The Formation and Transmission of Western Legal Culture: 150 Books that Made the Law in the Age of Printing
This
volume surveys 150 law books of fundamental importance in the history
of Western legal literature and culture. The entries are organized in
three sections: the first dealing with the transitional period of
fifteenth-century editions of medieval authorities, the second spanning
the early modern period from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century,
and the third focusing on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The
contributors are scholars from all over the world. Each ‘old book’ is
analyzed by a recognized specialist in the specific field of interest.
Individual entries give a short biography of the author and discuss the
significance of the works in the time and setting of their publication,
and in their broader influence on the development of law worldwide.
Introductory essays explore the development of Western legal traditions,
especially the influence of the English common law, and of Roman and
canon law on legal writers, and the borrowings and interaction between
them.The book goes beyond the study of institutions and
traditions of individual countries to chart a broader perspective on
the transmission of legal concepts across legal, political, and
geographical boundaries. Examining the branches of this genealogical
tree of books makes clear their pervasive influence on modern legal
systems, including attempts at rationalizing custom or creating new
hybrid systems by transplanting Western legal concepts into other
jurisdictions.
