The Life and Works of Charles Lamb, Elia Edition 7/480 (12 Volumes, Complete)

Charles Lamb

Published by Lamb Publishing Company, 1899

***SCARCE COMPLETE 12-VOLUME SET BOUND IN FINE 1/2 CALF LEATHER BINDING*** The Life and Works of Charles Lamb, the Elia Edition #7/480 with Introduction, Notes and Some Editorial Work. Collated and complete in 12 volumes. Published in 1899 by Lamb Publishing Company in New York. Octavo, 9.25 x 6.25 with 62 beautiful full-page illustrations (12 mezzotint frontispieces & 50 photogravures). Bound in 1/2 brown contemporary calf leather over marbled paper with matching marble endpapers. Five gilded raised spine bands and intricately gilded and tooled compartments. One red and one light brown gilded spine label per volume. Marble endpapers. Top edge gilt, other edges rough cut. Thick, high-quality archival quality paper with paper watermarks in each volume. Tissue-guarded plates with captions describing each photogravure or mezzotint being protected. (The production of mezzotints and photogravures is a very time-consuming and expensive process! It produced high quality book illustrations and fine art prints during the Victorian age and was reserved for the finest works.) OVERALL CONDITION: NEAR FINE Charles Lamb (10 February 1775 27 December 1834) was an English essayist, poet, and antiquarian, best known for his Essays of Elia and for the children's book Tales from Shakespeare, co-authored with his sister, Mary Lamb (1764 1847). Friends with such literary luminaries as Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Robert Southey, William Wordsworth, Dorothy Wordsworth and William Hazlitt, Lamb was at the centre of a major literary circle in England. He has been referred to by E. V. Lucas, his principal biographer, as "the most lovable figure in English literature". William Wordsworth wrote to John Scott as early as 1815 that Lamb "writes prose exquisitely" and this was five years before Lamb began The Essays of Elia for which he is now most famous. WORKS: Blank Verse, poems, 1798 A Tale of Rosamund Gray, and Old Blind Margaret, 1798 John Woodvil, verse drama, 1802 Tales from Shakespeare, 1807 The Adventures of Ulysses, 1808 Specimens of English Dramatic Poets who Lived About the Time of Shakespeare, 1808 On the Tragedies of Shakespeare, 1811 Witches and Other Night Fears, 1821 Essays of Elia, 1823 The Pawnbroker's Daughter, 1825 The Last Essays of Elia, 1833 Eliana, 1867 CONDITION DETAILS: The set is in beautiful NEAR FINE antiquarian condition. Strong bindings with square spines, firm hinges and joints and tight pages. The usual age-toning to page ends and endpapers. Some rubbing and edge wear else FINE. Interiors are exceptionally clean with bright white, crisp pages with minimal evidence of wear - just the isolated spot of foxing or very infrequent mark. Former owner bookplate on front pastedown of each volume. Volumes I & II some heavier rubbing and slight fraying to crown of spine. Volume IV a blue mark on fore-edge. Overall, a *SCARCE* & gorgeous finely bound 1/2 calf limited edition luxurious 125-year-old set in NEAR FINE antiquarian condition. I have bought and sold books and art on eBay for over a decade and have a 100% satisfaction rating. I am now selling on ABE Books. I m a collector first and know what it's like to receive items not matching the seller s descriptions or that were poorly packaged and damaged in transit. That is why I offer a 100% satisfaction, money back guarantee, and go to great lengths to accurately describe my rare, signed and collectible books and post pictures of the "actual book." I carefully package and ship your newly acquired treasure(s) and ship within 1 business day of receiving your order. Seller Inventory # 240126002

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Life and Works of Charles Lamb, Elia ...
Publisher: Lamb Publishing Company
Publication Date: 1899
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Near Fine
Edition: 1st Edition, Limited Edition