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London: J. Johnson, 1777. The Enlightenment Landmark of Women's Jurisprudence: The First Comprehensive 18th-Century Treatise on the Legal Status of Women (1777) [Women]. [Great Britain]. The Laws Respecting Women, As They Regard Their Natural Rights, Or Their Connections and Conduct; In Which Their Interests and Duties as Daughters, Wards, Heiresses, Spinsters, Sisters, Wives, Widows, Mothers, Legatees, Executrixes, &c. Are Ascertained and Enumerated: also, the Obligations of Parent and Child, And the Condition of Minors. The Whole Laid Down According to the Principles of the Common and Statute Law, Explained by the Practice of the Courts of Law and Equity, And Describing the Nature and Extent of the Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction. In Which are Inserted a Great Variety of Curious and Important Decisions in the Different Law Courts, And the Substance of the Trial of Elizabeth Duchess Dowager of Kingston, On an Indictment for Bigamy, Before the House of Peers, April 1776. In Four Books. London: Printed for J. Johnson, No. 72, St. Paul's Church-Yard, 1777. [xxiii], [1], 449, [15] pp. Octavo (8-1/4" x 5"; 21 x 13 cm). Contemporary sheep, expertly rebacked retaining the original spine with raised bands, gilt fillets and early hand-lettered title. Minor scuffing to boards, moderate rubbing to edges, corners bumped; hinges mended. Moderate toning, light foxing in places, a few corner folds, later owner signature (M. Gadson) at head of title. Item housed in a quarter morocco clamshell case, raise bands and gilt fillets, title and publication date to spine. A very good copy. $7,500. * Only edition. A cornerstone in the evolution of women's legal history, this 1777 treatise represents the definitive Enlightenment-era synthesis of gender and the law. While Thomas Edgar's The Lawes Resolutions of Womens Rights (1632) was the first work on the subject, this volume is the first to apply a systematic, modern philosophical approach to the legal status of women. It was issued by the influential publisher J. Johnson, known for his association with radical thinkers and his later patronage of Mary Wollstonecraft, placing this work at the heart of 18th-century intellectual reform. Legal historian Sir William Holdsworth held the text in the highest regard, considering it "the best of the earlier books on the subject" for its clarity and superior organization.
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