Search

London: Richard Bentley, 1838. 4 volume set, 9 inches tall. A very good looking full Victorian calf with gilt raised bands, twin labels and fine gilt tooling to the panels. Twin gilt fillets and corner tools frame the boards. Gilt dentelles and top edges. With the bookplate of Charles B. Cochran, the English theatrical producer. Embellished with 16 engraved plates, many folding. The life and career of Charles Mathews, celebrated English theatre manager and comic actor in theatre and entertainment in the 18th and 19th centuries.

London: Routeledge, Warne, and Routledge, 1862. 2 volume set, 9 1/2 inches tall. A rather magnificent full morocco with gilt raised bands, extra gilt panels and superb ornate gilt tooling around a heraldic crest to the boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges. Double column. Engraved portrait of Shakespeare, engraved title page, full page engravings of scenes from Shakespeare's Plays and 45 full page extra illustrated engravings of Shakespeare's heroines. Some rubbing to the binding, loss of both free end papers and slight foxing to the tissues and portraits but still an impressive set.

Paris: Didot, 1803 (AN XI). 5 volume set, 5.5 inches tall. A delightful set in full straight grain morocco with gilt bands, centre tools, gilt roll framing the boards and all edges gilt. In the original French.

London: Dent, 1925. 3 volume set, 8 inches tall. A neat half calf by Riviere with gilt raised bands, twin labels and delicate gilt tooling to the panels. Gilt top edges. Decorated with 39 photogravures by E.J. Sullivan. Slight fading but still a bright and good looking set in lovely condition.

London: Geoffrey Bles, 1924. Half morocco, 9 1/2 inches tall. A simple though impressive half morocco by Sangorski and Sutcliffe with gilt raised bands and gilt framed panels. Gilt top edge. Profusely illustrated. Neat leather bookplate. A scarce first edition on the life of the outstanding character actor, and probably the greatest Russian theatrical producer and director of his day, whose influence and methods continue to this day.

London: Bickers and Son, 1873. 2 volume set, 9 inches tall. A superb Victorian full calf binding by Mansell. With gilt raised bands, delicate gilt tooling to the panels and very fine labels, in particular the radiant volume labels. The bookplates have been rubbed to obscure the name and there is considerable rubbing to the shoulders but still a sparkling set of these great theatrical works.

London: Longman et al., Printed by Gedge and Barker, Bury, 1812. Full calf. 5.75 inches tall. A fine example of this curious and rare title. With gilt raised bands, extra gilt panels, dentelles and all edges. Portrait of Shakespeare. Not signed but bound by Clarke and Bedford toward the end of the Victorian era. Expert repair to the top corner of the title page and slight stain to upper board, but overall a splendid copy.

Mahon: Gilles Lanlois,1756. 3 volume set 6.5 inches tall. Fine full mottled calf with gilt raised bands, twin labels and gilt floral centre tools. Pink edges. Frontispiece and woodcut ornaments. Slight damage to the headcap of volume 1 otherwise in superb condition. A lovely set of this very rare title.

London: Hughes, (1819). 4 volume set, 5 inches tall. Most attractive set in half Regency calf with gilt bands, twin labels and delicate blind tooling to the panels. Containing 21 plays, each with separate title page and frontispiece. 38 'embellishments'. From the Library and with the bookplate of Robert J. Hayhurst. Pink bookseller's ticket. A rare item.

London: Harding, Triphook and Lepard, 1825. Full morocco, 6.5 inches tall. A superb Georgian binding with gilt raised bands, label, gilt framed panels and boards, dentelles and all edges. Engraved portrait and title page. Sold at Sotheby's 29th February 1856. Contains all six of Terence's plays, viz. Andria (The Girl from Andros) 166 B.C.; Hecyra (The Mother-in-Law) 165 B.C.; Heauton Timorumenos (The Self-Tormentor) 163 B.C.; Phormio 161 B.C.; Eunuchus 161 B.C.; Adelphoe (The Brothers) 160 B.C.. A fine copy in the original Latin.

York: Wilson, Spence, and Mawman, 1795. 4 volume set, 6 3/4 inches tall. A good looking 18th century full speckled calf with gilt pallets on a smooth back and twin labels. Speckled edges. Grand Armorial Bookplate. A few minor expert page repairs but overall a lovely set of the first edition.

London: Smith, Elder, & Co., 1898. Full calf, 7 1/2 inches tall. A most attractive binding by Zaehnsdorf with gilt raised bands, extravagant floral gilt tooling to the panels and contrasting red label. With the gilt embossed crest of Uppingham School on the upper board and their prize bookplate on the paste down end paper. Gilt dentelles and all edges. With portraits and facsimiles.

Paris: Chez Prault, 1762. 4 volume set, 6.5 inches tall. A superb full mottled calf set with gilt bands, morocco and inked labels and fine floral gilt tooling to the panels. Ornamental woodcuts. A splendid set.

London, Published for the Proprietors by Sherwood, c.1850 Jones, and Co. 3 volumes, 8.75 inches tall. Simply bound in half calf with gilt and blind bands and gilt titles. A charming collection of over 100 pared down plays popular in the early 19th century, each one with a delightful engraved heading. Neat ink owners name, dated 1857 on the paste-down endpapers.

London: Richard Bentley, 1854. Full calf, 6.5 inches tall. A splendid little full calf with gilt raised bands, triple labels and delicate floral gilt tooling to the panels. Gilt dentelles and all edges. Charles Reade, most well known for 'The Cloister and the Hearth', was a hugely popular Victorian novelist. Arthur Conan Doyle declared 'The Cloister and the Hearth' to be his favorite novel and Oscar Wilde called it Reade's "one beautiful book, after which he wasted the rest of his life in a foolish attempt to be modern". His very early Dramatic Works, such as 'Two Loves and One Life' written in collaboration with Tom Taylor, are extremely scarce, this copy being spectacularly well bound.

London: William Pickering, 1833. Full morocco, 7.5 inches tall. A wonderful binding, almost certainly by Charles Lewis with gilt raised bands, superb gilt tooling to the panels, dentelles and all edges gilt. This volume, contains 'The Misfortunes of Arthur'; 'Downfall of Robert Earl of Huntingdon'; 'Death of Robert Earl of Huntingdon'; 'Woman is a Weathercock'; & 'Amends for Ladies'. It represents the Supplementary, XIIIth volume, of the set of 'Dodsley's Old Plays'.

London: John Murray, 1826; 1820. Full calf, 8.5 inches tall. A most attractive early 19th century binding with wide raised bands, label and extra gilt panels. Early ink owner's signatures on the first blank and half title. The text block of the first title is clean, that of the second foxed. Both plays are first editions.

London: Longman et al, n.d. c. 1825. Full calf, 6.5 inches tall. A very fine little binding with gilt raised bands and delicately tooled panels. The straight grain of the boards is framed within gilt and blind fillets. From the Library and with the bookplate of Robert J. Hayhurst. Each play is separately paginated. A delightful volume in fine condition.