Shakespeare William

1913 · Best.-Nr. 34878 — London: J.M. Dent 1913-1917. 40 volumes bound into 20. A very handsomely bound and early set of the Temple gift edition of "pocket" volumes of Shakepeare's plays and poems. Each play the sonnets and poems with frontispiece engraving very nicely done with captioned tissue-guards and each with its own unique handsomely decorated title-page printed in black and red all are in a style reminiscent of the Kelmscott Press featuring central vignettes or portraits within elaborate borders headlines throughout printed in red and with black and yellow emblems of the edition on each pastedown. 12mo beautifully bound by Bumpus of Oxford England in full light-brown polished calf the spines lettered in gilt between raised bands the covers tooled in blind at the borders and turnovers silk ribbon markers to each volume all edges gilt. A very pleasing and beautifully preserved set of this highly stylized library collection the text printed on fine paper is clean and fresh the bindings are tight and strong and without any wear to speak of a very fine set. A VERY APPEALING SET OF THESE LITTLE GEMS Dent's very popular TEMPLE SHAKESPEARE provides a wonderful way to read the great Bard's works. Each of the thirty-nine plays is presented in a attractive manner the headlines in bright red the text in black all easily used and read; a final volume provides us with the poems and sonnets. The plays and poems all in handsome bindings executed by Bumpus. The text of the plays and poems are from the Cambridge Shakespeare and each play with a fine preface glossary and notes by Israel Gollancz British philologist and academic who was a scholar of early English literature and of William Shakespeare. He was Professor of English Language and Literature at King's College London from 1903 to 1930. He was a founder member and the first Secretary 1902–1930 of the British Academy and of the committee for a Shakespeare Memorial Theatre which eventually became the Royal National Theatre in London and he was the Director of the Early English Text Society. He edited the "Temple" Shakespeare a uniform edition of the complete works in pocket-size volumes which was the most popular Shakespeare edition of its day. In 1916 as Honorary Secretary of the Shakespeare Tercentenary Committee he also edited A Book of Homage to Shakespeare an anthology of responses to Shakespeare from scholars thinkers and other prominent figures from around the world. J.M. Dent hardcover