Eugene Istomin's interest in the writers of England's Augustan Age is reflected in his ownership of Lord Chesterfield's letters, Boswell's Life of Johnson, and Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, as well as many other history and biographical books.
Search the catalog for the full Eugene Istomin Rare Books collection, below are a few notable History and Biography titles.
Edward Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. This set consists of six volumes, all first editions and first printings that contain misprints in volumes 1 and 3. Only 500 copies were issued in this state.
Lord Chesterfield's classic letters to his son and others were models of wit and sophisticated manners. A best-seller in its day, Chesterfield's letters also were the target of a celebrated riposte by Samuel Johnson who had fallen out with the author, his former patron.
Benjamin Franklin wrote his memoirs until his death and then were continued by his grandson William Temple Franklin. The volume comprises Franklin's letters on miscellaneous, literary, and political subjects written between 1753 and 1790, as well as illustrating his public and private life, and touching on his political transactions and negotiations.
The Life of Samuel Johnson by James Boswell is a biography of English writer Dr. Samuel Johnson. From the beginning the work has been a critical and popular success, and represents a landmark in the development of the modern genre of biography. The binding of this copy is signed: Bayntun Riviere, Bath, England.
