18th Century Literature

London : to be had by the Subscribers of those Booksellers to whom they have subscribed, and at W. Bristow's late Shop in St. Paul's Church Yard, or at his House in Roll's Buildings, Fetter-Lane, 1766-1767. 4 volume set, 7 1/4 inches tall. A superb full 18th century calf with gilt raised bands, twin labels, delightful gilt pomegranate tooling to the panels and a simple gilt chain roll framing the boards. Yellow edges. With the magnificent armorial bookplate of Vane Londonderry. An early advocate of women's rights having escaped an unhappy marriage and hostile husband. Early copies of her works are very rare even in institutions. A superb set.

London: Chapple, 1814. 2 volume set, 7 inches tall. A very fine full calf by Robson & Kerslake with gilt raised bands, fine floral gilt tooling to the panels, twin labels, dentelles and all edges gilt. Bookplate. Some wear to the joints, especially the upper joint of the first volume but still solid. The text block is spotless. There are earlier editions of Selections from La Fontaine's Tales but this is the first complete edition in English and as such is highly sought after. With 40 full page engraved plates. A beautiful set of the works of this great 17th century French fabulist and poet.

London: Hector McLean, 1821. 3 volume set, 8 1/4 inches tall. A splendid full calf by Root with gilt raised bands, triple labels and delicate gilt tooling to the panels. Dentelles and all edges gilt. From the Library of the Late Christopher Foyle of Beeleigh Abbey. Embellished with 15 fine hand-coloured aquatint plates. A delightful edition in pristine condition. The adventures of a golden Guinea as it silently passes from person to person, and the variety of human nature encountered.

London: Privately Printed, 1871. Full straight grain calf, 8.75 inches tall. A superb copy of this notorious item of erotica. With wide gilt raised bands, fine gilt tooled panels, boards, dentelles and all edges. Printed in black and red, reportedly in a deluxe edition of 250. The extraordinary Wilkes, member of the Knights of St. Francis of Wycombe, also known as the Hellfire Club, wrote this pornographic poem dedicated to the courtier Fanny Murray entitled "An Essay on Woman" as a parody of Alexander Pope's "An Essay on Man". Having been outlawed in 1769 he became Lord Mayor of London in 1774!

London: Rivington et al., 1810. 8 volume set, 6 inches tall. A handsome later (c.1890) full calf with gilt and blind bands and red labels. At the head of each title page a strip has been removed (presumably to remove an owner's name) and expertly repaired. Minor foxing. Richardson's masterpiece is considered one of the greatest, earliest and longest of English novels. A novel written as a series of letters it is the tragic tale of Clarissa Harlowe, a young woman whose quest for virtue is continually thwarted by her family.

London: Sharpe and Son et al., 1819. 4 volume set, 8 1/2 inches tall. A superb later full straight grain calf by Riviere with gilt raised bands, twin labels and ornate gilt tooling to the panels. Twin gilt fillets frame the boards, gilt dentelles and all edges. Portraits in volumes I & II, as called for. A fine edition of the works of this great 18th century novelist in pristine condition inside and out.

London: Cadell, 1800. 2 volume set, 8.5 inches tall. A superb binding with gilt raised bands, label and exceptionally fine gilt tooling to the panels and boards. With dentelles and all edges gilt. Portrait. A pristine copy of this early enlarged edition.

London: M. Cooper, 1744. Full roan, 8 inches tall. An exceptionally clean copy of the scarce first English edition of this guide intended to be "A System of Rules and Instructions, to qualify the Fair Sex to be useful and happy in every State". In full mid 18th century roan with raised bands and simple blind roll and fillets to the board. With the armorial bookplate of William Danby Esq. and the neat ink inscription 'Eliza Danby' on the title page. Some superficial marks to the lower board.

London Baldwin and Becket, 1784. 4 volume set, 7 inches tall. A simple but elegant full 18th century tree calf with red label and gilt pallets and volume numbers. Portrait. Bookplate of Ellen James. Foxing facing the portrait and at the end of volume 4, otherwise a clean set. A curious work, rarely found in fine condition by philosopher, composer and writer, Rousseau, who was one of the most influential philosophers of the Age of Enlightenment.

