Description
The eighth edition, corrected and revised, of Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary of the English Language, as printed in 1799.
Quarto, two volumes. Full diced brown calf, title in gilt on red morocco label affixed to spines. Decorated with five raised bands and gilt-ruled compartments on spine, with gilt turn-ins and marbled edges. Both spines rebacked for added structure, original morocco labels laid down. Solid text blocks, bumped corners, internally clean with occasional foxing. Includes a frontispiece portrait of Johnson engraved from Sir Joshua Reynold’s original painting.
A near fine example of a landmark work in lexicography.
Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) was an influential English writer, lexicographer, and critic. Renowned for his masterful command of the English language, Johnson compiled the first comprehensive dictionary of the English language, originally published in 1755. This is the eighth edition of that dictionary.
