Some titles include information about when and where plays were originally performed.

Provenance & Evidence of Readership: In each volume, the ink presentation inscription “W.A. Sanford to E.C.A. Sanford” on the front fly-leaf is followed by an index in the same 19th-century hand. Vol. II also has a typed index.

A full list of the plays is available upon request.

•  See Bergman & Szmuk, Comedias Sueltas; McKnight & Jones, Catalogue of Comedias Sueltas; and Sullivan & Bershas, Comedias Sueltas; Don W. Cruickshank, Don Pedro Calderón.   Early 19th-century vellum over boards with binder's sticker on front pastedown and ink title to spines; spine vellum of vol. I significantly torn. Nearly all of the comedias are trimmed close at the margins, many with loss to signature marks and occasionally a bottom line of text; some age-toning, stains, occasional water damage, and foxing. Where colophons are affected, dates have been supplied using the aforementioned references.  (29317)

Single-click image at left
for an enlargement.

Rare: Only one copy of this edition traced via NUC Pre-1956, OCLC, and RLIN (at the Bancroft Library).

•  Quarter vellum with vellum turn-ins. Covers originally covered with gilt or marbled paper, now lost, exposing underlying paste boards—a rather interesting effect. Spine divided into compartments by gilt rolls; a tan leather label, gilt-lettered. Somewhat cockled. Pages untrimmed. Upper outer corner of title-leaf repaired with paper. Two wormholes through frontispiece, plate, and first three printed leaves, with a little loss to illustrations (which yet remain effective) and to parts of individual letters; some additional worming in the margins, not affecting text.

Scarce: A search of WorldCat and ESTC locates only two U.S. institutional holdings, and only one U.K.

•  ESTC T206417.   Removed from a nonce volume; upper outer corners creased, some leaves with small edge chips and/or dust-soiling, half-title with spots of staining. A very uncommon example of a particular, enduring mindset.  (29928)

This edition is graced with four charming historiated woodcut initials: “I,” “C,” “R,” and “L.”

Provenance:  On verso of the front free endpaper in an 18th-century hand is a note that the the book belonged to the Capuchin Convent of Mexico City in 1787.

•  Medina, Mexico, 9208.   Publisher's limp vellum with ties, fore-edge of rear cover rodent-gnawed with a corner lost and both covers with part of lower edge likewise gnawed but in limited way; the hungry rodent also nibbled along the fore-edges of pp. 213 to 234, minimally and with remarkable neatness. Ownership notation as indicated. A good, clean volume.  (29589)

In Latin printed in roman and italic, the text also has passages inHebrew, Greek, Arabic, and German, with sidenotes and footnotes to aid the reader. The text is sparsely but elegantly decorated with floriated woodcut initials, head- and tailpieces, and one letterpress diagram. The title-page is printed in red and black with a small engraved emblematic vignette, and there are separate section titles to each part and to the extensive indices that follow at the end, compiled by Heinrich Engelbert Schwarz. (His letter to the reader is found in the middle of the final quire.)

•  Contemporary sheepskin, spine with raised bands and gilt stamp in compartments, gilt lettering piece, covers ruled in blind, red edges; boards very rubbed, leather chipped at spine revealing bands, offsetting from leather onto endpapers. Evidence of paper labels sometime to spine; 19th-century seminary bookplate on front pastedown, faded old stamps to title-page and, almost imperceptibly, the facing portrait. Scattered spots from foxing and chemical reactions in the paper, but sturdy and clean.  (30333)

Provenance:  Flourishing old signatures of “J. Lowry” to pastedown and title-page.

The entremeses in vol. I (which volume is not present) were previously published in Castro's 1702 Primera parte de Alegria comica, but those in this volume are by other (unidentified) comics and ardhere for the first time. The entremeses in this volume are: “El Gallego silletero,” “La Rueda y los Cobielos, 2a parte,” “Los locos,” “El Enmendador,” “Pedro Grullo y Anton Pintado,” “La Lámina,” “Las Brujas, 2a parte,” “El duelo del vejete,” “La casa de los linajes,” “La Burla del Herrero,” “El Sacristan niño,” and “El Hombre muger.”

Searches of WorldCat and NUC Pre-1956 locate only one U.S. library reporting ownership of this work and it has both volumes. Searches of the Catálogo Colectivo del Patrimonio Bibliográfico and the OPAC of the BNE find only three libraries in Spain owning both volumes and only three other libraries owning either volume alone. Palau says “Los dos tomos completos y en buen estado son raros.”

An important and clearly rare compilation of post–Golden Age theater.

•  Palau 48691; Aguilar 2362. On Castro, see: Archivo biográfico de España, Portugal, e Iberoamérica, fiche 198, frames 417–24.   Modern medium brown morocco, gilt double-rule border on both covers, gilt spine extra, single gilt rule on board edges. Gilt inner dentelles, gilt pattern endpapers, top edge gilt, blue silk place marker. Light age-toning in some sections, by nature of paper; a few pages with small natural paper flaws; some leaves lightened across their lower outer corners; and otherwise the stray stain only. This is a very nice copy.  (29144)

•  Not in Weale & Bohatta.   Bindings as above, edges and extremities rubbed, spine leather with tiny cracks, one spine head chipped, one joint starting. Ex-library with bookplates, rubber-stamp on lower edges of pages of the closed volumes. One volume with text block separating from spine and sewing loosening; this with the most leather rubbed away and the darkest instances of the usually-light waterstaining and spots of foxing seen occasionally throughout. Endpapers bear early inked ownership inscriptions and annotations. An elegant quartet.  (12406)

This copy is notarized, i.e., authenticated, sealed, and signed, "In Madrid, a true copy, Manuel St. Martin, Apostolic notary." No copies were found on OCLC or RLIN, or in NUC Pre-1956.

•  Not in Palau. On Benedict XIII, see New Catholic Encyclopedia, II, 276-77. Removed from a nonce volume. Paper generally clean and crisp with but a few spots of soiling; closed tear from bottom margin into the last two lines of text, without loss of letters. Inked paraph on lower inner corners, and inked notation on upper outer corner of first page.

This bilingual edition is printed in two columns, the original Latin text of the Apostolic letter is on the left and a Spanish translation is on the right. This important item in Spanish and Vatican diplomatic history is rare. No copies were found on OCLC or RLIN, or in NUC Pre-1956.

•  Not in Palau. On Benedict XIV, see New Catholic Encyclopedia, II, 278. Removed from a nonce volume. Paper generally clean and crisp with a few spots of soiling.

•  Medina, Mexico, 5472.   Contemporary limp vellum with remnants of ties. Worming in lower and inner margins of first portion of volume, not touching text; clean.  (29480)