Books

London: Harrison and Co, 1786. First one-volume folio ("Harrison's") edition, with a Preface by Harrison on the merits of his edition, and containing a reprinting of Johnson's Plan of a Dictionary, Harrison's Life of Johnson, and Johnson's original preface, history of the language and his English grammar; pp. [84] plus unpaginated lexicon in triple column followed by a sectional title and 3pp. of supplementary words; engraved frontispiece portrait, title page printed in red and black; complete and sound in recent full calf, preserving the original red morocco label on spine; nice copy. An unauthorized reprinting of Johnson's great dictionary, consisting of 100 six-penny numbers, the first of which appeared on October 22, 1785. Alston V, 183; Courtney & Smith, 57-8; Fleeman 55.4D/7; Sledd & Kolb, 127-9.

Samuel Johnson's 'A Dictionary of the English Language' is among the most influential dictionaries in the history of the English language. First published on 15 April 1755, the dictionary offered comprehensive definitions and illustrative examples of usage.