Dodsley Pub (1 results)

Hardcover. Condition: VG for age. 4th ed.?, 1st-1758 (but 1748 3 vols). Binding: all volumes generally clean in early full leather, with good gilt dec. spines, names & vol. number labels all present, some variation in shape of boards but dark strip top fr. vol.4 and odd red patch towards top back inner edge vol.3, all corners have routine light rubbing/bumping, top spines vols 3 & 5 slightly rubbed, all board edges have gilt dec. but tops dust darkened, All text-block edges red tinted. Internally: all vols have signs to front pastedown and top half title dated 1880 and 1788 respectively (though latter oddly dated 1810 in vol.4), vol 4 lacks end music leaf called for but no sign of removal, p.347 vol 3 (last text leave) excised below top 2 quatrains; all vols tanned to pastedown and end-paper edges, extending inwards for a few leaves, occ. light marginal tanning elsewhere; all vols have central engr. t.p. cartouche and engr headpiece panel to first poem, vol.6 has large ngr. endpiece after final poem and dec.engr. horizontal dividing lines throughout, vol.3 has an engraved full page plate on p.302 facing opening of Mr Mason's 'Musaeus.' with a further large engr.headpiece to p.317, above John Brown D.D.'s 'An Essay on Satire', these unmentioned in 3 slipped in 1970s dealers' catalogues or current on-line descriptions slipped into vol.1 and similar plates seem to be absent from others vols. An interesting anthology of poetry and verse written from 1730s to mid 1750s (to judge from dates given in closing Indexes) with authors varying from the famous - Pope, Thomas Gray, Henry Fielding, Lord Lansdowne, and Akenside to others remembered only by academic specialists Shenstone, William Whitehead, William Somerville, aforementioned Brown, Merrick, 'Matthew Green of the Custom House' and 'J.H.' among them. An attractive set despite faults as given.