilliana_, Part II. p. 305.) When Marsden edited his
_Marco Polo_, Grenville did not possess this edition. The only known copy
was in the Vienna Imperial Library, but was without the portrait.
Grenville had made a transcript spoken of by Marsden, pp. lxx.-lxxi.,
which we describe infra. "When Mr. Marsden," says Grenville in a MS.
note at the beginning of this fine volume, "published his translation of
this work, the only known copy of this first German Edition was in the
Imperial Library at Vienna, and I had a literal transcript made from it:
Since that time a second copy was found and sold by Payne and Foss to Lord
Spencer: and now I have purchased from Leipsick a third [the present]
beautiful copy. I know of no fourth copy. The copy at Vienna wants the
portrait."

Vide _Bib. Spenceriana_, vol. vi. p. 176.

Other copies are to be found at the Imperial Library, Vienna, the Royal
Library, Berlin, the _Germanisches Museum_, Nuremberg; a sixth copy was in
the Crawford Collection (London, June, 1887, 1359) with the portrait, and
was purchased by B. Quaritch. [See _H. Cordier, Cent. of Marco Polo_, p.
41.]

--The copy we just spoke of has No. LII. in the Grenville collection,
British Museum; it is a folio of 114 pages numbered with a pencil; bound
with the arms of the Rt. Honble. Thos. Grenville. Page 114, the exactness
of this copy is thus certified: "Apographum collatum cum prototypo, quod
in Bibliotheca Palatina Vindobonensi adservatur. Illo quidem, qui
descripsit, recitante ex prototypo, me vero hoc apographum inspectante.
Respondet pagina paginae, versui versus & syllaba syllabae. Vindobonae die
29. Augusti 1817. B. Kopitar, Biblioth. Palatinae Vindobon. scriptor."

With this manuscript is bound a letter addressed to Mr. Grenville by the
Chevalier Scotti, who had the copy made; it is dated "Vienne 20 nmbre
1817," and ends with this post-scriptum: "N.B. Comme cette Edition fort
peu connue du 477. est une edition non seulement precieuse, mais a la
verite fort rare aussi, elle avoit ete prise par les Francois et portee a
Paris la derniere fois qu'ils ont ete a Vienne. Elle y a ete rendue avec
tout le reste qu'on avoit emporte a la suite des heureux succes des
Coilises, auxquels L'immortel Wellington a tant contribue