The Spectator

The Volumes are in Very Good Condition Bound in publishers calf boards, contemporary to the time of publication, with the spine divided into six compartments by five raised bands, and with a red hand stamped morocco letter-piece in the second compartment from the top, a black morocco hand stamped Vol number piece in the fourth compartment from the top with gilt edges on the top leaves. Externally, the boards and spines are lightly scuffed in general, with minor damage to the head and tail of the spines, with the board corners bumped. Internally the leaves are generally clean and amply margined with some light toning throughout, occasional mild foxing, and some small stains otherwise. The volumes were re-backed probably mid 20^th Century with hand stamped labels and hand sewn headbands. The volumes are thus quite readable, and shelf ready. An Attractive Set.

The volumes measure about 23.4 cm. By 14.5 cm. By 3 cm. Each leaf measures about 228 mm. by 140 mm. (Each leaf 9 inches tall).

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The Spectator

In England and especially London the ideal of politeness became well established during the 18^th Century. These ideals were put forth in the newly founded periodical press, particularly Richard Steele’s Tatler and later Steele and Addison’s Spectator.

The Spectator was by far the most successful of these periodicals and came to be seen as the very embodiment of politeness. Appearing in 635 numbers between October 1711 and 1714 and cheaply priced at one penny, its poems, essays and letters talked about manners, morals and literature. It was a huge success with 3,000 copies sold daily by the tenth issue. It is estimated that each issue had as many as 20 readers, so great was its popularity.

Clubs sprang up to discuss the papers contents. It was read as far as New England in the American Colonies and the East India Companies Fort in Sumatra. The Spectator taught Benjamin Franklin good prose and was used by Voltaire to improve his English. When Addison and Steele sold their copyright to the collected edition in 1712 it was worth 1,150 Pnds, a huge sum for the times.

The Spectator enjoyed extensive circulation throughout the 18^th Century. As Vicesimus Knox, a cleric and literary compiler, noted in 1779. “There is scarcely an individual, not only of those who profess learning, but of those who devote any of their time to reading, who has not digested The Spectators. By the end of the 18^th Century it was regarded as a classic, “a book that has done the greatest honour to the English Nation”.

The Two Cherubs Collected Edition of 1712

The First Edition was published in two formats, 12mo and 8to, with a few copies made available in large paper. Some copies of the 1712 Volume One Large Paper and the 12mo edition were printed with Two Cherubs as the decoration on the Title Pages and with the decoration for the First Issue being in the first state. These issues are by far the rarest with only four copies in institutions according to ESTC. It was known at the time that Addison had used the term “Cherubin which now appears as a god” in an issue of the Spectator. In Addison’s time the distinction between Cherubs and cherubin as the plural of the same word, had not found a place in the literary language. It is speculated that the few copies printed with the Two Cherubs were intended for special subscribers as a kind of inside joke at Addison’s expense. Regardless, the more common decoration found in most copies are the three flowers and foliage with the decoration on the First Issue being a later state.