DRAYTON, MICHAEL Poly-Olbion. A chorographicall description of all the tracts, riuers, mountains, forests, and other parts of this r... . London: printed [by Humphrey Lownes and Augustine Mathewes] for Iohn Marriott, Iohn Grismand, and Thomas Dewe. First edition, the third issue, but with the 1613 title-page bound in the first part, and the 1622 in the second (but see below). Full dark blue morocco (by Charles Lewis according to the original instructions to the binder, which are tipped to the free endpaper), edges of boards gilt else plain; the same document indicates this was bound in 1832, all edges gilt. 11 1/4 x 7 1/4 inches; engraved title, printed title, dedication, the engraving of Prince Henry (both the engraved title and this are engraved by W. Hole), the leaf "Upon the Frontispiece," 4 ff. table, 4 ff. "To the reader," 303 pp. (verso blank) with 18 folding plates on guards; printed title dated 1622, 4 ff., 168 pp., with 12 folding plates on guards. Binding rather rubbed, but sound; lacking the initial blank; the two printed title pages for the parts, from their size, appear to be inserted (as the Pforzheimer copy). The order of the preliminaries differ from Pforzheimer, in that the table in the first volume is bound before signature A. Internally, this is an extremely clean copy (possibly never washed, and indeed the note to the binder indicates "no washing required"), with fine strong impressions of the engravings; minor restoration (on verso) to a short clean tear on one plate. An extraordinary celebration of England's history and topography in verse, the Poly-Olbion consists of thirty sections or songs (eighteen in the first part, published 1612, fourteen in the second, published 1622). Each of these discusses a single region of England, usually between one and three counties. The sections are prefixed by an engraved map; those in the first volume are most likely engraved by W. Hole, who also produced the magnificent engraved title and the portrait of Prince Henry. The maps in the second volume are considered (at least by the Pforzheimer catalogue) to be by another artist. The printed marginal annotations in the first volume (there are none in the second) are by John Selden, and serve to explicate (after a fashion) the text. An interesting feature of this copy is the handwritten instructions to the binder, which clearly refer to this copy. Unfortunately, they give no clue to to the identity of the nineteenth century bibliophile who was responsible for having it bound, and there are no bookplates, but he was clearly following the auctions of the time, as he reports the results of the work in varous contemporary sales, including the Roxburghe auction. Pforzheimer 308, 309; Grolier Langland to Wither 84. C
DRAYTON, MICHAEL Poly-Olbion. A chorographicall description of all the tracts, riuers, mountains, forests, and other parts of this r... . London: printed [by Humphrey Lownes and Augustine Mathewes] for Iohn Marriott, Iohn Grismand, and Thomas Dewe. First edition, the third issue, but with the 1613 title-page bound in the first part, and the 1622 in the second (but see below). Full dark blue morocco (by Charles Lewis according to the original instructions to the binder, which are tipped to the free endpaper), edges of boards gilt else plain; the same document indicates this was bound in 1832, all edges gilt. 11 1/4 x 7 1/4 inches; engraved title, printed title, dedication, the engraving of Prince Henry (both the engraved title and this are engraved by W. Hole), the leaf "Upon the Frontispiece," 4 ff. table, 4 ff. "To the reader," 303 pp. (verso blank) with 18 folding plates on guards; printed title dated 1622, 4 ff., 168 pp., with 12 folding plates on guards. Binding rather rubbed, but sound; lacking the initial blank; the two printed title pages for the parts, from their size, appear to be inserted (as the Pforzheimer copy). The order of the preliminaries differ from Pforzheimer, in that the table in the first volume is bound before signature A. Internally, this is an extremely clean copy (possibly never washed, and indeed the note to the binder indicates "no washing required"), with fine strong impressions of the engravings; minor restoration (on verso) to a short clean tear on one plate. An extraordinary celebration of England's history and topography in verse, the Poly-Olbion consists of thirty sections or songs (eighteen in the first part, published 1612, fourteen in the second, published 1622). Each of these discusses a single region of England, usually between one and three counties. The sections are prefixed by an engraved map; those in the first volume are most likely engraved by W. Hole, who also produced the magnificent engraved title and the portrait of Prince Henry. The maps in the second volume are considered (at least by the Pforzheimer catalogue) to be by another artist. The printed marginal annotations in the first volume (there are none in the second) are by John Selden, and serve to explicate (after a fashion) the text. An interesting feature of this copy is the handwritten instructions to the binder, which clearly refer to this copy. Unfortunately, they give no clue to to the identity of the nineteenth century bibliophile who was responsible for having it bound, and there are no bookplates, but he was clearly following the auctions of the time, as he reports the results of the work in varous contemporary sales, including the Roxburghe auction. Pforzheimer 308, 309; Grolier Langland to Wither 84. C
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
