1904 Life of William Shakespeare Half Leather Biography

A handsome 1904 Harvard Shakespeare edition of Sidney Lee’s A Life of William Shakespeare, bound in half leather with green cloth boards and gilt spine decoration. Lee was one of the leading Shakespeare scholars of his time, and this biography became an important early modern study of Shakespeare grounded in historical records rather than literary myth.

This edition includes portrait plates, facsimiles, and decorative endpapers reproducing early Shakespeare title pages, giving it strong appeal for collectors of literary history, Shakespeare, and attractive early twentieth century bindings.

[d]Author | Sidney Lee [d]Title | A Life of William Shakespeare [d]Publisher | Smith, Elder & Co. [d]Date | 1904 [d]Edition | Harvard Shakespeare series edition [d]Binding | Half leather with green cloth boards and gilt spine decoration [d]Features | Decorative endpapers with Shakespeare title page facsimiles, portrait plates and facsimile illustrations [d]Provenance | Printed for the Harvard Shakespeare series [d]Dimensions | 7.5 in H x 5.25 in W x 1.25 in D [d]Origin | London, England

[condition] The half leather binding retains its structure well, with boards firmly attached and the text block secure throughout. The spine shows clear gilt decoration and titles with light wear consistent with age. The leather itself has minor rubbing and natural toning, all of which reads as honest age rather than damage. Interior pages are clean overall, with scattered foxing and age toning visible on some leaves and at the margins of the plate pages, typical for a book of this period and format. Illustrations and plates appear present and intact. A solid, displayable copy in very good condition for its age.