Description

A fine, limited edition set of Pope's translation of the Iliad and the Odyssey with excellent provenance. Limited edition, With Iliad numbered 162 and The Odyssey numbered 819. With text in both Latin and Greek. The Nonesuch Press specialised in limited edition and private press. They were founded by Francis Meynell, his second wife Vera Mendel and their friend David Garnett. Their aspiration was for their publications to be aligned with the same aesthetic standards as the private press movement. They were unusual as they used a small Albion press to design the books, but had them printed by commercial printers. In doing so, books with the quality of a fine-press were produced, but available to a wider audience at lower prices. The 'Iliad' and 'Odyssey' are central to the genre of ancient Greek Literature. The 'Iliad' is set during the Trojan War and The 'Odyssey' focuses on the ten year journey home of the king of Ithaca, 'Odysseus' following the fall of Troy. Alexander Pope's translation of the Iliad was first planned in 1713. It appeared in parts from 1715-1720 and was hailed by Samuel Johnson as 'a performance which no age or nation could hope to equal'. Following his success from the 'Iliad', Pope pursued a translation of the Odyssey in 1726 with the help of William Broome and Elijah Fenton. Externally, excellent with minor shelfwear to the raised bands and to the extremities. Publisher's original full morocco bindng in tan, gilt titles to spine, extremities a touch bumped, light rubbing noticeable more to the Iliad at the head & tail of the spine, leather with the odd mark to the boards & in need of a light clean, edges uncut, top edge gilt, marbled endpapers, internally mid century bookseller's pricing in pencil, otherwise clean.