Manutius, Aldus, the Elder

Manutius, Aldus, the Elder

 Italian Aldo Manuzio il Vecchio

(born 1449, Bassiano, Papal States—died Feb. 6, 1515, Venice) Italian printer, the leading figure of his time in printing, publishing, and typography. In 1490 he settled in Venice and gathered around him a group of compositors and Greek scholars. He produced the first printed editions of many Greek and Latin classics and is particularly associated with the production of small, carefully edited pocket-size books printed in inexpensive editions. The Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (1499) of Francesco Colonna, with outstanding woodcuts, was his most famous book. After his death, the Aldine Press, which he founded, was taken over by members of his family, who probably printed 1,000 editions between 1495 and 1595.