First Baskerville edition of Terence’s ‘Comedies’. It was printed on the better ‘Writing Royal’ paper of the Baskerville press, and sold for a Guinea. (A 12mo was also produced in the same year on cheaper paper.) Terence (d. 159 B.C.) was born into slavery at Carthage and brought to Rome, where he was freed, taking his old master’s name. His six comedies, which stand out for their particular naturalistic style, were admired right through the Middle Ages for their moral arguments, and were still on school curricula in the nineteenth century.
“Printed in the usually beautiful style of the impressions of ancient classical authors by this printer” (Dibdin). The popular typeface Monotype Baskerville, produced in 1923, was based on Baskerville’s Great Primer type as it appeared in this edition (Pardoe, ‘John Baskerville’, p. 167).
Gaskell, ‘Baskerville’, * 46 (p. 58). ESTC T137489. Dibdin (4th edn.) II 477. Schweiger III 1070. Graesse VI.2 61. Brunet V 718.