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Humanities : History

The history department at Shapero Rare Books specialises in early English chronicles and histories from the 16th and 17th centuries by Holinshed, John Stow, and Polydore Vergil, to first editions of Edward Gibbon’s Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire and Sir Winston Churchill’s history of The Second World War.

See: Bibles & Theology, Classics, Economics, Humanities, Law, Occult & Magic, Philosophy, Politics

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  • The first edition in English of Virgilio Malvezzi's histories of the legendary Roman kings Romulus and Tarquin, translated by Henry Carey, 2nd Earl of Monmouth
    The first edition in English of Virgilio Malvezzi's histories of the legendary Roman kings Romulus and Tarquin, translated by Henry Carey, 2nd Earl of Monmouth

    MALVEZZI, Virgilio; MONMOUTH, Henry Carey (Earl of).
    [Romulus and Tarquin]. 1637.
    £1,500.00

  • The final lifetime edition of Thomas Hobbes's English-language translation of Thucydides History of the Grecian War
    The final lifetime edition of Thomas Hobbes's English-language translation of Thucydides History of the Grecian War

    THUCYDIDES; HOBBES, Thomas (translator).
    History of the Grecian War: 1676.
    £3,500.00

  • The first edition in English of the collected letters of Paolo Sarpi, translated out of the Italian by Edward Brown
    The first edition in English of the collected letters of Paolo Sarpi, translated out of the Italian by Edward Brown

    SARPI, Paolo; BROWN, Edward (translator).
    The Letters of the Renowned Father Paul, 1693.
    £800.00

  • The first UK edition of Leon Trotsky's biography of Joseph Stalin
    The first UK edition of Leon Trotsky's biography of Joseph Stalin

    TROTSKY, Leon.
    Stalin 1947.
    £550.00

  • The first edition of this scarce continuation by John Polemon The Second Part of the Book of Battailes, a major sorce for George Peele's The Battle of Alcazar
    The first edition of this scarce continuation by John Polemon The Second Part of the Book of Battailes, a major sorce for George Peele's The Battle of Alcazar

    [POLEMON, John].
    The Second Part of the Booke of Battailes, 1587.
    £3,750.00

  • The first C. Davis edition of John Bale's Brefe Chronycle, an important source for the life and times of Sir John Oldcastle
    The first C. Davis edition of John Bale's Brefe Chronycle, an important source for the life and times of Sir John Oldcastle

    BALE, John.
    A Brefe Chronycle 1729.
    £500.00

  • An early edition of the Index Librorum Prohibtorum printed at Rome in 1841, the most infamous of all the lists of banned books
    An early edition of the Index Librorum Prohibtorum printed at Rome in 1841, the most infamous of all the lists of banned books

    [BANNED BOOKS].
    Index Librorum Prohibitorum 1841.
    £250.00

  • The first edition in English of Henri Estienne's Apologie pour Hérodote, translated as A World of Wonders by Richard Carew
    The first edition in English of Henri Estienne's Apologie pour Hérodote, translated as A World of Wonders by Richard Carew

    ESTIENNE, Henri; CAREW, Richard (translator).
    [Apologie pour Hérodote]. 1607.
    £2,500.00

  • The editio princeps of Gildas' account of the ruin and conquest of Britain, De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, the only contemporary source for the Anglo-Saxon conquest
    The editio princeps of Gildas' account of the ruin and conquest of Britain, De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, the only contemporary source for the Anglo-Saxon conquest

    GILDAS.
    [De Excidio Britanniae] 1525?].
    £4,500.00

  • A fantastic collecton of 45 titles on the First and Second World War, all either bound by Sangorski & Sutcliffe in morocco or housed in folding morocco backed boxes

    TAYLOR, A.J.P.; LIDDEL HART, B.H.; HARRIS, Sir Arthur 'Bomber'; RYAN, Cornelius; EISENHOWER, Dwight D. et al.
    [First & Second World Wars]. 1939-1985.
    £22,500.00

  • The first edition of Edmund Bolton's history of Roman Emperor Nero, one of the earliest works to be illustrated with engravings of Roman coins
    The first edition of Edmund Bolton's history of Roman Emperor Nero, one of the earliest works to be illustrated with engravings of Roman coins

    [BOLTON, Edmund].
    Nero Caesar, 1624.
    £1,250.00

  • The frist edition of thi translation of Cornelius Nepos' De Viris Illustribus, The Lives of Illustrious Men
    The frist edition of thi translation of Cornelius Nepos' De Viris Illustribus, The Lives of Illustrious Men

    NEPOS, Cornelius.
    The Lives of Illustrious Men. 1684.
    £1,000.00

  • The first edition in English of Cassius Dio's Rerum Romanorum, translated from the abridged edition by Jon Xiphilinus.
    The first edition in English of Cassius Dio's Rerum Romanorum, translated from the abridged edition by Jon Xiphilinus.

