Available Copies from Independent Booksellers
Price: US$200.00 + shipping
Condition: Fair
Description: The Second Edition, Revised and Augmented. Worn original or contemporary calf, red leather label spines. Both covers detached on Vol I front on Vol II, and front on Vol IIU, hence a possible rebacking candidate, more likely rebinding all over.
Seller: Johnnycake Books ABAA, ILAB, Salisbury, CT, U.S.A.
Price: US$495.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: xviii, [*1]-*xxii, [*xxiv]-*xxvi, *xxvi (sic)-*xxxvi, [1], [1]-603; [1]-634; [xvii]-[xl], [1]-711 pages, complete with frontispiece, two folding plates, and the leaf of Additional Corrections. Spines darkened and dry, labels chipped. Hinges of i and ii reinforced with cloth tape. Upper board of i detached, lower a little tender; upper joint of ii split but board secure; iii was at some point rebacked using original spine. John Le Marchant signature dated 1794 and bookplate (Me Minerva Ducit) to front pastedown of each. Plate of W. Morton Webb, and his 1910 signature in each. Foxing to first few and final few leaves, heaviest on the endpapers; occasional light foxing within, heavier to the folding plates and adjacent leaves. Re. provenance: in 1794 John Gaspard Le Marchant (9 February 1766 - 22 July 1812) was serving as a brigade major in the Low Countries campaign. The plate may be that of his son Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant (1803 - 1874) who was governor of Newfoundland from 1847 to 1852, and Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia 1852 - 1858.
Seller: The Odd Book (ABAC, ILAB), Wolfville, NS, Canada
Price: US$500.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: London: Printed by Henry Baldwin, 1793. 3 volumes. 3/4 brown morocco with marbled boards and endpapers. Front board of volume 1 detached, rear hinge reinforced at inner hinge. Light chipping at head of volumes, light rubbing at heels and edges. Text is good+, with light foxing to frontis and title pages. Else the text is in good+ condition, text block sound and straight. Uncut edges, no former owner marks. Booksellers 'mark' "William J. Campbell Booksellr 1009 Walnut Street Philadelphia". Second Revised and Augmented Edition. With the frontis portrait by Sir Joshua Reynolds (foxed overall), folding plate facsimile of Johnson's handwriting at rear of volume 3. The folding plate (engraved "Round Robin") at p. 634 appears not to be present. The new material in rear of volume 1 includes: "Additions received after the Second Edition was printed" (pp. *i-*xxii), "A Chronological Catalogue of the Prose Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.D" which is the first attempt at a Johnson bibliography (pp. *xxiii- *xxxi). Ships from Dinkytown in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Due to the size/weight of this set extra charges may apply for international shipping. Not available for priority/expedited shipping.
Seller: Book House in Dinkytown, IOBA, Minneapolis, MN, U.S.A.
Price: US$650.00 + shipping
Condition: Fair
Description: Full-Leather. Fair/No Jacket. Not a First. Not Signed. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. 3 volumes 8 5/8 X 5 3/4" in leather. Very fine at one time, but now in need of rebinding or at least repair. This is the "second edition revised and augmented. Leather on spines dried out and chipped. Vol. 1: Engraved frontis portrait of Johnson. Long strip of leather missing from the spine.Rest of spine chipped and abraded as are tops of both covers. Marbled endpapers. These books have 1789 bookplates of the Reverend W. Barrow, LLD SAS. Both covers are attached, but literally by threads, The twine that is used to bind the book. The rest of the hinges are broken through. Vol.2: Light foxing in the first few pp. Front cover completely detached, but present. Vol. 3: Front cover hanging by a few threads, back cover a bit better. Has fold-out sample of Johnson's handwriting at back of book. Spine badly chipped, covers heavily abraded.
Seller: THE BOOK VAULT, Binghamton, NY, U.S.A.
Price: US$750.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: Three volumes, full leather. First octavo edition, stated as "second edition revised and augmented" on title page. With the corrections, cancels, and misprints. This copy also with the extra *c3 leaf of additional Corrections? noted by Rothschild, the "Additions received after the Second Edition was printed" (pp. *i-*xxii), "A Chronological Catalogue of the Prose Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.D" which is the first attempt at a Johnson bibliography (pp. *xxiii- *xxxi), and thirteen letters to Bennet Langton and one to the Earl of Bute. Engraved portrait frontispiece, after the painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Also with the folding ?Round Robin" plate and a folding plate of with a facsimile of Dr. Johnson's handwriting. 8vo, bound in original period calf, gilt spines are dulled and rubbed. Spine of volume 3 is split. Leather labels missing on volumes 1 & 2, laid into volume 3. Armorial bookplates of William W. Gay and John Fremlyn Streatfeild, famous London opthalmic surgeon - in all 3 volumes. Front board detached on volume 3, and loose on volumes 1 & 2. Boards rubbed and evenly worn, but good. Text is good+ with minimal foxing. A worthy investment.
