Webster Noah Littlejohn David (2 results)

84 [1] pp. Folio, publisher's cloth-backed boards. First edition; one of 500 copies. A few small and unobtrusive spots on the rear board and slightest of sunning at the top edge of the boards; otherwise, unworn, clean, tight and sound; contents fine.

Hardcover. Condition: Fine. No Jacket. 1st Edition. "Illustrated with a matched pair of original leaves from A Dictionary of the English Language by Samuel John, A.M. (1755) and An American Dictionary of the English Language by Noah Webster, LL.D. (1828)". Size of binding: 10 ¼ inches x 12 ¾ in., title-page, colophon page, dedication page; followed by quote in black letter, from Genesis XI, 1-9; typographic page with definitions of "babble" from Johnson & Webster, with reproduction of a woodcut of the Tower of Babel; followed by a quotation from J.-L. Borges "The Library of Babel": pp. [1-8], [9]-84 + printed title + 2 original leaves from the first editions [1755 & 1828] of both dictionaries; illustrated with reproductions of titlepages, prints, etc. Webster page (9 ½ in. x 12 in.): Shirt-Shoe; [reverse is]: Shoe-Shore. The page shows age-related tanning, spotting. Johnson page (9 ½ in. x 16 ¼ in.): Shivery-Shoemaker; [reverse is]: Shog-Shoot. Some light spotting, the page has been folded, and the lower left-hand corner is also folded, so this folio size page fits into the book, this area shows a crease and a small tear to the page. Both pages define the word: shoe. Dark blue cloth spine and sides with a red leather title label mounted on the spine and gilt-lettered: JOHNSON-WEBSTER, with gilt border; lighter blue, textured paper over boards, with gilt design along the edge of the paper at the cloth, on both covers. With the bookplate of: Ben D. Zevin, Cleveland From his Library of Books about Books, on the front paste-down; he was the President of Cleveland, Ohio based World Publishing, publishers of dictionaries, of which Ben Zevin, once had a large personal collection. A small indentation to the upper margins of the front flyleaves and titlepage. Weight: 1 ¾ lbs. …