Available Copies from Independent Booksellers
Bernard de Fontenelle; John Glanvill (tr). A Plurality of Worlds. Nonesuch Press, 1929.
Price: US$60.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: Vellum covers. Front hinge broken. #723/1200cc.
Seller: Moe's Books, Berkeley, CA, U.S.A.
Price: US$64.41 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: The Nonesuch Press, 1929, number 57 of 1200 copies for sale [in the UK]. Limp vellum, 8vo, x,138,[i]pp, decoration. No slip-case, a very good copy. /0.3uk
Seller: GfB, the Colchester Bookshop, Colchester, United Kingdom
Price: US$64.41 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: First edition thus, 1929. This is number 613 of an edition of 1200 copies. Colour stencilled illustrations by T. L. Poulton. Top edges gilt. Page edges uncut. Bound in the publishers full limp vellum. Some light creasing and marking to the covers and the spine is foxed and lightly marked. Housed in the publishers green paper covered slipcase which is decorated with gilt starbursts, etc. Some light rubbing and snags to the edges, else very good copy. 138 p.
Seller: James Hine, Ilminster, SOMER, United Kingdom
Fontenelle, Bernard & Glanvill, John & Garnett, David. A PLURALITY OF WORLDS. Nonesuch Press, 1929.
Price: US$90.44 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: . 1929 Nonesuch Press, 1688 translation limited edition 1200 copies number 478, soft vellum covers, in decorated slipcase, printed on van gelderpaper at the Curwen press
Seller: GREENSLEEVES BOOKS, Oxford, United Kingdom
Price: US$95.00 + shipping
Description: 8vo (8.125" x 5.25"), full limp vellum, gilt title at spine and decorative gilt stamping at upper cover. ix, 138 pp., colophon. Bookplate of Wyman Parker at lower left corner of front paste-down. CONDITION: Very good, corners slightly bumped. Nonesuch Press edition of this work first published in 1686, first translated into English by John Glanvill in 1688. Declaring to those aware of recent developements in Natural Philosophy that he does "not pretend to instruct, but only to divert them by presenting.in a gay and pleasing dress, that which they already know," Fontenelle's A Plurality of Worlds is a classic of popular-scientific writing from the Age of Reason. First published forty-five years after Descartes' Meditations on First Philosophy and a century after the Copernican revolution, this dialogue not only explains the Cartesian dualism of mind and body with respect to terrestrial and intergalactic bodies, but like Descartes before him, Fontenelle's writing in French rather than Latin made this book accessible to the less-educated. Tremendously popular both in France and across the Channel, the first English-edition, whose text is reproduced in the present edition, "seemed to the British peculiarly their own book, read for at least a century both by men and.ladies," becoming known as a book "that warranted a subtitle.'Science made clear to the Meanest Capacities, even to those of Women and Children'" (Nicolson 59). Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle (February 1657-January 1757) was neither an astronomer nor a scientist by training, but rather a poet, dramatist, and lawyer. Writing and revising A Plurality of Worlds throughout his life to best-accord with the then-most accurate astronomical observations, he became a precursor to the boom of popular-science writers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, who, like Fontenelle, sought especially to educate women and children (Stableford 394).Best remembered today for explaining "in terms that could be understood by an intelligent but untrained mind, recent discoveries in the world of stars," Fontenelle treated "difficult subjects in a light style, playfully and with a touch of affectation that detracted nothing from the seriousness of the given explanations" (Gillespie 59). John Glanvill (1664-1735) was an English poet, translator, and barrister, known for his penchant for drink and his foul-mouth, who died a wealthy bachelor. Best remembered for his translation of Fontenelle's text, he also translated Seneca and Horace. This is copy 834 of 1200 distributed by the Nonesuch Press; 400 additional copies were printed for sale by Random House in the U.S. From the colophon: "This edition of Fontenelle's La Pluralité des Mondes in John Glanvill's translation of 1688.has been designed by Francis Meynell, composed by T. W. Hay at the Nonesuch Press, and printed on Van Gelder paper at the Curwen Press. The colour-stencilled decorations are by T. L. Pouton; the remainder are composed of astronomical signs." REFERENCES: Dreyfus, A History of the Nonesuch Press, 65; Gillespie, Charles Coulston. Dictionary of Scientific Biography. vols 5&6. New York: Scribner, 1981; Nicolson, Marjorie Hope. Voyages to the Moon. New York: Macmillan, 1948; Stableford, Brian. Science: Fact and Science Fiction: An Encyclopedia. New York: Taylor & Francis, 2006.
