Description
The five volume Life Of George Washington by Chief Justice John Marshall, published by C.P. Wayne of Philadelphia from 1804-1807.
Octavo, [2], xxii, 488pp, 45pp; viii, 560pp, 72pp; viii, 527pp, 28pp; viii, 567pp, [1], 16pp; vii, 779pp, 36pp. Contemporary tree calf, title in gilt with decorative illustrations on spine. Frontispiece in Volume I by David Edwin. Later endpapers, all clean. Occasional toning throughout, various levels of foxing, all with solid text blocks and solid binding. Notable archival tissue repairs in Volume II, page 145-148. Volume I and II are first editions of the text, with Volume II – V being second editions, printed within a year of the first. Lacking the scarce atlas.
(Sabin 44788) (Howes M317) (Shaw & Shoemaker 6710)
A handsome set with polished tree calf bindings.
This first presidential biography was written by Chief Justice John Marshall, the close friend of General George Washington. Marshall began working on this biography shortly after he was appointed to the Supreme Court, at the request of Associate Justice Bushrod Washington, who had inherited the papers of his uncle. This first printing and the English edition from the same year are the only editions to include the chapters on “Colonial History,” which were omitted in later editions.
