Beschreibung:

PRYNNE, William (1600-1669). Histrio-Mastix. The Players Scourge, or Actors Tragaedie . London: E.A and W.I for Michael Sparke, 1633. Small 4 o (187 x 135 mm). Complete with blanks π1 and Nnnnn4. (Few nicks to fore-margin of title, several rust holes occasionally catching a few letters, otherwise crisp.) Contemporary English blind-ruled calf (rebacked preserving original spine, corners repaired). Provenance : a few 19th century annotations on first blank -- Horace J. Bridges (signature dated 1941 on first blank) -- purchased from John F. Fleming, New York, 15 June 1968. FIRST EDITION, second state with the list of "Errataes" on ***4 verso (only a very few copies are known of the first issue). Prynne was an unbending Puritan whose attacks on the plays and theaters of his time spared no one. Prynne's indignant reference to Shakespeare is often quoted: "Shackpeers Plaies are printed in the best Crowne paper, far better than most Bibles." Although dated 1633, the work appeared in late 1632 and by January 1633 its sale was prohibited because of its political and religious implications (especially as a result of a remark about female actors being "notorious whores" which was construed as a reference to the court actress Henrietta Maria). Prynne was eventually pilloried and imprisoned and the book was burnt publicly. Bartlett 360; Lowe, Arnott & Robinson 276; Pforzheimer 809; STC 20464a.