Overview:

Title: The New Royal Cyclopædia, and Encyclopædia; or, Complete, Modern and Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences

Author: George Selby Howard, LL.D., F.R.S., with contributions and revisions attributed to John Bettesworth, Henry Boswell, Felix Stonehouse and others.

Publisher: Alexander Hogg, at the King's Arms, No. 16, Paternoster Row, London.

Date: c.1788–1790

Format: Three large folio volumes.

Binding: Matching full brown leather bindings with raised spine bands, gilt-tooled decoration and contrasting red and black title labels.

Illustrations: Three engraved frontispieces and numerous copperplate engravings depicting scientific instruments, natural history, engineering, astronomy, anatomy and other subjects.

Collation: All three volumes present, including their respective title pages and engraved frontispieces. The original Instructions to the Bookbinder and subscriber list are present at the end of Volume III.

Description

A substantial three-volume Georgian encyclopaedia, published in London by Alexander Hogg during the late 18th century. This ambitious publication sought to compile the accumulated knowledge of the arts, sciences, literature and mechanical trades into a comprehensive reference work.

The encyclopaedia covers an extraordinary range of subjects, including astronomy, mathematics, medicine, natural history, architecture, navigation, agriculture, engineering, chemistry, philosophy and theology.

Throughout the volumes are numerous finely engraved copperplates illustrating scientific apparatus, machinery, animals, anatomical subjects and technical diagrams. Each volume opens with an elaborate allegorical frontispiece celebrating the pursuit of knowledge and scientific discovery.

Historical Significance

Published during the British Enlightenment and the early Industrial Revolution, this encyclopaedia reflects a period of extraordinary scientific and technological development.

The work was produced during the reign of George III, when Britain was experiencing rapid advances in manufacturing, navigation, medicine and the natural sciences.

Particularly interesting is its contemporary coverage of aerostation, including the pioneering balloon experiments of the Montgolfier brothers in 1783. The encyclopaedia also contains extensive discussions of mechanical engineering, mathematics, astronomy and the natural world.

Like other great encyclopaedic publications of the period, it represents an attempt to organise and preserve human knowledge at a time when scientific discoveries were transforming European society.

Illustrations and Plates

The three volumes contain numerous copperplate engravings illustrating subjects across the arts and sciences.

Examples include:

• Natural history illustrations depicting lions, kangaroos, hyenas, armadillos and other animals.

• Scientific diagrams demonstrating the construction and operation of sundials.

• Mathematical and geometrical instruments.

• Mechanical and engineering apparatus.

• Astronomical, geographical and navigational subjects.

• Three elaborate allegorical frontispieces representing the pursuit of universal knowledge.

The original Instructions to the Bookbinder, present at the end of Volume III, provide a detailed register of the engravings and their intended placement throughout the work.

These instructions also document several contemporary plate-numbering irregularities, making them particularly useful for bibliographical examination.

The complete plate count has not yet been established.

Binding and Condition

The three volumes are housed in matching full brown leather bindings, with raised bands, gilt-tooled decorative borders and contrasting spine labels identifying their respective alphabetical divisions.

The bindings exhibit considerable age-related wear, including rubbing, scuffing, scratches, bumped corners and areas of leather loss, particularly around the spine extremities and board edges. Some splitting and deterioration are visible along the joints.

Internally, the photographed leaves remain generally clean and legible, with occasional foxing, staining, creasing, marginal tears and other signs of age and handling. Some engraved leaves exhibit marginal wear and small tears.

All three engraved frontispieces and title pages are present. The original Instructions to the Bookbinder and subscriber list are also present in Volume III.

Dimensions (For all three volumes):

Weight - 12.3kg

Height - 43.8cm

Width - 27.5cm

Thickness - 18.5cm