TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE. Into several remote nations by RACKHAM. ARTHUR. Illustrates.; LAMB. CHARLES AND MARY - 1909

Chatto & Windus. London. 1891. FIRST EDITION. 3 Volumes. 8vo. (7.5 x 5 inches). Inscribed by the author on the half-title of volume I, "A. P. Watt with the Author's kindest wishes. 6th June 1891". 12 mono full page plates by Green, each with a tissue guard. Original dark green cloth blocked with elaborate blind decoration, spines lettered in gilt, floral patterned endpapers. Cloth very slightly rubbed at extremities and a few thin white streaks to the front board of volume one and some light foxing to the decorative endpapers, otherwise clean, tight and bright throughout. Overall a better than very good set. Alexander Pollock Watt (1838–1914) was the first successful British literary agent. His agency, started in 1875, is still active today and is, in fact, the longest-established literary agency in the world. He acted as Besant's agent, and also his literary executor.

Chatto & Windus. London. 1888. FIRST EDITION. 3 Volumes. 8vo. (7.5 x 5 inches). Inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper of volume I, "A. P. Watt. From the Author". Original brown cloth blocked in metallic blue in a geometric pattern to the spines and front boards. The spines are lettered in gilt. Floral patterned endpapers. Spines rolled a little, some light spotting to endpapers and title pages but generally a clean, tight and bright copy. Overall a better than very good set. Alexander Pollock Watt (1838–1914) was the first successful British literary agent. His agency, started in 1875, is still active today and is, in fact, the longest-established literary agency in the world. He acted as Besant's agent, and also his literary executor.

Houghton, Mifflin & Co. The Riverside Press. Boston. U. S. A. 1898 + 1906. FIRST EDITIONS. 2 volumes. 8vo. (7.9 x 5.8 inches). The second work is the dedication copy. The printed dedication leaf reads: " To C. N. R. Thy acceptance Maketh blest". Both volumes are inscribed by the Author to Caroline Nelson Russell and Polly and the Aunt contains the author's manuscript addition of the real names of characters where they have been changed for publication, as well as some notes. Illustrated with mono portrait plates, each with the subjects names and birth (& some death) dates written by the Author on the reverse. Fine copies in fine contemporary presentation leather bindings by the Riverside Bindery. Both bound in full red morocco. Spines with raised bands. Compartments decorated and lettered in gilt. Double gilt ruled border on boards. Top edge gilt. Board edges with decorative gilt roll. Inner boards with decorative gilt borders to the leather turn-ins. Marbled endpapers. The… Read More

Gyldendalske Boghandels Forlag (F. Hegel & Son). Kobenhavn (Copenhagen). 1890. FIRST EDITION. Preceded by 12 copies printed in London, England, with a view to securing copyright. 8vo. (7 x 4.8 inches). iv, 236pp. A fine copy in publishers original green cloth binding with elaborate decoration and lettering in black and gilt to the front board and spine. Rear board with blind stamped borders and central publishers logo. Decorative floral endpapers. All edges gilt. Previous owners neat oval leather bookplate, lettered and decorated in gilt, on the front paste-down endpaper. A lovely copy of this famous work. --- Printing and the mind of man no. 375.

The Modern Press. 1886. First separate issue, larger untrimmed variant, inscribed by the author. Originally printed in the April 1885-March 1886 issues of "To-Day", this first edition was printed from the corrected and revised stereos of the original setting for the journal. This is the larger, variant issue, with the preliminary blank leaf bound at the beginning. Shaw explains the variant this way: "The size of the bigger copies is due to the fact that they reproduced not only the type but the format of To-day. But the booksellers objected that in this form it occupied too much room to be displayed on their stalls and counters. It was probably cut down as far as the margins would allow to meet this objection" (Laurence). Inscribed by Shaw, "This is the first Issue, which was so tall that the booksellers refused to exhibit it on their counters, as it took too much room. So it had to be cut down. G. Bernard Shaw 26/7/30." . ---- Housed in a green cloth covered chemise and quarter green morocco slip… Read More

