The Domesday book, 1783-1816

Domesday Book, seu liber censualis Willelmi primi regis Angliæ. 1-4.

London 1783-1816. Folio. (50 x 30 cms.) [4] ff. + 382 ff.; + [4] pp. + pp. 1-229a-b, 230a-b, 231-450; + [16] + CVIII + 580 pp. (one page numbered 132-40); + [4] + XXII pp. + pp. 1-496 + [2] pp. + pp. 497-530 + [2] pp. + pp. 531-564 + [2] pp. + pp. 565-636. + 5 engraved facsimile plates, some tinted.

Four volumes, entirely uncut in original leather-backed boards, very worn, some slight foxing, mainly to vols. 3-4, a few marginal tears, numerous pages with staining to gutter from slips of dark paper (used as markers?).

First printed edition of William the Conqueror’s unprecedented survey, providing an unparalleled view of medieval England, including its courts and nascent legal system; with Henry Ellis' valuable introduction, not always found.

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