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Title: La Mort d'Arthur: The Most Ancient and Famous History of the Renowned Prince Arthur, and the Knights of the Round Table
Author: Sir Thomas Malory
Publisher: R. Wilks (London)
Printing Year: 1816 Volume I

Condition/Details: Bound in three-quarter leather with raised bands and marbled boards, this antique volume is a rare edition of Sir Thomas Malory's compilation of French and English Arthurian romances. The book contains some of Malory's own original material (the Gareth story) and retells the older stories in light of Malory's own views and interpretations. First published in 1485 by William Caxton, Le Morte d'Arthur is perhaps the best-known work of English-language Arthurian literature today. Many modern Arthurian writers have used Malory as their principal source, including T. H. White for his popular "The Once and Future King" and Tennyson for "The Idylls of the King."

The 1485 Caxton edition was followed by editions in 1498, 1529, 1557 and 1634. No further editions were printed until two competing editions were issued in 1816, of which this is one. This is an important edition, marking the start of modern interest in Arthuriana. By 1858, Thomas Wright was already describing this edition as rare.

The work is illustrated with an engraved frontispiece of the death of Sir Launcelot, half title page vignette and intact fold-out plate depicting Arthur and his knights at the Round Table. The volume shows light external age/wear, and is solidly bound with lightly age-toned pages that show foxing throughout. The book measures approximately 3 1/4" x 5 1/2" and contains 326 pages. Shipping cost (within the U.S.) for this lot will be: $4.50