    DIO, Lucius Cassius & XIPHILINUS, John; MANNING, Francis (translator).
    The History of Dion Cassius 1704.
    £3,000.00

  • The first edition in English of Tacitus' Annal and Germania translated by Richard Grenewey, bound with, as issued, the Histories and Life of Agricola by Sir Henry Savile
    The first edition in English of Tacitus' Annal and Germania translated by Richard Grenewey, bound with, as issued, the Histories and Life of Agricola by Sir Henry Savile

    TACITUS, Publius Cornelius; GRENEWEY, Richard & SAVILE, Sir Henry (translators).
    The Annales of Cornelius Tacitus. 1598.
    £6,750.00

  • A first edition copy of Edwina: Countess Mountbatten of Burma by Richard Hough.
    A first edition copy of Edwina: Countess Mountbatten of Burma by Richard Hough.

    HOUGH, Richard.
    Edwina. 1983.
    £150.00

  • A handsome first edition of Malraux Life and Work by Martine de Courcel.
    A handsome first edition of Malraux Life and Work by Martine de Courcel.

    DE COURCEL, Martine.
    Malraux Life and Work. 1976.
    £150.00

  • A first edition copy of Lindbergh: A Biography by Leonard Mosley.
    A first edition copy of Lindbergh: A Biography by Leonard Mosley.

    MOSLEY, Leonard.
    Lindbergh: A Biography. 1976.
    £150.00

  • Four first edition volumes of Cecil Roberts' Autobiography.
    Four first edition volumes of Cecil Roberts' Autobiography.

    ROBERTS, Cecil.
    The Growing Boy; The Years of Promise; The Bright Twenties; Sunshine and Shadow. 1967, 1968, 1970, 1972.
    £350.00

  • A fascinating manuscript account book being a reocrd of fish farming in Georgian England
    A fascinating manuscript account book being a reocrd of fish farming in Georgian England

    YALDEN, John.
    The Fish Account. 1742-1827.
    £3,500.00

  • A handsome copy of this English translation of Heeren's History of the Political System of Europe, presented at Eton College to Michael Hicks Beach, the future Chancellor of the Exchequer
    A handsome copy of this English translation of Heeren's History of the Political System of Europe, presented at Eton College to Michael Hicks Beach, the future Chancellor of the Exchequer

    HEEREN, Arnold Hermann Ludwig.
    A Manual of the History of the Political System of Europe and its Colonies, 1846.
    £150.00

  • A signed first edition of Annigoni: Spanish Sketchbook by Pietro Annigoni and Alex Sterling.
    A signed first edition of Annigoni: Spanish Sketchbook by Pietro Annigoni and Alex Sterling.

    ANNIGONI, Pietro; STERLING, Alex (editor).
    Annigoni: Spanish Sketchbook. 1957.
    £150.00

  • This Island Race, Winston Churchill's abridged single volume edition of the earlier four-volume work; History of the English Speaking Peoples, with tipped-in signature
    This Island Race, Winston Churchill's abridged single volume edition of the earlier four-volume work; History of the English Speaking Peoples, with tipped-in signature

    CHURCHILL, Winston.
    The Island Race. 1964.
    £1,500.00

  • A handsomely bound example of this encyclopaedia work by Joseph Haydn, A Dictionary of Dates
    A handsomely bound example of this encyclopaedia work by Joseph Haydn, A Dictionary of Dates

    HAYDN, Joseph.
    A Dictionary of Dates 1860.
    £150.00

  • The first edition in English of the Political and Military memoirs of Charles V, Duke of Lorraine and Bar
    The first edition in English of the Political and Military memoirs of Charles V, Duke of Lorraine and Bar

    Charles V, Duke of Lorraine and Bar; BECK, Rupert (translator).
    Political and Military Observations, Remarks and Maxims, of Charles V. 1699.
    £900.00

