[52], 50 (of 75), 143, [1], 165. [3], 71, [1], 172, 92, 51, [1, paged 50], 28, 48 pp. Engraved frontispiece portrait. [bound with] The Wild-Goose Chase, a Comedie... 56 pp. 1652. (folio) 32.5x20.5 cm. (13x8¼"), old calf, rebacked at an early time. First Edition, the portrait is in the second issue.
First edition of the collected works of Beaumont and Fletcher, Including all the plays not hitherto printed, with the addition of the Wild-goose chase, the manuscript of which was later recovered and which was printed in 1652. This copy without the play The Little French Lawyer, which comprised pp. 51-75 in the first pagination. There are occasional old in notes in the margins, etc., including the dates the plays were produced on the "Catalogue" page preceding the first play. The portrait of Fletcher, by W. Marshall, is the second state, with "Vates Duplex" & J. Berkenhead small (as opposed to "vates duplex" & J. Berkenhead large). It and the title-page have been trimmed to their printed border and mounted on paper backing, each with a small chip to one corner. Pforzheimer 53; Wing B1581.
Condition:
Binding worn, covers detached; some aging and soiling within, a landmark work in English literature, worthy of restoration.