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[Richard Brinsley Sheridan]. The School for Scandal. A Comedy. Dublin: N.p., 1780....
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Description
Very rare first edition of Sheridan's masterpiece
[Richard Brinsley Sheridan]. The School for Scandal. A
Comedy. Dublin: N.p., 1780.12mo (161 x 98 mm). Inverted "B'' in the imprint on the title-page; with final advertisement leaf on H4, often lacking. Early 20th-century half morocco gilt, with gilt arms of Lady Wavertree on upper cover; quarter morocco folding case.
FIRST (PIRATED) EDITION. With the following points: the "B'' in the Dublin in the imprint on the title is inverted and out of alignment; the word Scandal in the headlines on pp. 19 and 49 is mis-spelled "Scandel''; the names of the actors are not given. Both this edition and the Dublin edition published by J. Ewling were piracies. "A publisher immediately offered five hundred guineas for a corrected copy of the comedy, and Sheridan promised to prepare it for the press...[which never appears to have reached the printer, because he] 'had never been able to satisfy himself as to the version which he wished to be published'" (Grolier).
VERY RARE: According to online auction records, only two copies have sold since the Martin copy at Sotheby's New York, 1 May 1990, lot 3199.
Condition: Title-page slightly soiled; very minor occasional pale spotting or soiling.
References: ESTC N21592; Grolier, English 59 (Ewling edition); Rothschild 1845; Williams, pp. 216-17.
Provenance: Sophie Florence Lothrop Sheridan, Lady Wavertree (her gilt arms on upper cover, and Sophie Hall-Walker bookplate, sold, Sotheby's 25 May 1954, lot 254, for £480 to Chisholm); sold Sotheby's, 27 March 1956, lot 349, for £640 to Quaritch; resold Sotheby's, 3 March 1958, for £250 to Maggs; purchased from Maggs Bros. Ltd., 1982. From the William A. Strutz Library.
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Auction Info
2024 June 27 Important English and American Literature: The William A. Strutz Library, Part I, Rare Books Signature® Auction #6295 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
June, 2024
27th
Thursday
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