Concept Gallery
Live Auction

Rare & Interesting Books & Ephemera Auction

Wed, Oct 28, 2020 12:00AM EDT
Lot 109

Samuel Johnson Dictionary English Language 1784

Estimate: $400 - $800

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $10
$100 $25
$400 $50
$1,000 $100
$3,000 $200
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,500
$50,000 $5,000
$100,000 $10,000
Johnson, Samuel, A Dictionary of the English Language: In Which The Words are deduced from their Originals… A history of the Language and an English Grammar, complete in 2 volumes, 1784, Fifth edition, Strahan, Rivington, et al., London, hardcover, folio (17 x 11 inches), contemporary full leather, gilt labels to spine, title pages in black and red, complete text, from A to Zootomy, along with Advertisement, Preface and Directions to Book-Binder. Old ownership signature of Robert Lowman to fly leaf and a different, equally old but indistinguishable signature to title page from a former resident of Pittsburgh. A reprint of the fourth edition, which is considered to be the best edition textually, as well as the last one that Johnson worked on in his lifetime. Often quoted, but no less true, Johnson's dictionary was "the most amazing, enduring and endearing one-man feat in the field of lexicography."
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