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The Life of Our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: Containing the Genealogy of Our Glorious Redeemer; His Nativity, Preservation, Circumcision, Baptism, Fasting, Doctrine, Calling the Apostles, Miracles, Crucifixion, Resurrection, and Ascension. Together with the Lives and Sufferings of His Holy Apostles, Evangelists, and Other Primitive Martyrs, Who Have Laid Down Their Lives for the Establishment of Christianity. To Which is Added, A Full Defence of Christianity, Against all the Objections of Atheists, Deists, and the Infidels of the Present Age, Who Have Endeavoured to Place Mankind on a Level with the Beasts That Perish. The Whole Being Calculated to Promote the Knowledge of Our Holy Religion, a Firm Faith in the Merits of Our Blessed Redeemer, and the Practice of Every Christian Virtue.
Fleetwood, Rev. John, D.D.
London: Printed for J. Cooke, at Shakespear?s Head, in Pater-Noster Row, MDCCLXVI [1766]. First Edition. Quarto (approx. 10.5 x 8.5 inches). [xliv] + 452 pp. + index (unpaged). Illustrated with numerous copperplate engravings throughout, depicting biblical scenes such as The Nativity, The Annunciation, The Presentation in the Temple, The Flight into Egypt, The Wise Men?s Offering, and Jesus Among the Doctors (at least 25 plates based on collation with known copies; all appear present here). Printed on laid paper with wide margins, showing expected age-toning, occasional foxing, and minor spotting/stains, but text and illustrations remain clear and legible without major losses or tears. Includes a lengthy preface, introductory dissertation on the evidences for Christianity, and an extensive list of subscribers (spanning multiple pages, alphabetical by name with locations and titles).
Full contemporary calf binding with gilt-tooled floral motifs on spine panels (faded and worn). Boards are fully detached at hinges, with significant rubbing, scuffing, chipping, and cracking to leather; corners bumped and exposed. Spine ends chipped, with loss to head and tail. Top edge of text block shows burn damage, darkened and charred as if the book was rescued from a fire, affecting the upper margins of some pages but not impacting text or plates significantly (no text loss observed). Bottom and fore-edges toned but intact. Marbled endpapers in blue, red, and yellow combed pattern, with some fading and wear. No ownership inscriptions or bookplates throughout, except for the front free endpaper, which bears a series of handwritten numbers in black pen: arranged in columns. Possibly a code, inventory mark, or mathematical notation; origin unknown. Rear endpapers clean. Binding would benefit from professional restoration, but the volume remains a solid, complete example of this scarce 18th-century religious text, valued for its apologetic content and engravings. A rare first edition of Fleetwood?s popular work, blending biography, hagiography, and Christian defense.
While 20 photos provide a glimpse into this remarkable 1766 first edition, they simply aren?t enough to fully capture its timeless beauty, intricate details, and the aura of history it exudes?from the faded gilt on the spine to the subtle textures of the engravings and marbled endpapers. This book is also profoundly mysterious; I?ve owned it for many years and often pondered the enigmatic adventures it must have endured, especially surviving a fire that left its top edge charred, as if snatched from the flames in some dramatic, untold chapter of its long life.
Please feel free to contact me for additional photos, close-ups of specific pages or engravings, or any further details about this fascinating 1766 first edition?I?m happy to provide more to help you appreciate its unique history and condition!
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