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Gibbon, Edward. Gibbon's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, in Six Volumes, Quarto, Abridged in Two Volumes, Octavo. Printed for G. Kearsley, Johnson's Head, Fleet Street., London, England, 1789.

Price: US$500.00 + shipping

Condition: Very Good

Description: First Abridged Edition. Two volumes, complete. Contemporary brown full leather binding with gilt lettering on red spine labels. Brown cloth-covered slipcase included. No lettering on slipcase. Each book: 5 1/2" x 8 1/2." Slipcase: 5 3/4" x 8 3/4" x 3 1/2." All pages of both volumes, complete. Vol. I: xi, [1] 2-569. Vol. II: xi, [1] 2-562. Two additional pages in back of each volume advertising books published by G. Kearsley. Former owner's signature ("G. Carrington") written in black ink on each half-title. Former owner's black-and-white illustrated bookplate tipped in on front pastedown of each volume. The bookplates have no text and show a coat of arms with the head of a unicorn as the crest, three smaller unicorn heads on the shield, and a diagonal bend running from the upper-left to lower-right behind the three unicorns. Pages are very clean and intact overall except for minuscule age toning throughout, light foxing and staining throughout, and offsetting and a few stains on front and back endpapers. Covers are very clean and intact except for slight wear to extremities and moderate rubbing and surface wear to front, back, and spine. Slipcase is virtually pristine and intact except for light to moderate fading. Very Good copies in a Near Fine slipcase. This is the First Abridged Edition of Edward Gibbon's famous work, History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Gibbon's history about the Roman Empire was originally published in six volumes from 1776-1788. The First Abridged Edition had abridged the contents of the original six volumes into two volumes. An excerpt from the Advertisement in the front of Vol. I makes a note upon this abridgment: "[B]ut if [Gibbon] has faithfully compressed in two octavo, the principal historical events which elucidate the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, and which in the original are diffused through six quarto volumes, he may claim, and, perhaps, be indulged in the humble praise of industry and accuracy. The striking features of the nations more remotely connected with the subversion of the Roman empire are slightly delineated; part relative to the state of modern Rome is intentionally omitted; and much religious disquisition has been carefully rejected." Edward Gibbon (1737-1794) was an English historian, author, and politician. Gibbon served as a Member of Parliament from 1774-1784. Gibbon is perhaps best-known for his History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire which discusses the fall of the Roman Empire and other parts of ancient Roman history from the years 98 to 1590. Among the many subtopics addressed in Gibbon's History are the peak of the Roman Empire, early Christianity, the emergence of the Roman State Church, Genghis Khan, Tamerlane, the decline of the Roman Empire and Byzantium, and ruins of the Roman Empire. According to his autobiography, Gibbon was inspired to write a history of the fall of Roman Empire during a visit to Rome in 1764. Gibbon's History was a commercial success upon its release, but from its time of publication to today, it has received mixed reviews. According to Gibbon's contemporary critics as well as modern historians, the most significant shortcoming of his History is that its central thesis claims that Rome's adoption of Christianity caused its decline and fall. Modern historians have since disproved Gibbon's idea that Christianity caused the fall of the Roman Empire. Also controversial in this work is Gibbon's criticism of other organized religions such as Judaism and Islam. However, since its publication, reviewers and historians who have taken a more favorable view of Gibbon's History commend his writing style and presentation of the material and note that in Gibbon's time, there were limited resources about ancient Roman history.

Seller: Barry Cassidy Rare Books, Sacramento, CA, U.S.A.

Gibbon, Edward. Gibbon's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire in Six Volumes Quarto Abridged in Two Volumes Octavo [2 volumes complete]. G Kearsley, London., 1789.

Price: US$903.18 + shipping

Description: 2 volumes both in Good+ condition. Edgewear and corners bumped with vertical cracks down spine of Vol. 1 and volume label absent. Chipping to spine of Vol. 1. Vol. 2 is bumped at extremities, vertical crack down back edge of spine. Both vols. have very light foxing to outer pages. Pages crisp and bright. 2 solid volumes. With bookplates of the politician and banker Thomas Somers-Cocks. xi + 569 pp + 2 pp pubs ads: xi + 562 pp + 2 pp pubs ads. 8vo full contemporary calf with red gilt title labels and green volume labels. The picture on this listing page is of the actual book for sale.

Seller: High Barn Books, Lancaster, United Kingdom

GIBBON, Edward. Gibbon's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, in Six Volumes, Quarto, Abridged in Two Volumes, Octavo. London, G. Kearsley, 1789, 1789.

