Johnson's Dictionary

Johnson, Samuel. DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. London: Strahan, Rivinton, Davis, et al., 1784. 2 vols. Fifth edition. Unpaginated. Hardcover. Thick, large folio. Rebound in period, full calf, with contrasting red morocco title labels. A lovely set, and the last edition printed during the author's lifetime. Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language was first published in 1755; it had a far-reaching effect on Modern English and has been described as one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship. Until the completion of the Oxford English Dictionary 150 years later, Johnson's was viewed as the pre-eminent British dictionary.