Seller: James Arsenault & Company, ABAA, Arrowsic, ME, U.S.A.
Fontenelle, Bernard De. A Plurality of Words. The Nonesuch Press, London, 1929.
Price: US$100.00 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: #1546 of an edition of 1600, 1200 copies for sale by the Nonesuch Press, and 400 copies for sale in the United States by Random House. John Glanvill's translation of 1688. Designed by Francis Meynell, printed on Van Gelder paper at the Curwen Press, colour-stencil decorations by T.L. Poulton. Near Fine, gilt at spine a bit dulled yet legible, prior owner bookplate and gift inscription front end pages, rear end page toned from old paper laid in. Lacking the slipcase. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall
Seller: Dale Steffey Books, ABAA, ILAB, Bloomington, IN, U.S.A.
Price: US$100.00 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: Limited and Numbered Edition. #1240 of an edition of 1600, 1200 copies for sale by the Nonesuch Press, and 400 copies for sale in the United States by Random House, 1929. A Very Good copy. 8vo., 138 pp., bound in limp parchment with gilt decoration and gilt title on spine. Title-page vignette of astrological symbols printed in red and black, eight headpieces in blue and gray with gold accents, all hand-stenciled by T.L. Poulton. Printed in Janson type on Van Gelder paper at the Curwen Press. Covers lightly soiled and rubbed, particularly the spine. Spine lettering somewhat dulled. Parchment causing creasing to paste downs. Small area of front end paper browned by laid in paper. Tight, with clean text. Lacking slipcase. Nonesuch Press was a private press founded in 1922 in London by Francis Meynell, his second wife Vera Mendel, and their mutual friend David Garnett, co-owner of Birrell & Garnett's bookshop in Soho's Gerrard Street, in the basement of which the press began.
Seller: Frey Fine Books, Rougemont, NC, U.S.A.
Price: US$110.49 + shipping
Description: gr. 8°, mit 10 (9 mehrfarbigen) Vignetten, 4 (w) Bll., X, 138 S., 1 Bll., flexibler Pergament mit goldgepr. Deckelsignet und Rückentitel über 3 Bünden - Ex. 1475/1600 der GA. John Glanville's Übersetzung von 1688 mit einem Vorwort von David Garnett. Die Illustrationen/Vignetten besorgte T. L. Poulton. Vorderer Deckel mit schwachen oberflächlichen Schab-/Nagespuren, ebenso mit leichten Spuren am rechten Deckelrand. papier altersbedingt etwas gebräunt, sehr vereinzelt minimal braunfleckig
Seller: Bachmann & Rybicki UG haftungsbeschränkt, Dresden, Germany
de Fontenelle, Bernard de. A Plurality of Worlds. The Nonesuch Press, 1929.
Price: US$122.38 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: Limited Edition, number 1197 of 1688. This edition was designed for the Nonesuch Press by Francis Meynell, printed on Van Gelder paper at the Curwen Press. Colour-stencilled decorations by T.L Poulton, the remainder composed of astronomical signs in lozenge. Extremities of the slipcase are rubbed and cornered. A good to very good copy. An absolutely astounding book.
Seller: Burley Fisher Books, London, United Kingdom
Price: US$125.00 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: No. 867 of an edition limited to 1,600 copies (400 for sale in the U.S.), hand-numbered on rear colophon, bound in limp vellum, lettered in gilt, deckled text block edges with top edge in gilt, slipcased. Designed by Francis Meynell, composed by T. W. Hay, printed on Van Gelder paper at the Curwen Press. Minor tanning/foxing to covers, with a hint of dampstaining along back cover fore-edge, bend/crease to bottom back corner. Slightly foxed endpapers, former owner's illus. book plate mounted inside front cover, interior otherwise clean and unmarked. Minor shelf wear to slipcase. Glanvill's 1688 translation. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall
Seller: Saucony Book Shop, Kutztown, PA, U.S.A.