London: John Murray, 1854. 4 volume set, 8 1/2 inches tall. A classic Victorian full calf by the great firm of Hayday & Mansell, with gilt raised bands, twin labels and elaborate gilt tooling to the panels. Twin gilt fillets, a blind fillet and rose corner tools frame the boards. 4 engraved title pages. There is a neat ink inscription 'on leaving Eton, July 1862' on the first blank. A minor stain runs along the foredge of the plates. A handsome set of the works of Oliver Goldsmith, the great Anglo-Irish novelist, naturalist and poet.

London: John Churchill and W. Flexney, 1766. 2 volume set, 9 inches tall. A simple yet elegant binding with gilt bands and titles. Armorial bookplate. A neat owner's name dated 1821 on the title page and the publisher and executor, John Churchill, has signed his name at the end of the work. A fine edition of the works of this celebrated satirist and poet.

Paris: Galignani, 1825. 4 volume set, 8 1/2 inches tall. A stunning half morocco binding with wide gilt bands very elaborate extra gilt panels with a very impressive armorial device in the central panel. With the bookplate of Margaret Mirrielees. Slight foxing. An interesting Continental English language printing of the works of this great 18th century Irish writer.

Edinburgh: James Nichol, 1853. Full morocco, 8.5 inches tall. A splendidly bound volume with gilt raised bands, very fine gilt tooling to the panels and exceptionally ornate gilt tooling framing the boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges. From the library of Dalton Hall and from the Hayhurst collection. Bookplate. A well printed and handsomely bound copy of one of the most influential 18th century English poems.

London: 1757. 3 volume set, 6.75 inches tall. Superb full calf bindings of the period with gilt bands, twin labels and delightful floral tooling to the panels. The binding is in splendid condition other than some loss to the headcap of volume 1. The text and all the plates, some folding, are all particularly clean. This interesing edition has the text in both English and French and has corresponding English and French title pages. Although the title page states that the book was published in London, I would assume it was actually printed on the Continent. A fine set.

Paris: La Combe, 1766. 2 volume set, 6.5 inches tall. A splendid full 18th century mottled calf with twin labels, gilt bands and fine gilt floral tooling to the panels. FIRST EDITION of a lively miscellany of definitions icluding: Americains, amour conjugal, pantomimes, ruses de guerre and sourds et muets. Lacombe also composed the first dictionary of Old French.

London: Arthur L. Humphreys, 1902. Full crushed morocco, 6.5 inches tall. A splendid binding in the style of Cobden Sanderson with raised bands, simple gilt tooling to the panels and fine gilt tooling to the boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges. Some severe foxing to 10 leaves, otherwise a pristine example..

London: Printed at the Chiswick Press, 1863. Full calf, 11 inches tall. A most impressive binding by Riviere with gilt raised bands, orange label and gorgeous gilt tooling to the panels. The boards are framed within a triple gilt fillet. Gilt dentelles and all edges. Some speckling to the boards and foxing to, and facing the illustrations. A finely printed edition, with 4 photographic plates, of these great English 18th century poems, including 'Elegy Written in a Country Church-Yard'.

London: Printed at the Chiswick Press, 1874. Full calf, 11 inches tall. A most impressive binding by Riviere with gilt raised bands, blue label and gorgeous gilt tooling to the panels. The boards are framed within a gilt roll and double fillet. Gilt dentelles and all edges. Some speckling to the boards. Internally clean. A finely printed edition, with 4 photographic plates, of these great English 18th century poems, including 'Elegy Written in a Country Church-Yard’.

London: James Wallace 1805. Full morocco, 6 1/2 inches tall. A remarkable Georgian binding with gilt raised bands, twin labels and superb delicate gilt tooling to the panels. The boards have exceptional gilt fan tooling to the corners framed within gilt and blind fillets and a black inked roll. The striking watered silk doublures and free endpaper are framed within wide gilt rolls. All edges gilt. A new edition ornamented with 10 engravings by Bewick. A neat ink inscription on the title page 'Isabella Tod. 1812'. This delightful volume is rubbed but still a choice volume.

London: William Pickering, 1847. 2 volume set, 6 1/2 inches tall. A very fine Victorian full calf with gilt raised bands, twin labels and superb gilt tooling to the panels. Twin gilt fillets frame the boards. James Thomson, the 18th century poet now best known for writing the lyrics of 'Rule, Britannia!', was one of the most popular and influential poets of his century. A fine copy in excellent condition.