GEOPONICA. - CASSIANUS BASSUS]. The XX Books of Constantin Cesar ausquelz are treated the good teachings of Agriculture. Poictiers, Iehan & Enguilbert de Marnef frères, 1543. In-folio, mottled vellum, spine ribbed, paper label on spine with title, center of boards and spine, repeated, iron in black (acorn) (18th century binding). (8) ff., 94 ff. Rare first edition of the French translation by Anthoine Pierre (or Pierre de Rieux, residing in Poitiers), of one of the most famous ancient treatises on agriculture and food, whose editio princeps appeared in Basel, in 1539. Long attributed to the emperor Constantine VII himself, this collection is in fact a compilation made by Cassianus Bassus at the request of the emperor. It gathers a large number of extracts from Byzantine authors. The treatise, divided into 20 books, deals with most aspects of agriculture and rural economy: plants, herbs, gardening, livestock, poultry, game, dairy products, etc. "In this book] one finds a great deal of advice on food, among other things: how to make very good unleavened bread; how to preserve and prepare all kinds of vegetables and fruits, how to take care of one's cellar, how to manage wines; there are also recipes for making olive jam, honey, etc. The last book deals with fishing and fish" (Vicaire). But the Great and Good Mesnager (or Geoponica) remains above all one of the best Greek sources concerning viticulture and oenology. Book III contains advice for the preparation of the soil and the work of the vineyard, month by month. Books IV and V analyze the different grape varieties and explain the care to be taken in cultivating the vine, with chapters on the protection of the grapes and the extermination of parasites. Book VI is devoted to the harvest, the work of the cellar, the manufacture of barrels and corks. Book VII deals with vinification, the different types of wine, how to taste and distinguish them, how to avoid their natural deterioration, how to prepare them for long sea voyages, etc... Not forgetting the art of tasting them without getting drunk! Ars longa, vita brevis... Finally, book VIII gives a list of medicinal wines with their applications, and devotes a few chapters to vinegar. Some handwritten notes in the margins. Wetnesses. Title and f. Aii stained. The vellum having worked, the boards remain slightly open. Vicaire, 203 - Bitting, 97 - Simon, Gastr. 379 to 382 and Simon, Bach, II, 148 to 152: other editions - Oberlé, Bachique, 17.