Seller: Mythos Center Books, Frontenac, MN, U.S.A.
Price: US$850.00 + shipping
Description: Contemporary calf, gilt-ruled spine, gilt-stamped lettering in morocco spine labels; three volumes; [1] (title-p.), xxxix, [1], 603, plus engraved frontis.; [1], 634, plus folding plate (engraved "Round Robin"); [1], 711, plus folding plate at rear (facsimile of Johnson's handwriting in his 16th year, 35th year, and last year of his life). Volumes I and II rebacked, Volume III rebacked with bottom board in newer calf; spine of Volume I a little dry and wrinkled; hinges of Volumes II and III reinforced. All Volumes -- corners rubbed; scattered foxing throughout. The second edition "was the last actually published in [Boswell's] lifetime. There were also many pleasant and characteristic sentences introduced in this edition which naturally dropped out when the text was shaken together by Malone" (Pottle). A handsome set.
Seller: Sanctuary Books, A.B.A.A., New York, NY, U.S.A.
Price: US$900.00 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: Lavishly decorated second edition, bound in full contemporary calf with leather title and volume labels, five raised bands to each volume's spine and marbled endpapers. Some rubbing to edges, fading to top stain, whiting to boards from improper cleaning and a stain to the front board of volume 2, but still a nice tight uniform set. Octavos, 601, 634, 711 pages respectively, with V3 having a tipped in plate titled "Facsimiles of Dr. Johnson's Handwriting" at rear. Satisfaction guaranteed. Additional photos always available on request. Shipped in a fitted, padded box.
Seller: The Great Catsby's Rare Books, Edmonton, AB, Canada
Price: US$1000.00 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: Three volumes, complete. Contemporary 3/4 brown leather binding with marbled boards. Raised bands. Red title labels. Gilt lettering on spine. 5 1/2 " x 8 1/4." Volume I: 603 pages, complete. Volume II: 634 pages, complete. Volume III: 711 pages, complete. Additional thirty-nine pages in back of Volume III for a Table of Contents (index). Also in the back of Volume III are three tipped-in newspaper articles from 1895 that commemorate James Boswell. Black and white frontispiece and folded plates are included. Personal bookplate of Eilif Bang on front pastedown. Pages and covers are very clean and intact. Binding is tight. James Boswell's famous biography of his friend and acclaimed man of letters, Samuel Johnson.
Seller: Barry Cassidy Rare Books, Sacramento, CA, U.S.A.
Price: US$1750.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: Printed by Henry Baldwin, for Charles Dilly, in the Poultry. M DCC XCIII. [1793]. 2nd Edition. (Comprehending an account of his studies and numerous works, in chronological order; a series of his epistolary correspondence and conversations with many eminent persons; and various original pieces of his composition, never before published: The whole exhibiting a view of literature and literary men in Great-Britain, for near half a century, during which he flourished [-]). Three volumes, octavo; size of bindings: 5 ½ in. x 8 5/8 in. x 2 1/8 in (thick), Volume 1: engraved frontispiece portrait (by Sir Joshua Reynolds/ J. Baker, engraver; Samuel Johnson. From the Original Picture in the Possession of James Boswell Esq. Published April 3d. 1793, by C. Dilly); printed title page; [i]-xxxix-[lx], [*i]-*xxxviii, [1]-603 pp. (includes: Dedication; Advertisement to the Second Edition; Alphabetical Table of Contents; Shakespeare quotation: p. [xl]; Additions to Dr. Johnson's Life & A Chronological Catalogue of the Prose Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.D.: pp. [*xxiv]-*xxxi; Corrections; Additional Corrections: p. *xxxviii. Volume 2: printed title page; [1]-634 pp., at pp. 450-451 is the folding plate: "Round Robin, addressed to Samuel Johnson, L.L.D. with Facsimiles of the Signatures" London: Published as the Act directs, 10 April 1793, by Charles Dilly. H. Shepherd sc. [engraver]. Volume 3: printed title page; [1]-711, at pp. 710-711 is: "Facsimiles of Dr. Johnson's handwriting"; London: Published as the Act directs, 10 April 1793, by Charles Dilly. H. Shepherd sc. [engraver]. Bound in old mottled calf, with the spines re-backed in a lighter brown leather, with red and dark green title labels from the earlier binding, gilt-lettered: BOSWELL'S JOHNSON I (+ II + III; two are on later, red leather), with five raised bands; corners have been restored with leather, gilt bordering on cover edges; early paper restoration to the inner hinges of all volumes, with cracking to the hinges of volume three, with repairs, pasting, to inner hinges. Engraved, heraldic bookplates on the front paste-downs: Brice Pearse (motto: In Deo Confido), Lake sc. (engraver), with a more recent, printed book label underneath of these, in each volume. Spine ends show some wear, damp-staining to lower spines, and lower edges, and lower page margins. Cover edges/corners show general wear. Some scattered tan spotting to pages, tanning to frontispiece & plates. The scan shows the spines, and part of the front cover of volume three. Weight: 6 lbs. Postage is extra on this item.
