Historical Latin

One of the books I brought with me to Nova Scotia is an art book called The Bayeux Tapestry which I bought years ago from a library book sale. This book was published in 1957 by Phaidon Press, and noticing the publisher's name in attractive lettering on the cover, I was curious about this company name. From the Phaidon website I found this paragraph about the early history of the company: The company was founded in Vienna in 1923 by Dr Bela Horovitz and Ludwig Goldscheider. Their first titles were not art books, but were on literature, philosophy and history. A German edition of Plato's works was among their first books. Horovitz took the name of Phaidon, a pupil of Socrates and speaker in Plato's dialogue on the immortality of the soul, as the name of his company (Phaidon is the German version of the name; in English it is Phaedo). It reflected his love of classical antiquity and culture. From the very beginning, great attention was paid to value and design, two factors that remain key today. Horovitz's objective was to deliver quality books at an affordable price; Goldscheider's contribution came in the elegant layout and handsome production. According to its web site Phaidon Press is the “world’s premier publisher of books on the visual arts.” My book from over fifty years ago is beautifully produced with excellent photos of the tapestry. My students will be translating the Latin titles from some of the panels this fall, and while we can find the panels on line, we will also enjoy having the book handy for quick reference.