LARGE-PAPER LIMITED EDITION OF THE NOVELS AND LETTERS OF JANE AUSTEN, BEAUTIFULLY BOUND AND ILLUSTRATED

AUSTEN, Jane. The Novels and Letters. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1923. Seven volumes. Octavo, modern three-quarter blue morocco, raised bands, elaborately gilt-decorated spines, top edges gilt, uncut. $6000.

Lovely large-paper limited edition of Austen’s novels and letters, one of only 1,000 sets produced, illustrated with over forty plates, some in color.

Includes Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, Persuasion, Mansfield Park, Emma and two volumes of her letters. This text of this edition is based on the collation of the early editions by R. W. Chapman. The Clarendon editions were the first to use “contemporary illustrations”: “An undated memorandum in the Press’s files states ‘The publishers are bitterly opposed to any imaginative illustrations, and would cheerfully have no illustrations at all. But they would be in favour of a few objective illustrations” (Gilson E150).

A fine set, beautifully bound.