Fontenelle, Bernard De. A plurality of worlds. The Nonesuch Press, [England], 1929.
Price: US$125.00 + shipping
Description: Limited to 1600 copies, 8vo, pp. x, 138, [2]; full vellum with gilt title on spine and gilt design on upper cover, t.e.g., color stencil illustrations by T. L. Poulton, discoloration to binding along spine, otherise a tight, bright copy in decorated slipcase. Originally published in 1686, this book was one of the first to explore scientific concepts in popular language, and one of the earliest to discuss the possibility of extraterrestrial life.
Seller: Rulon-Miller Books (ABAA / ILAB), St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.
Price: US$125.00 + shipping
Description: In the Nonesuch Century, Meynell noted: ÒUsually a stenciled illustration is printed in black, and color is thereafter applied to the key pattern. Here there is no printing at all: the whole decoration is stenciled.Ó Octavo. x, 138 pp. With a title-page vignette of astrological symbols printed in red and black. Also with eight headpieces in blue and gray with gold accents, all hand-stenciled by T.L. Poulton. Printed in Janson type on Van Gelder paper at the Curwen Press. Original full limp parchment with gilt decoration and gilt title on spine Minor toning to front cover and to edges. A near-fine copy of a beautiful Nonesuch Press production. One of 1,200 copies for sale by the Nonesuch Press. Another 400 copies were sold in the United States by Random House. Designed by Francis Meynell and composed by T.W. Hay. The text is taken from the first known edition of GlanvillÕs translation (1688). Dreyfus 65. Nonesuch Century 65.
Seller: Michael R. Thompson Books, A.B.A.A., Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A.
FONTENELLE, BERNARD DE. A Plurality of Worlds. The Nonesuch Press, London, 1929.
Price: US$125.00 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: Full vellum wraps, gilt, bottom front cover bumped, faintly soiled. Limited edition (814 of 1200). Pages uncut. Interior crisp and clean. Translated from French by John Glanvill. This book of philosophy for women masquerades as fiction. Size: 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall
Seller: Contact Editions, ABAC, ILAB, Toronto, ON, Canada
DE FONTENELLE, Bernard. A Plurality of Worlds. Nonesuch, London, 1929.
Price: US$150.00 + shipping
Description: John Glanvill's Translation, with a Prologue by David Garnett. Illustrated with 7 color stencil vignette. 140pp. Short 8vo, full limp vellum (lightly dust soiled); uncut edges, t.e.g. Housed in a patterned board slipcase. (London): Nonesuch Press, 1929. A very good copy in a good slipcase. Limited numbered edition. A delightful classic of 17th century science.
Seller: Argosy Book Store, ABAA, ILAB, New York, NY, U.S.A.
FONTENELLE, BERNARD DE. A Plurality of Worlds. The Nonesuch Press, England, 1929.
Price: US$175.00 + shipping
Description: Limited Edition Number 538/1600. John Glanville's Translation with a prologue by David Garnett. 8 stencilled color illustrations by T. L. Poulton. White limp parchment wraps in a slightly worn but original slip-case. 1600 copies on van gelder paper of which this volume is numbered 538. A lovely copy. Ransome, Selective Checklist, page 170. NF.
Seller: First Place Books - ABAA, ILAB, Walkersville, MD, U.S.A.
Price: US$175.00 + shipping
Description:
Seller: Jeremy Norman's historyofscience, Novato, CA, U.S.A.
