Apuleius, Opera, 1588

Renaissance scholarly editions are important for the reception of Apuleius throughout the centuries. This one contains all the texts attributed to Apuleius, philosophical treatises as well as the novel, with detailed commentaries on all of them.

Petrus Colvius (1567-1594) wrote his famous edition and critical commentary on Apuleius at a remarkably young age (published in 1588). His premature death as a result of an accident in Paris is the reason why we only have his erudite Apuleius commentary and posthumous comments on Sidonius Apollinaris. This commentary on the complete works of Apuleius is thoroughly researched, an all-encompassing compendium of all available knowledge on Apuleius. Like many before him, he conflates the author Apuleius and the first person narrator of his novel, Lucius, mixing Apuleius’ autobiography from his speech in self-defence against the accusation of having used love magic, with Lucius’ fictional biography of a young man curious about magic and encountering witches on his travels.

The edition’s printer, Frans van Ravelingen (Franciscus Raphelengius, 1539-1597) in Leiden (Plantijn), was a scholar of Arabic in his own right.

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