THE first novel published in the Philippines was a translation from the Greek titled Historia Magistral de los Santos Anacoretas Barlaam y Josafat (Edifying story of the hermit saints Barlaam and Iosaphat), the work of the Dominican friar Baltasar de Santa Cruz. A copy of this rare work, published in 1692, can be found at the library of the University of Santo Tomas. This novel was translated into Tagalog by the Jesuit Antonio de Borja — strictly the first work of fiction ever published in Tagalog — in 1712, of which only one known copy is found in the British Library. It is very likely that this volume was one of the books that the English stole from the Convent of San Agustín during their short and destructive stay in Manila. Fortunately, the copy is in good condition and was recently edited by Virgilio Almario for the Ateneo University Press. These two works are of great importance in the development of the first literary culture in the Philippines, a culture that was inevitably mediated by religious orders.

However, the first novel ever written by a Filipino was Nínay. Costumbres Filipinas (Nínay. Philippine customs) by Pedro Paterno. It was published in Madrid in 1885, and a copy of this rare novel will be auctioned this Saturday at the León Art Gallery Auction House, starting at a modest price: P20,000. I was fortunate enough to pick up a copy for just $90 five years ago, bought from an American bookseller who probably didn't know the true value of what he was selling.