Rosh Amana by Rabbi Isaac Abarbanel - Constantinople, 1505 - First Edition Printed in the Lifetime of the Author

Rosh Amana, composition on the basic tenets of faith and the elements of the Jewish religion, by R. Isaac [Yitzchak] Abarbanel. [Constantinople: David and Samuel ibn Nachmias and Yitzchak Kaspote, 1505]. First edition.
Originally, the book was printed without a title page, the first page was left blank, and on its verso was an ornate frame (woodcut) surrounding a poem titled: "Poems[!] by the sage R. Yehuda Abarbanel son of the prominent author of the book Rosh Amana". In this copy, the first leaf has been bound backwards so that the page with this decorative frame appears before the blank page.
The renowned R. Isaac Abarbanel (1437-1508), Torah sage and famous statesman, foremost Torah scholar and leader of Spanish Jews during the time of the Spanish Expulsion. He was celebrated in all following generations for his commentary on Torah and Neviim. After the Spanish Expulsion, he settled in the city of Naples, Italy where he completed this work in 1496. This first edition was printed in his lifetime, after he moved to Venice at the end of his life.
Censor's inscriptions on the last leaf.
[20] leaves. 24 cm. Thick, high-quality paper. Good-fair condition. Stains. Tears to bottom and margins of the first leaf, professionally repaired. Minor damage to illustrated frame, professionally repaired. Slight worming and repaired tears to top and bottom of last leaf, affecting text, several words were replaced by hand.
The books Nachalat Avot and Zevach Pesach by R. Isaac Abarbanel were printed at the same time as this book. These three books were bound together in one volume, together with a leaf containing a colophon for all three.