Essays of Michael Seigneur de Montaigne. In Three Books. Made English by Charles Cotton. London: Daniel Brown et al., 1686-1711, 8vo
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FIRST EDITION of volume two, fourth edition of volumes one and three, of the most influential English translation of Montaigne’s Essays which was reprinted well into the 20th century. Complete sets of early editions are very scarce, especially in early bindings as with the present example. DNB describes this as “one of the acknowledged masterpieces of translation.”
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Provenance:
George John Armytage, FSA, his bookplate to front pastedowns.
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Size: 127 x 196 mm (approx., each)
Condition:
Near contemporary full calf, neatly rebacked. Attractive on the shelf, tooled morocco labels laid down to spines. All boards securely attached, bindings secure. Rubbed, wear to extremities, shelf wear, but overall well preserved. Later blanks and pastedowns. Some foxing, text mildly toned, but generally a nice clean copy through all three volumes. Portrait frontispiece extant to the first volume.
