Books

Edinburgh: James Ballantyne and Co. for Archibald Constable and Co, 1814. First edition. Hardcover. Very Good. 3 vol. 12mo. [7], 4-358; [7], 4-370; [7], 4-371, [1] pp. Half later red morocco over vertical-grain red cloth, boards ruled in gilt, spines in six compartments with gilt lettering and decorations; all edges gilt. Later marbled endpapers and pastedowns. Each volume bound with its half-title page. Bowden 77Aa. Worthington 1-18. With the cancellans in volumes one and three, with the typographical error Bowden calls out in volume two. Volumes one and two bound without the printer's imprint leaf (the final leaf before the blanks). A charming set of Scott's historical novel, a story of romance and war, set during the attempt to restore the Stuart dynasty to the English throne. A discoloration on the rear board of volume one, the set's leaves are toned and some are very slightly foxed, a few leaves in volume one with a dampspot to their fore-edge.

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.

The first edition can be identified by the title page, which lists 'W. Bulmer and Co.' as the printer and 'Archibald Constable and Company' as the publisher.