  • A smart five volume set of Adam Ferguson's History of the Progress and Termination of the Roman Republic, illustrated with 6 folding engraved maps
    A smart five volume set of Adam Ferguson's History of the Progress and Termination of the Roman Republic, illustrated with 6 folding engraved maps

    FERGUSON, Adam.
    The History of the Progress and Termination of the Roman Republic. 1813.
    £675.00

  • The first facsimile edition of the second book printed in the English language, The Game of Chesse from the press of William Caxton
    The first facsimile edition of the second book printed in the English language, The Game of Chesse from the press of William Caxton

    CAXTON, William.
    The Game of the Chesse, 1855].
    £1,500.00

  • The first edition in English of the Baron de Sainte-Croix's Life of Alexander the Great, translated from the original French by Sir Richard Clayton
    The first edition in English of the Baron de Sainte-Croix's Life of Alexander the Great, translated from the original French by Sir Richard Clayton

    SAINTE-CROIX, Baron de; CLAYTON, Sir Richard (translator).
    A Critical Inquiry into the Life of Alexander the Great, 1793.
    £500.00

  • A scarce collection of maps and engraved plates illsutrating famous battles described in Livy's History of Rome
    A scarce collection of maps and engraved plates illsutrating famous battles described in Livy's History of Rome

    LIVY.
    Maps and Plans, Illustrative of Livy, [c.1830].
    £375.00

  • A scarce compilation of popular works on the Inquisition in Spain, Portugal and Italy, the first edition prnted in 1738, engravings by James Hulett
    A scarce compilation of popular works on the Inquisition in Spain, Portugal and Italy, the first edition prnted in 1738, engravings by James Hulett

    [INQUISITION].
    An Impartial Account of many Barbarous Cruelties exercised in the Inquisition in Spain, Portugal, and Italy. 1738.
    £1,500.00

  • The first edition in English of Francis Godwin's Rerum Anglicarum, a history of the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Mary, translated by Morgan Godwyn.
    The first edition in English of Francis Godwin's Rerum Anglicarum, a history of the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Mary, translated by Morgan Godwyn.

    GODWIN, Francis; GODWYN [GODWIN], Morgan (translator).
    Annales of England. 1630.
    £1,750.00

  • An very good copy of Field Marshall Montgomery's History of Warfare, signed by the author, bound in black Niger by Zaehnsdorf
    An very good copy of Field Marshall Montgomery's History of Warfare, signed by the author, bound in black Niger by Zaehnsdorf

    MONTGOMERY, Field Marshall Bernard Law.
    A History of Warfare. 1971.
    £1,500.00

  • A later edition of Conyers Middleton's life of the Roman statesman Cicero, first published in 1741
    A later edition of Conyers Middleton's life of the Roman statesman Cicero, first published in 1741

    MIDDLETONE, Conyers.
    The Life of M. Tullius Cicero. 1819.
    £175.00

  • An early printing of this parallel text edition in English and Latin of Horace's Satires, Epistles, and Ars Poetica
    An early printing of this parallel text edition in English and Latin of Horace's Satires, Epistles, and Ars Poetica

    HORACE (Quintus Horatius Flaccus); DUNSTER, Samuel (translator).
    Horace's Satires, Epistles, and Art of Poetry, 1739.
    £350.00

  • One of the rarest and most desirable plate books of the early 20th century, W.L. Schreiber's Woodcuts from Books of the 15th Century houses 55 incunable leaves, all with woodcut illustrations, and including 20 leaves in hand colour.
    One of the rarest and most desirable plate books of the early 20th century, W.L. Schreiber's Woodcuts from Books of the 15th Century houses 55 incunable leaves, all with woodcut illustrations, and including 20 leaves in hand colour.

    SCHREIBER, W.L. (compiler); BARBEY, André (translator)
    Woodcuts from Books of the 15th Century 1929.
    £15,000.00

  • A handsome bound edition of J.P. Mahaffy's classic study of Social Life in Greece
    A handsome bound edition of J.P. Mahaffy's classic study of Social Life in Greece

    MAHAFFY, J.P.
    Social Life in Greece 1894.
    £125.00

  • The Letters of Pliny the Consul in English translation by William Melmoth
    The Letters of Pliny the Consul in English translation by William Melmoth

    PLINY; MELMOTH, William (translator).
    The Letters of Pliny the Consul. 1805.
    £250.00

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