Books

Edinburgh: Printed for Archibald Constable and Co.; and John Ballantyne; And Hurst, Robinson, and Co., London, 11816-1821. Complete first edition set of Scott's Waverly Novels. Octavo, 74 volumes uniformly bound in full morocco by Morrell, gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling to the front and rear endpapers, all edges gilt. In fine condition. An exceptional set. A lengthy series of novels by Sir Walter Scott, The Waverley Novels were among the most popular and widely read novels in Europe for nearly a century. Because Scott did not publicly acknowledge authorship until 1827, the series takes its name from Waverley, the first novel of the series released in 1814. The later books bore the words "by the author of Waverley" on their title pages. "Scott s influence as a novelist was incalculable; he established the form of the historical novel, and the form of the short story" (Drabble, 879).

The novel 'Waverley' by Walter Scott is regarded as the first historical novel in the English language, blending history with fiction to portray the Jacobite uprising of 1745.