Price: US$923.85 + shipping

Description: Octavo, Vol I:xii+570 pages, Vol II:xii+562 pages, original boards bound in calf, gilt lettering and raised bands on spine, marbled edges and endpapers, rubbed, lightly foxed, some chipping to the spine of both volumes, some bumped corners, a very good copy. First edition abridgement

Seller: Grant's Bookshop, Cheltenham, VIC, Australia

Gibbon, Edward. GIBBON'S HISTORY OF THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE , in Six Volumes, Quarto, ABRIDGED in Two Volumes, Octavo ( Complete 2 Volume Set ). G. Kearsley, Johnson's Head, Fleet Street, London, 1789.

Price: US$1364.52 + shipping

Condition: Very Good

Description: First Abridged Edition, complete in 2 Volumes. Each Title page Dated 1789. Vol. I, xi preliminary pages. Main Text, 569 p. pages + Publisher's advert. Vol. II, xi preliminary pages. Main text 562 pages + publisher's advert. 8 1/4" Tall. 1.5 Kilos. Set rebound in Half-Leather with Marbled paper-covered boards and Marbled endpapers. Previous owner's inscriptions, dated 1789 in corner of half-title pages. in the front advertisment page the word "compressed" is underlined and "comprised" is writtten in the fore margin. Marginal pencil mark on one page. Otherwise no other inscriptions,

Seller: Bay Books, Penzance, United Kingdom

Gibbon, Edward. Gibbon's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.Abridged in Two Volumes, Octavo.. G. Kearsley, London, 1789.

Price: US$1500.00 + shipping

Condition: Very Good

Description: Expertly rebacked in calf, retaining the old marbled boards, the pattern nearly worn entirely away. Advert. leaf present in volume I only. Stains at the beginning of each volume, resulting from what appears to be have been an effort to eradicate an old ownership signature on the front free endpapers. The text is clean throughout. Handsome set, the rebacking presenting an 18th c. appearance.

Seller: John R. Sanderson, Bookseller , Stockbridge, MA, U.S.A.

GIBBON (Edward). Gibbon's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, in Six Volumes, Quarto, Abridged in Two Volumes, Octavo.. London Printed for G. Kearsley., 1789.

Price: US$1786.88 + shipping

Description: FIRST ABRIDGED EDITION. 2 volumes. 8vo, pp. xi [xii blank], 569 [570 blank, 571-572 adverts]; xi [xii blank], 562 [563-564 adverts], contemporary calf, rebacked with old spines and labels preserved and laid down, new front free end-paper in each volume. A very good set, with the words "Philosopher & Infidel" in a contemporary hand bracketing Gibbon's name on the title-page. This abridgement of Gibbon's six massive quartos has been variously attributed to the Aberdonian schoolmaster and educational writer John Adams (1750 - 1814) in the BL catalogue and in the Oxford DNB; and to the Reverend Charles Hereford by other commentators. The same abridgement was published in Dublin in 1790. The English Review, Or, An Abstract of English and Foreign Literature gave it a brief mention in 1791: "Our opinion of Gibbon's history is already known to the public. Concerning the present work, therefore, we have only to observe, that it is abridged with as little variation as possible from the original language. Tge truth is, that the epitomiser has servilely adhered to the text, even in expressions which are not defensible, either upon the principles of grammar or analogy. The abridgment, however, gives a competent view of the subject, and will prove more convenient to many readers from the consideration both of time and expence." In the same year The Analytical Review had an axe to grind: "We must add, however, that so much of Mr Gibbon's stile is (perhaps unavoidably) preserved, that this publication can never be useful to young persons, who will not be able to understand perfectly the metaphorical flights, and the intricate phraseology of the author. It is even a question, whether the brevity of style essential to an abridgment has not rather increased the original obscurity.l" There are three ESTC listings for this work. T78371 locates copies in the BL, the Bodleian, Oxford University Trinity College Library, National Library of Wales; Huntington, Stanford and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A Dublin edition of 1790, T78372: BL, National Library of Ireland, Trinity College Library; and in 1790 a reissue of the sheets of the 1789 edition, "Abridged and expurgated for 'the youthful mind' (vol.1, 2nd preliminary leaf)": Cambridge, Longleat House, Essex; Harvard Houghton, Library Company of Philadelphia.

Seller: John Price Antiquarian Books, ABA, ILAB, LONDON, United Kingdom