Alf von deulmen: or, the history of the emperor philip, and his daughters

London: Printed for J. Bell, 1794. Two volumes bound as one. xx, 300; [2], 305pp, [1]. Bound by J. Parkin's of Westminster in contemporary diced calf, contrasting red morocco lettering-piece, gilt. Extremities worn. Early inked ownership inscription (Mrs. Rowland, Abingdon St.) and later ink-stamp of Sir Walter John Trevelyan, Sheriff of Cornwall to recto of FFEP, Vol. I advertisement leaf (A2) detached with loss to gutter - recently naively reattached with tape, leaves browned and lightly spotted. A pencilled note to the FEP reads: 'This book once belonged to her Majesty Queen Charlotte & was bought at the sale of her books 1834', however there are no marks of ownership to corroborate this statement, nor could we locate this title in the 1819 sale catalogue of her library. The first edition in English, translated by Miss A. E. Booth, of Benedikte Naubert's (1756-1819) Alf von Dülmen (1791) an historical novel later praised by Sir Walter Scott as an 'excellent romance'. One of the first professional female authors in Germany, Naubert influenced writers including Ann Radcliffe and Friedrich Schiller and was instrumental in popularising the Gothic tropes (including desolate landscapes and ruined castles) later enthusiastically embraced by British authors of the genre. ESTC records copies at seven locations in the British Isles (BL, Cambridge, Longleat, NLW, Oxford, NT, and UCL); and a further nine worldwide (Alberta, California, California State, Chicago, Duke, Harvard, McMaster, Philadelphia, and Virginia). ESTC T99894. Garside, Raven and Schowerling 1794:40.. First edition in English. 8vo.