1610: Specimens

Since almost all the specimens in Paul Petau's catalogs differ in the quantity and order of the plates, it was decided to group them according to their number and to index only the specimen with the fewest plates (31, Rome, Biblioteca Casanatense) – which we call "editio minor" and which is probably an, if not the earliest state – and one among those with the most plates (49, Paris, Bibliothèque Mazarine) – which we call "editio maior".
Although all editions bear the date 1610, it is evident that the number of plates increased at least until 1618.
A post quem and ante quem term can be determined by the presence of either the 1609 portrait by François Rousset (17th ce.) or the 1618 portrait by Isaac Briot (1585–1670). The new portrait was probably made for an edition published in 1618, exactly the year when Petau's son and wife had decided to sell the collection.
In addition to the portrait, the sequence and number of plates, the presence in some specimens of some extra plates, one with verses and anagrams of Paul Petau's name another with the illustration of three French and one papal coin, and finally some notes by the author printed on the tables, also contribute to support a relative chronology.
Among the specimens are two in Paris (Bibliothèque de la Sorbonne and Bibliothèque Mazarine) that have some colored plates. This is probably an attempt to visualize the materiality of the depicted artifacts and to make ‘special’ volumes for selected recipients.
Here follows a list of the specimens of the Portiuncula and the Gnorisma, according to the number of their plates and their chronology. It is likely that in some cases (e.g. the Biblioteca Casanatense and the Wolfenbüttel ones) the original number of plates was higher and that one or two of them were removed (e.g. the portrait), but such variations appear to be minimal.