The First Undated Edition of the Julius Caesar Quarto
Julius Caesar. A Tragedy. As It Is Now Acted at the Theatre Royal.
London: Printed by H. H. Jun for Hen Herringman and R Bentley... 1695.
London: Printed by H. H. Jun for Hen Herringman and R Bentley..., [N.d.c.a. 1695].
The first of the undated editions according to Bartlett. Small quarto. [1]- 64 pp. Complete but mispaginated as follows, Pp. 1, 4-18, 91, 20-40, 33-48, 57, 50, 51, 60, 61, 54, 55, 64. There is some confusion as to the priority of the undated quartos. According to Bartlett's 'Census of Shakespeare's Plays in Quarto' (1916), this present copy conforms to what she called the "Second quarto edition" based on catch words and pagination. However, in her revised edition of the Census in 1939 Bartlett's view had changed stating: There were four undated editions of this play issued after the first edition, 1684, and the second, 1691. This would place the undated quartos after the second edition and make this the third quarto edition.
Bound by J. Kulesho in full red smooth morocco. Front board and spine lettered in gilt. Board edges gilt. Gilt dentelles. All edges gilt. One small spot on title-page. Light glue remnants on front pastedown from former bookplate. Overall about fine.
"This was the first play by Shakespeare founded on Sir Thomas North's translation of Plutarch's Lives, which appeared in 1597 and was reprinted in 1595. Shakespeare used portions of the lives of Caesar, Antony and Brutus and followed Plutarch very closely" (Bartlett, Mr. William Shakespeare, 47).
ESTC R469134/R11165 Bartlett 115. Jaggard, p. 319. Wing S2923.
HBS 68593.
$15,000.
Price: $15,000.00
Item #68593