The Variant Printings of the 1580 Dreßden Edition of the Concordia According to the Verzeichnis der im Deutschen Sprachbereich Erschienenen Drucke des XVI. Jahrhunderts

Abstract

The first edition of the Concordia (The Book of Concord, also called the Lutheran Confessions), published in 1580 at Dreßden, went through a series of variant printings. The Verzeichnis der im Deutschen Sprachbereich Erschienenen Drucke des XVI. Jahrhunderts (VD 16) provides select bibliographic data of 10 individual volumes currently at five libraries in Germany. It then distinguishes and identifies the variant printings producing five categories to which these 10 volumes are assigned. Careful scrutiny of the 10 volumes shows that VD 16 provides precise data for some volumes. For others, the data varies from minor typographical errors to errors of greater bibliographic import. This necessitates a renewed examination of these 10 volumes and a corresponding critical analysis of the bibliographic data provided in the five categories created by VD 16.