Antiquarian Auctions

Auction #114 begins on 11 Apr 2024

Churchill (Sir Winston S.)

THE FIRST COLLECTED WORKS OF SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL

Published: London, circa 1974-1975

Lot closed

Sold for: Register or Sign In to find out

Bids: 1

Visits: 119

Have a similar item to sell? Contact Us with the details.

How it works

Register

34 volumes, full vellum – some volumes toned as usual, gilt coat of arms on the upper covers and titling on the spines, all edges gilt, marbled endpapers, silk place markers, maps and illustrations throughout, a very good set but without the slip cases.

Cohen (Ronald I.) Bibliography of the Writings of Sir Winston Churchill, Volume I, pages 1098 – 1104. AA1. ‘According to the specifications announced by the Library of Imperial History, the first volume of the 34 anticipated was to be issued in January 1974 and, at a rate of one volume every three weeks, sets were to be completed by November 1975.

The earliest subscription form in have examined (of 4 February 1974, destined for a potential United Kingdom subscriber) indicated that the Collected Works were to be published “in a limited edition of 2000 sets within the British Empire and Commonwealth at the guaranteed price of £945 [in the United Kingdom; prices would vary elsewhere in the Commonwealth]”. The price of the set to American and Canadian subscribers was to be $2500 in their respective currencies. The edition was to be “strictly limited to 3000 sets word-wide” and the publisher declared that it was “expected that no more than 250 sets will, in fact, be available in Canada”. Sets were to be numbered from 0001 to 3000.

Ultimately the venture collapsed and the Library of Imperial History went into bankruptcy. According to Richard Langworth’s research, the print run never exceeded 2000 copies and only 1750 sets were ever published. Moreover, it appears that these were only bound as ordered. Langworth himself ultimately located the remaining unbound sheets and, with a colleague, arranged their binding and sale in vellum or full or quarter morocco.”

Library of Imperial History, in association with the Hamlyn Publishing Group Limited.

  • Overall Condition: A Good Set
  • Size: 8vo (240 x 160 mm)
  • Sold By: Clarke's Africana & Rare Books
  • Contact Person: Paul Mills
  • Country: South Africa
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Telephone: 021 794 0600
  • Preferred Payment Methods: Visa & Mastercard via PayGate secure links and Bank transfers.
  • Trade Associations: ABA - ILAB, SABDA


© 2024 Paul Mills trading as AntiquarianAuctions.com. All rights reserved. Use of this website is regulated by our website Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.