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The Beggar's Opera
by Gay, John
- Used
- Near Fine
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Near Fine/Very Good Plus
- Seller
-
Chico, California, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: Daniel O'Connor, 1922. This is a beautiful edition of Gay's most famous work, in an edition LIMITED to "1000 copies, of which 950 numbered are for sale." This copy is one of the twenty that are un-numbered. Near Fine copy; blue-gray paper-covered boards with a white linen spine; paper labels on front cover and spine. The introduction is by Oswald Doughty. Clean text; 99 pages, with Notes. Twenty-eight plates and a facsimile of the original Title Page. The endpapers are also illustrated; the reverse of the half-title has a bookplate from a previous owner. Minor bumping. The dustwrapper is of a heavy brown paper with an embossed portrait of Gay on the front cover. There are two chips to the head and foot of the spine. In an archival plastic protector. Size: 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall. First Thus.. Hard Cover. Near Fine/Very Good Plus.
Synopsis
‘Whore and rogue they call husband and wife: All professions be-rogue one another' The tale of Peachum, thief-taker and informer, conspiring to send the dashing and promiscuous highwayman Macheath to the gallows, became the theatrical sensation of the eighteenth century. In The Beggar’s Opera , John Gay turned conventions of Italian opera riotously upside-down, instead using traditional popular ballads and street tunes, while also indulging in political satire at the expense of the Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole. Gay’s highly original depiction of the thieves, informers, prostitutes and highwaymen thronging the slums and prisons of the corrupt London underworld proved brilliantly successful in exposing the dark side of a corrupt and jaded society. Bryan Loughrey and T. O. Treadwell’s introduction examines the eighteenth-century background of musical theatre and opera, the changing cityscape of London and the corruption of the legal system. This edition also includes a note on the music in The Beggar’s Opera and suggestions for further reading.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Quercus Rare Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 002445
- Title
- The Beggar's Opera
- Author
- Gay, John
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Near Fine
- Jacket Condition
- Very Good Plus
- Edition
- First Thus.
- Publisher
- Daniel O'Connor
- Place of Publication
- London
- Date Published
- 1922
- Bookseller catalogs
- Theatre/Drama;
Terms of Sale
Quercus Rare Books
We accept checks and money orders in US Dollars. Credit card orders are accepted through Biblio. California residents add appropriate sales tax. Items are returnable for any reason within ten days of receipt (please email or call first before returning item).
About the Seller
Quercus Rare Books
Biblio member since 2006
Chico, California
About Quercus Rare Books
Quercus Books seeks out and provides to the discriminating Reader or Collector noteworthy books in the First Edition. Our particular focus is on Modern Literature (roughly from the Second World War to the present) and Irish Authors. We also retain a small stock of non-fiction titles, mostly in the fields of American Western History, American Indians, and the American Civil War. Member of IOBA - the Independent Online Booksellers Association.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Title Page
- A page at the front of a book which may contain the title of the book, any subtitles, the authors, contributors, editors, the...
- Bookplate
- Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Facsimile
- An exact copy of an original work. In books, it refers to a copy or reproduction, as accurate as possible, of an original...
- Dustwrapper
- Also known as book jacket, dust cover, or dust wrapper, a dust jacket is a protective and decorative cover for a book that is...
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