Seller: Peter Keisogloff Rare Books, Inc., Brecksville, OH, U.S.A.
Price: US$1758.48 + shipping
Description: 200mm x 150mm (8" x 6"). xxxvi, 603pp, 34pp, 711pp. Engraved frontis plate of Samuel Johnson after Joshua Reynolds (volume 1); folding plates (volume 2 and to rear of volume 3). First octavo edition of Boswell's 'Life of Johnson'. Published April 3rd 1793 Second Edition, second state: v.1 p.135 line 10 states 'give' as in corrected version. Front endpaper of volume 1 with pasted copperplate inscription relating to Francis Barber, Dr. Johnson's manservant and heir: 'Francis Barber the faithful valued black son of Dr Samuel Johnson who died in the infirmary of Stafford February 13th 1801' Previous owner's name (John Darlington) and date of 1853 to feps. Heavy item - shipping supplement may apply for overseas. G : in good condition without dust jackets as issued. Minor rubbing and wear to boards - volume 2 with sm. area of loss to leather on front board. Previous owner's inscriptions to feps. Corner tear to pp17-18 (vol 1) with no loss to text. Ink dedication laid-in to volume 1
Seller: Barter Books Ltd, Alnwick, NORTH, United Kingdom
Price: US$2000.00 + shipping
Description: First Edition Thus (Second Revised and Augmented Edition). Hardcover. Engraved portrait frontispiece, after the painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds (by J. Baker). Includes the fold-out 'Round Robin' plate (Vol. II) and a fold-out plate containing facsimiles of Dr. Johnson's handwriting (Vol. III). The last edition published in Boswell's lifetime, it contains additional material including "Additions to Dr. Johnson's Life Recollected, and Received after the Second Edition was Printed" (pp. *i-*xxii); "A Chronological Catalogue of the Prose Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.D" [noted as the first attempt at a Johnson bibliography] (pp. *xxiii-*xxxi); and "Corrections" (pp. *xxxiii-*xxxvi) but not the leaf of Additional Corrections (*c3 in Volume I), which has been tipped into some copies. It is worth noting that this tipped in leave may constitute a later issue of the edition. "The text of the second edition. deserves a close study. Although we believe that the third represents the form in which Boswell would ultimately have arranged [the] supplementary material, we can never be sure of it, for this edition was the last actually published in his lifetime. There were also many pleasant and characteristic sentences introduced in this edition which naturally dropped out when the text was shaken together by Malone" (Pottle 81; see also, Rothschild 468). Overall, a very handsome set, seldom found in as close to original state as is found here. Light shelf/edge wear, even toning to spines and text block edges, professionally rebacked (circa mid-19th cent.), minor sporadic foxing at preliminaries, discrete owner notations at endpages, else tight, bright and unmarred. Full brown leather boards (original sheep boards carefully matched to a calf spines), burgundy leather labels, gilt lettering and decorative elements, frontispiece. 8vo. xviii, xxxvii, 603pp; 634pp; 711pp. Illus. (b/w plates). Very Good [Textblock Near Fine]. No DJ as Issued. First Edition Thus (Second Revised and Augmented Edition).
Seller: Lux Mentis, Booksellers, ABAA/ILAB, Portland, ME, U.S.A.
Price: US$2187.50 + shipping
Description: First London octavo, third edition overall following the first of 1791 and the Dublin octavo of 1792; 3 volumes, pp. [2], xviii, [xvii]-xxxix, [1], [*i]-*xxxvi, [2], 603, [1]; [2], 634; [2], 711, [1]; frontispiece portrait, folding "Round Robin" plate, folding facsimile of Johnson's handwriting; full contemporary tree calf, elaborately gilt-decorated spines, red and b;lack morocco labels; rear joints on volumes I and II cracked, front joint on volume III starting; the bindings remain firm, and all in all, this is a handsome, unrestored set. This copy has the extra leaf *c3 in volume one with "additional corrections" and all the misprints identified by Rothschild, with the exception that page 408 of volume three is printed incorrectly. "The text of the second edition . deserves a close study. Although we believe that the third represents the form in which Boswell would ultimately have arranged [the] supplementary material, we can never be sure of it, for this edition was the last actually published in his lifetime. There were also many pleasant and characteristic sentences introduced in this edition which naturally dropped out when the text was shaken together by Malone" Pottle 81. Rothschild 468.
