Holinshed’s Chronicles First Edition Leaf, 1577 — Cymbeline, Three Woodcuts
$ 153.12
Description
Holinshed’s Chronicles First Edition Leaf, 1577 — Cymbeline, Three Woodcuts. A leaf from the 1577 first edition of Holinshed’s Chronicles — the single most important historical source for Shakespeare’s English history plays and several tragedies including Cymbeline. This leaf carries the Cymbeline / Guiderius narrative that Shakespeare drew on directly for his late romance, plus three integrated woodcuts across recto and verso. A leaf from the 1577 first edition of Holinshed’s Chronicles — the single most important historical source for Shakespeare’s English history plays and several tragedies including Cymbeline. This leaf carries the Cymbeline / Guiderius narrative that Shakespeare drew on directly for his late romance, plus three integrated woodcuts across recto and verso. Content: Recto carries the reign of Kymbeline and Guiderius’s refusal of Roman tribute — the exact narrative beats Shakespeare collapsed for dramatic economy in Cymbeline (c. 1610–1611). Verso (page 48) covers Caligula’s seashell-gathering set-piece (cited from Suetonius and "Dion Cassius lib.59" per the printed marginal note) and the lead-in to Claudius’s AD 43 invasion under Aulus Plautius. Woodcuts: Three integrated cuts on a single leaf: crowned king labeled "Guiderius" with sword (recto top), battle scene with pikemen and a burning village (recto bottom), and Roman invasion fleet with men loading and disembarking (verso). Multiple-woodcut leaves command a premium over text-only or single-cut leaves in this market. Edition: First edition, 1577, printed by Henry Bynneman in London. The 1587 second edition (printed by Henry Denham) removed most of the woodcuts, so illustrated leaves are a structural first-edition signature. ESTC records approximately 100–150 institutional copies of the 1577 edition worldwide. Condition: Recto has significant left-margin edge damage with paper loss along most of the height and a tear at the upper page-number; verso (page 48) is in substantially better condition with intact text and Roman-fleet woodcut, light browning at the right margin. Currently in archival mylar sleeve. For collectors of Shakespeare source material, Tudor-era English printing, or decorative antiquarian leaves with strong wall presence. Included: Single leaf in archival mylar sleeve, unframed.
