AESCHYLUS.

£2,750 · Offered by Peter Harrington · No longer available

Tragoediae quae supersunt First Butler edition, large paper issue, of Aeschylus's tragedies, featuring the Greek text printed alongside a Latin translation and extensive notes. This copy is in a handsome mid-19th-century binding by John Clarke, "one of the best and most prolific London binders of the period" (Ramsden), decorated with a series of intricate floral motifs.John Clarke was active between 1821 and 1859. Known especially for his fine tree calf bindings, he worked in partnership with the prominent bookbinder Francis Bedford between 1841 and 1850.One of the leading English educators of the time, Samuel Butler (1774-1839) was headmaster of Shrewsbury from 1798 to 1836. During his post, he famously turned what was a "virtually moribund school" into one of the "the nine schools investigated by the Clarendon commission as being the leading public schools of England" (ODNB). Butler was also the author of a popular geography textbook and a bibliophile, owning a substantial collection of Aldine editions. This beautifully printed edition of Aeschylus was based on Stanley's early edition of 1663; it was expanded with additional notes by Stanley never before printed, edited by Butler from an original manuscript in the Library of Cambridge.Provenance: armorial bookplates of Frederick Edwin Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead (1872-1930) on the front pastedowns. A Conservative politician and a great friend of Winston Churchill, Birkenhead served as Attorney General from 1915 to 1919, L

Found via Rare Books Intel, a search across rare-book dealers, auction houses and marketplaces worldwide.