The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D.; 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. In two volumes

London: Printed by Henry Baldwin for Charles Dilly, 1791. First Edition. 1869 ownership signatures in each volume; chip to one margin in Vol. I about the size of a thumb-joint, not affecting any text; maringal annotation to another page in Vol. I; some pages with creased corners and occasional marks, scattered foxing -- not too obtrusive -- and some faint dampstains in lower margins; covers heavily rubbed.. Two vols., 4tos; 516 & 588pp; contemporay mottled calf, recased with spine label; inner hinges reinforced. First state of the classic work that founded the modern notion of biography, with "gve" on p. 135, all cancels, the fronispiece portrait (truncated) after Sir Joshua Reynolds in Vol. I and the "Round Robin" and facsmile plates in Vol. II. A serviceable set. (Inventory #: 205744)