Johannes Trithemius. De laudibus sanctissime matris Anne tractatus (Treatise in Praise of the Holy Mother Anne).
Leipzig: Melchior Lotter, [1500].

4to.  [24] leaves. 225 x 146 mm.

Trithemius’ tract on the miracles of Saint Anne, mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was intended as a caution against the misuse of erudition. Though Trithemius normally found himself being an advocate for learning, he was disturbed when scholars used their skills to question traditions of the church such as popular legends about the saints. In this treatise he also states his own belief in the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, at that time still a controverted theological point. The treatise was written and first printed in 1494, and went through three editions in Mainz before this one printed in Leipzig.