[JUNIUS]

Junius. Stat Nominis Umbra. A New Edition.

London: Printed by T. Bensley, Bolt Court; for Vernor & Hood, J. Walker, Cuthell & Martin, W. J. & J. Richardson, Lackington, Allen, & Co., Longman, Rees, Hurst, & Orme, W. Otridge & Son, R. Faulder, Ogilvy & Son, W. Stewart, & Jordan & Maxwell, 1805.

​Two octavo volumes (7.75" x 5"). Complete with engraved portrait frontispiece of John Wilkes (dated / captioned "John Wilks, Esqr.") and fine engraved oval portrait plates throughout (including the Duke of Grafton, the Duke of Bedford, and others).

​Handsomely bound by Henry Sotheran & Co. (with their discreet binder's palette/stamp to front turn-in) in full straight-grain morocco. Boards framed with double gilt fillet borders. Spines with five raised bands, compartments ruled in gilt and titled/dated directly in gilt (JUNIUS / VOL. I [II] / 1805). Gilt board edges and turn-ins; all edges gilt (a.e.g.).

​Condition: Near Fine. The bindings are tight, firm, and exceptionally square with minimal surface wear. Small amount of loss to head of one spine. Internally sound and clean overall, with expected mild scattered foxing/toning primarily adjacent to the plates and title pages. A remarkably handsome, shelf-ready copy in a master binder’s classic leather treatment.

​The Letters of Junius represent one of the greatest political polemics and sustained literary mysteries of 18th-century Britain. Originally published in the Public Advertiser between 1769 and 1772 under the pseudonym "Junius" (traditionally attributed to Sir Philip Francis), the letters fiercely attacked the administration of King George III, the Duke of Grafton, and Lord North, championing British civil liberties, freedom of the press, and parliamentary reform. This 1805 Bensley edition is notable for its sharp typography and handsome series of engraved oval portraits of the principal political figures addressed in the controversy.