Seller: Rulon-Miller Books (ABAA / ILAB), St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.
Price: US$2250.00 + shipping
Description: First London octavo, third edition overall following the first of 1791 and the Dublin octavo of 1792; 3 volumes, pp. [2], xviii, [*i]-*xxxvi, [2],[xvii]-xxxix, [1], 603, [1]; [2], 634; [2], 711, [1]; frontispiece portrait, folding "Round Robin" plate, folding facsimile of Johnson's handwriting; contemporary calf-backed marbled boards, 5red leather labels on spines, black numbering pieces (that on vol. II a little chipped); in all a good, sound set, or better, unrestored; in a recent brown cloth slipcase. This copy has the extra leaf *c3 in volume one with "additional corrections" and all the misprints identified by Rothschild, with the exception that page 408 of volume three is printed incorrectly. Bookplates of Lord Rendelsham in each volume. "The text of the second edition . deserves a close study. Although we believe that the third represents the form in which Boswell would ultimately have arranged [the] supplementary material, we can never be sure of it, for this edition was the last actually published in his lifetime. There were also many pleasant and characteristic sentences introduced in this edition which naturally dropped out when the text was shaken together by Malone" Pottle 81. Rothschild 468.
Seller: Rulon-Miller Books (ABAA / ILAB), St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.
Price: US$4400.00 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: 2 vol. 4to. [3], iv-xii, [17], 2-516; [3], 2-588 [586], [4], 2-42 pp. Contemporary calf with the spines in six compartments, recent black morocco labels lettered in gilt on the spines, gilt decorations and stamping on the spines. Volume one illustrated with a frontispiece portrait of Johnson (a stipple-engraving by James Heath), volume two with two plates (the "Round Robin" plate and the facsimile of Johnson's handwriting). Completing the title page: "[with a] Series of His Epistolary Correspondence and Conversations with Many Eminent Persons; and Various Original Pieces of His Composition, Never Before Published. The Whole Exhibiting a View of Literature and Literary Men in Great-Britain, for Near Half a Century, During which He Flourished". Grolier Club, 100 Famous Books in English Literature, 65. Oxford DNB, Gordon Turnbull "Boswell, James (1740-1795)". Pottle 79. Rothschild 463. Our copy has the second state point in volume one, with the word "give" spelled correctly on page 135. A contemporary bookplate on each front pastedown. Boswell's historical and literary magnum opus: arguably the most famous biography in English literature. Many have praised Boswell for his reconstruction of the larger-than-life character of Samuel Johnson. Johnson's personality shines through the letters and journal entries included in these volumes. Samuel Johnson of course is best-remembered for his revised English Dictionary, done after Nathan Bailey's first pass at an English-language dictionary. Johnson's dictionary stands out as one of wit, full of pithy entries, reflective of his life experience and skilfull command of the English language. A handsome set of Boswell's story of Samuel Johnson, a work that has been celebrated throughout the ages as a turning-point in biography, remembrance, and as a revolution in the characterization of a historical person. Recently and sympathetically rebacked, a few corners subtly renewed. Each title page and the final plate has a neat and tidy repair.
Seller: Evening Star Books, ABAA/ILAB, Madison, WI, U.S.A.
Price: US$11594.37 + shipping
Condition: Fine
Description: A finely bound copy of this very scarce work with manuscript corrections and additions to Boswell's 'Life of Johnson'. The first edition. With nine contemporary manuscript corrections in black in to references on pages 14-16, 18, 20, 22-23 and 27. The manuscript corrections are very similar to those in the Malahide-Isham copy. The Malahide-Isham copy has had the ink annotations attributed to Boswell himself. The annotations to this copy are very similar to those and indeed match examples of Boswell's later hand in the British Library.Rebound, in a fine Sangorski and Sutcliffe binding, with their binder's stamp to the verso of front endpaper. With the signatures A1, B-F4, G1. This was Boswell's final lifetime publication and is very scarce. To this title, Boswell analyses his first edition of Dr Johnson's life. This biography earned Boswell a great reputation as a biographer. As a great friend of Johnson, he was a perfect candidate to write about his life. This biography is a landmark in the development of the genre. Presented as a list, with page references to the left, this forty-two page work explains the corrections and reasoning behind this. A very scarce, beautifully bound copy of this work. In a crushed morocco binding with cloth covered boards. Externally, excellent, with minor shelfwear. Internally, firmly bound. Pages are bright with occasional scattered spots to pages, mostly to the first and last few pages. Fine
Seller: Rooke Books PBFA, Bath, United Kingdom