The Iliad of Homer – Homer – ca. 1880 | Alexander Pope English, Flaxman Engravings

The Iliad of Homer, translated into heroic English verse by Alexander Pope, remains one of the most recognized classical renderings in print. Published around 1880 by Thomas Y. Crowell & Co. in New York, this edition includes an introduction and notes by Theodore Alois Buckley and is illustrated with engravings after John Flaxman. Pope’s version of the Homeric epic shaped English literary culture for generations. The book is bound in brown cloth with gilt-stamped title.

According to Samuel Johnson, the Pope translation is ‘the greatest translation ever achieved in English or in any other language!’ (Wills)

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Iliad of Homer
• Author(s): Homer
• Illustrator(s): John Flaxman
• Contributor(s): Alexander Pope (Translator); Theodore Alois Buckley (Introduction and Notes)
• Publisher: New York, Thomas Y. Crowell & Co.
• Edition: 1880
• Format: (12mo), single volume
• Binding: Decorative brown hardcover with gilt titling
• Size:  7.5 in x 5.25 in (19 cm x 13.5 cm)
• Collation: 500, [2] pp
• Illustrations: 6 full-page engravings by Flaxman, including frontispiece
• Contents Include:
  • Translator’s Preface by Alexander Pope
  • Introduction and Notes by Theodore Alois Buckley
  • Full English Verse Text of The Iliad
  • Classical Engravings After Flaxman
• Reference(s): Garry Wills, On Reading Pope’s Homer

Condition:

Near Fine. Binding is sound and firm, with mild wear to the boards. The gilt title remains legible. Pages are clean throughout, and all engravings are intact and well placed. No missing leaves.

Why Collect This?

• 19th-century printing of Pope’s English translation
• classical engravings by Flaxman
• Charming display, gilt spine

Item Number: # 28904