First edition of Hume's History of England
HUME,David The History of Great Britain...The Reigns of James I and Charles I. The Commonwealth and the Reigns of Charles II and James II. The History of England under the House of Tudor. The History of England from the Invasion of Julius Caesar to the Accession of Henry VII. Edinburgh, Hamilton, Balfour, and Neill 1754 and London, A.Millar 1757; London, A.Millar 1759; London, A.Millar 1762
6 volumes, quarto, fine contemporary matching pale mottled calf, double gilt fillets to front and back covers, spines richly gilt with five raised bands with contemporary red and green morocco labels, lettered and numbered gilt, a little worn at head and foot, marbled endpapers, vipp + 473pp + (1p)adverts, (1) + vpp + (1p)blank + 459pp + (1p)adverts; viiipp + 402pp, ivpp + (403)-739pp + (1p)adverts; viiipp + 424pp, viiipp + 446pp +(1) errata, Digby engraved armorial bookplate, an attractive set.Jessop, pp.27-30. Todd,pp.196-199. Chuo,47 (1-6).
First edition of all six volumes. With the publication of the first volume of his History of England in 1754 David Hume stepped into the position as one of Britain’s leading men of letters; only Samuel Johnson could be said to outshine him in national and international reputation. The History of England was probably more widely and more often reprinted than any of Johnson’s works, and it attracted the attention and admiration of scholars, historians and literary critics as well as some controversy. Complete sets of the first edition of all six volumes in quarto of the History of England are hard to find as they were printed over a number of years and Hume changed publishers after the first volume was published in Edinburgh in 1754. It is remarkable to find a complete set in matching contemporary bindings
£2950
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