1786 – Samuel Johnson – Dictionary of English Language | Enormous First Edition
First single-volume folio edition of Samuel Johnson’s 1786 A Dictionary of the English Language, printed in London by Harrison and Co., complete and well preserved in contemporary leather binding.
A rare 18th-century printing of Samuel Johnson’s famous English Dictionary. This enormous 1786 first edition is unpaginated and features a section on grammar unique to the English language. While editions of this work were published for decades following this edition, this edition was the first folio edition to be published all in one volume rather than the more commonly available multivolume printings.
Bibliographic Details
- Title: A Dictionary of the English Language: In Which the Words are Deduced from Their Originals, and Illustrated in Their Different Significations
- Author(s): Samuel Johnson
- Publisher: London: Printed for Harrison and Co.
- Edition: First single-volume folio edition, 1786
- Binding: Leather spine with marbled boards
- Format: Folio (single volume)
- Size: 16.75in x 10.75in (42.5cm x 27.5cm)
- Collation: Unpaginated (~960 pages)
- Illustrations: portrait frontispiece
- Contents Include:
- Preface on Language and Grammar
- Alphabetical Dictionary Entries
- Supplemental Grammar Section
Condition:
Very Good. Leather and marbled boards firm and intact, binding tight and secure. Pages show mild staining and age toning with no major defects or loss of text.
Why Collect This?
- Enormous single-volume folio of Johnson’s landmark dictionary
- First edition in this size
Item Number: # 29718
Category
Language Study & Reference
Authors
Samuel Johnson
Printing Date
18th Century
Language
English
Binding
Leather
Book Condition
Very Good
Collation
Complete