Price: US$180.36 + shipping
Description: A Nonesuch limited edition of the important Enlightenment scientific work by Bernard de Fontenelle, a smart work in the original slipcase. A limited edition work, limited to 1,200 copies for sale by the Nonesuch Press, of which this is numbered 1,108.In the original publisher's limp vellum wraps, in the original publisher's decorative slipcase, in a very good condition.A popular early science work on cosmic pluralism, a fascinating work on astronomy.This was Fontenelle's most famous work, first published in France in 1686, and indeed was one of the first major works of the Age of Enlightenment.Fontenelle is known for his accessible treatment of scientific subjects during the beginnings of the Age of Enlightenment.This edition uses the 1688 translation by John Glanvill.Colour-stencilled decorations throughout by T. L. Poulton.The Nonesuch Press specialised in limited edition and private press. They were founded by Francis Meynell, his second wife, Vera Mendel, and their friend, David Garnett. Their aspiration was for their publications to be aligned with the same aesthetic standards as the private press movement. They were unusual as they used a small Albion press to design the books, but had them printed by commercial printers. In doing so, books with the quality of a fine-press were produced, but available to a wider audience at lower prices. In the original publisher's vellum wraps. Externally, generally smart, with light discolouration, as is usual with a vellum binding. Internally, firmly bound. Pages are bright and clean. Slipcase is a little worn with rubbing to the extremities, in a very good condition. Very Good Indeed
Seller: Rooke Books PBFA, Bath, United Kingdom
(NONESUCH PRESS). FONTENELLE, BERNARD DE. A PLURALITY OF WORLDS. Nonesuch Press, [London], 1929.
Price: US$182.00 + shipping
Description: 208 x 134 mm. (8 1/8 x 5 1/4"). x, 138 pp., [1] leaf (colophon). Translated by John Glanvill, with a prologue by David Garnett. Publisher's flexible vellum, upper cover with gilt astrological design, flat spine with vertical titling, edges untrimmed and two-thirds of the leaves UNOPENED. In the original (slightly worn) green paper slipcase printed with gold stars. Eight astrological decorations designed by T. L. Poulton and stencilled at the Curwen Press in blue, gray, and gold. Front pastedown with neat pencilled signature of M. Slocum, Pasadena. Dreyfus 65. âA touch of browning to untrimmed edges, otherwise a very fine copy, virtually unchanged from the day it was issued. Described by press founder Francis Meynell as "a little peach of a book," this discussion on the heliocentric universe was one of the significant works of the Enlightenment. First published in 1686, it takes the form of a conversation between a philosopher and a marquise on scientific theories about the cosmos, and it was credited for stimulating public interest in astronomy. The playful astrological ornaments and colorful stencils make this fine translation especially charming.
Seller: Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA), McMinnville, OR, U.S.A.
Bernard De Fontenelle. A Pluralilty of Worlds. Nonesuch Press, London, 1929.
Price: US$200.00 + shipping
Condition: Fine
Description: "Fontenelle's treatise . marks a true watershed in the history of the idea of the plurality of worlds . written in a language that the normal educated person could understand, and . see the basic concepts of the new Copernican astronomy as supplemented by Descartes. 8vo Original full cream vellum gilt printed on hand made paper all rag, letter press by the Nonesuch Press. fine copy with fine text crisp limited to only 1200 copies with this being copy number 588, only 400 copies were designated for sale in the United States, note one neat armorial book plate else fine. rare book first issued in 1688 in English. Foreward by David Garnett and translation by Thomas Glanville.
Seller: Hirschfeld Galleries, Saint Louis, MO, U.S.A.
Price: US$322.07 + shipping
Description: First Nonesuch edition, limited issue, number 1,289 of 1,600 copies with coloured-stencilled illustrations. This copy is inscribed on the front flyleaf by Francis Meynell, the co-founder of the Nonesuch press, to his niece: "Alice with love from Francis". Alice (1911-2008) was the daughter of the artist and writer Everard Meynell (1882-1926) and shared the same full name as her grandmother (1847-1922), a prominent suffragist and poet. Fontenelle's Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds wwas originally published in 1686 and was one of the first major works of the Age of Enlightenment to discuss cosmic pluralism. Dreyfus 65. Octavo. Original limp vellum sewn on three leather cords, spine lettered in gilt, astrological signs in gilt on front cover, top edge gilt on the rough, other edges uncut. With original gold and green patterned slip case. Coloured-stencilled illustrations by T. L. Poulton. Centre cord lacking, light toning and rubbing to spine, cover with signs of handling; slipcase slightly sunned, extremities rubbed and worn at corners: a very good copy in like slipcase.
Seller: Peter Harrington. ABA/ ILAB., London, United Kingdom