Garden City Publishing Company. Star Books. New York. Circa 1931. EARLY U. S. EDITION. Inscribed by Shaw. 8vo.(8.4 x 5.7 inches). Shaw has inscribed the half title page; " Inscribed to Mr. Robert F. de Graaf. G. Bernard Shaw. 14th November 1931. I vehemently repudiate the portrait on the jacket. It has the horrible quality of being very like somebody else - I cannot for the life of me remember whom. You should have picked out something more impressive. No intelligent Woman would trust a man with a face like that." A fine clean copy of the book in publishers cloth and the original silver, black and white dustwrapper with portrait illustration of Shaw to front panel, designed by Robert De Graaf. Minor rubbing and a couple of small chips to extremities but overall a very good example indeed. Housed in a grey cloth covered clam-shell case with grey leather label, lettered in gilt.

J and R. Tonson. London. 1761. NEW EDITION. Three 4to volumes. (11.9 x 9.6 inches). Vol.1. lxxix, xxii,491pp; - Vol.2. 460pp, 116pp indexes; - Vol.3. 690pp, iipp index. (2 of the last 2 leaves, 4T & 4Ti have been bound in. One in the correct place at the end of the text and again, randomly, in the middle of one of the Poems on several occasions). Illustrated with 20 full page copper engraved plates, including 3 portraits as the frontispiece for each volume, plus 17 fine illustrations by Francis Hayman, each with some offsetting to the page opposite. Neat contemporary previous owners names to the top of the title pages and rear of frontispieces. Some minor foxing to the margins of a few pages, and darker offsetting to 2 leaves where a previous owner had inserted a fern leaf, otherwise a very good set which has been finely bound in recent full speckled brown calf. Spines with raised bands, the compartments double ruled in gilt. Red labels, gilt. Double ruled blind border on boards. An attractive… Read More

The Roycroft Printing Shop. New York. 1896. First edition, pirated by Elbert Hubbard, founder of the Roycroft movement. 8vo. Inscribed by the author on the title page, "I repudiate all responsibility for this bowdlerised piracy. Elbert Hubbard, who perpetrated it, is dead. Why not bury it with him? G. Bernard Shaw. 27/5/22." Additionally inscribed by Hubbard on the front free endpaper, "To Leonard D. Abbott with all good wishes from his friend Elbert Hubbard." Original cloth-backed boards. Housed in a blue half morocco slipcase and chemise. A fine copy.

Day and Son. Lithographers to the Queen. London. Published April 2nd 1860. 1860. FIRST EDITION. 4to. (11.6 x 8.1 inches). Illustrated with a total of 102 fine full page Chromolithograhic plates; Half title, title page, 99 numbered plates - each with a tissue paper guard, and the colophon leaf. 104 pp of text, printed in black within decorative red borders. A fine copy in a beautiful designer binding by The Ashley Bindery, of Somerset. Stamped to the rear inner board- 19 AB 81. Full black morocco with multi colour design of two boxed lines in brown morocco across both boards and the spine, with tan, green and red design within each box. The spine is also lettered in gilt. Wood effect endpapers. All edges gilt. Housed in a felt lines chemise with the same wood effect paper on the boards and a black morocco spine, lettered in gilt and with one of the red designs onlaid between the title and authors. This then fits into a felt lined slip case covered with the wood effect paper. A fine and beautiful… Read More

Hurst and Blackett, Successors to Henry Colburn. London. 1862. SECOND ENGLISH EDITION. Three volumes. 8vo. (8 x 5.3 inches). viii,395pp. : viii, 408pp. :viii, 404pp, 8pp publishers adverts. A few minor thumb marks but overall a bright, clean and tight set in the original publishers purple grained cloth bindings. Spines ruled, lettered and decorated in gilt. Boards with ruled and decorative blind stamped borders. Pale green coated endpapers. There are markings to the front boards where Mudie library labels have been carefully removed and there is a list of recent works of fiction in the Mudie select library mounted onto the rear pastedown of the third volume but the superior condition of this set suggests that it was rarely borrowed, and if so, read very carefully. Some mottling to the cloth on the spines but the gilt still bright and vibrant. Hinges are all tight and firm. Some fairly minor bumping to the extremities but overall a very good example of this classic, issued in the same format as the… Read More