Bibliographic Notes on One Hundred Books Famous in English LiteratureKent, Henry Watson
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Bibliographic Notes on One Hundred Books Famous in English Literature
Kent, Henry Watson
Best books; English literature -- First editions -- Bibliography; English literature -- History and criticism
The cancellation "in the Front" refers to the title-page.
In the new page of the castrated edition the clause "And
laſtly, the memorable defeate of the Spaniſh huge Armada,
Anno 1588. and the famous victorie acheiued at the citie of
Cadiz, 1596." is made to read: "As alſo the memorable defeat
of the Spaniſh huge Armada, Anno 1588."; and the date is
changed to 1599. But, as Oldys remarks, through oversight or
indifference the reference in the preface still remains to
show that the edition is doctored, and not a new one. It
reads: "An excellent diſcourſe whereof, as likewiſe of
the honourable expedition vnder two of the moſt noble and
valiant peeres of this Realme, I meane, the renoumed Erle of
Eſſex, and the right honorable the lord Charles Howard,
lord high Admirall of England, made 1596, vnto the ſtrong
citie of Cadiz, I haue set downe a double epiphonema to
conclude this my firſt volume withall...." The reference
also remains in "A Catalogue of the Voyages," "39 The
honourable voyage to Cadiz, Anno 1596. [p.] 607." and at
page 606 the catchword "A briefe" still bears witness to the
curtailment of "A briefe and true report of the Honourable
voyage vnto Cadiz, 1596." The original leaves ended on page
619, with a large woodcut representing two winged figures
supporting a crown and rose. They have been twice reprinted,
but both reprints are easily distinguishable from the early
work.
The second volume was issued by the same printers in 1599, and
the third in 1600. Hakluyt is characterized on the title-page
of the first volume, as on that of the first edition, as
"Master of Artes, and sometime Student of Christ-Church in
Oxford," but in the second and third volumes he is called
"Preacher, and sometime student of Christ-Church in Oxford."
He had been made rector of Wetheringsett in Suffolk in 1590.
In its general make-up, the new work resembles the old one.
The archer head-bands have not been used, and only one of the
pictorial initials signed [symbol: A; or "SA" monogram],--that
at the beginning of the Dedication,--is retained in volumes
one and two. These pictorial initials belong to an alphabet
illustrating stories from Greek mythology. Mr. Pollard, in a
chapter on _Pictorial and Heraldic Initials_, states that the
first appearance of any of the set known to him occurs in a
proclamation printed by Berthelet, and dated 1546. He finds
that a similar monogram was used by Anton Sylvius, who worked
for Plantin from 1550 to 1573, but he is doubtful about
ascribing these initials to that artist.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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