The division of editorial labour between us has been as follows. The Introduction was written by James Burns and revised in the light of comments and suggestions by Thomas Izbicki. The Chronology, the Note on terms and the Bibliography were compiled jointly. The translation and annotation were the work of Thomas Izbicki: successive drafts were read by James Burns and the final version was prepared on the basis of extensive consultation between the two editors.

Our thanks, as always in such undertakings, are due to many more colleagues and friends than can be listed here. However, a special word of gratitude for help in solving various problems should be addressed to Paul Pascal, Peter Stein and those who replied to queries posted on the listserves MDVLPHIL and MEDTEXTL. We are also indebted to Quentin Skinner, and to Jeremy Mynott and Richard Fisher of the Cambridge University Press for their support, encouragement and advice at various moments. At the production stage, we have been greatly assisted by Vicky Cuthill, Lyn Chatterton, Cherrill Richardson, and Frances Brown (whose copy-editing of a complex text was as helpful as it was careful).