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The Political History of the Devil, as well Ancient as Modern, in Two Parts. Part I: containing a State of the Devil's Circumstances and Various Turns of his Affairs ... Part II: containing his More Private Conduct, down to the Present Times ..
by [DEFOE, Daniel]
- Used
- very good
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Very Good
- Seller
-
Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: Printed for T. Warner, 1726. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good. London, Printed for T. Warner, 1726 [first edition]. Octavo, [viii], 408 pages plus an engraved frontispiece. Early 'Cambridge'-style panelled calf, later rebacked with cloth but retaining the original backstrip with burgundy morocco labels lettered and tooled in gilt (minor loss to the head and foot, and now with a protective layer of glossy varnish or paste applied during the indifferent conservation process); edges sprinkled red; endpapers and initial binder's blank offset and discoloured; scattered light foxing; minimal signs of age and use (including a short sealed tear to three leaves); a very good copy (internally in excellent condition). The first edition of this work on the supernatural published anonymously by Daniel Defoe (circa 1660-1731), better known as a novelist, satirist and journalist. 'Defoe, a Protestant Dissenter, believed in the devil as a physical being at work in the world. "The Political History of the Devil" suggests that the devil appears on earth both in his own form and through inhabiting the bodies and minds of other beings. Defoe was strongly anti-Catholic and here he associates the devil with Catholicism, specifically with the Pope' (British Library website). It is perhaps telling that the frontispiece depicts the Pope surrounded by Catholic prelates, with a Turk and woman 'en décolleté' in the foreground, both with cloven hooves!
'Part I gives an account of the Devil after his expulsion from Heaven, together with "Mr Milton's absurdities on that subject" (p. 77), and of his establishing a new kingdom after the Flood. Part II discusses his "Agents or Missionaries" (p. 226) (witches, warlocks, oracles, etc), his part in pagan religion and his personal appearance, including his famous cloven foot, bringing his history down to the present' (Furbank: 'A Critical Bibliography of Daniel Defoe', #228, page 221).
Provenance: Charles Fairfax Murray, influential artist and art dealer associated with the Pre-Raphaelite School, with his library label on the front pastedown. Earlier provenance from the library of John Montagu, 2nd Duke of Montagu (1689-1749), with his gilt armorial stamp on the lower spine label (a griffin's head, ducal coronet and garter), and with an engraved library label featuring the same crest on the front pastedown (with manuscript insertions in pencil indicating that this book was housed in Case B, Shelf 6. The stamp does not match precisely any of the six stamps associated with Montagu illustrated in the British Armorial Bindings database at the University of Toronto).
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Details
- Bookseller
- Michael Treloar Antiquarian Booksellers
(AU)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 122855
- Title
- The Political History of the Devil, as well Ancient as Modern, in Two Parts. Part I: containing a State of the Devil's Circumstances and Various Turns of his Affairs ... Part II: containing his More Private Conduct, down to the Present Times ..
- Author
- [DEFOE, Daniel]
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First Edition
- Publisher
- Printed for T. Warner
- Place of Publication
- London
- Date Published
- 1726
Terms of Sale
Michael Treloar Antiquarian Booksellers
If found to be incorrectly described, goods may be returned, provided notification is given within seven days of receipt. Postage and insurance are extra; uninsured parcels are sent at the purchaser's risk.
About the Seller
Michael Treloar Antiquarian Booksellers
Biblio member since 2006
Adelaide, South Australia
About Michael Treloar Antiquarian Booksellers
The business was established in Adelaide in March 1976 and is a longstanding member of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Antiquarian Booksellers (ANZAAB) and the Australian Antique Dealers Association (AADA). A large out-of-print and antiquarian stock is maintained at our retail outlet in the centre of Adelaide; mail-order catalogues of our specializations are issued and a representative selection of our stock is online.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Rebacked
- having had the material covering the spine replaced. ...
- Calf
- Calf or calf hide is a common form of leather binding. Calf binding is naturally a light brown but there are ways to treat the...
- Edges
- The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Morocco
- Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- New
- A new book is a book previously not circulated to a buyer. Although a new book is typically free of any faults or defects, "new"...
- Offset
- A technique of printing where the inked image or text is ...
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- Spine Label
- The paper or leather descriptive tag attached to the spine of the book, most commonly providing the title and author of the...
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