The Writings Of Thomas Jefferson Nine Volumes Complete

Taylor & Maury. Hardcover. Very Good. This is the first publication of Jefferson's work after Congress approiated funds to purchase his papers in 1848 . Jefferson had left his papers to his grandson , Thomas Jefferson Randolph and Randolph had published some of them in the late 1820's .In 1848 the papers were turned over to H. A. Washington , and , working quickly , he got the material to publication in these volumes in 1853 - 1854 . Washigton offered little in the way of notes or annotations but he did try to select " everything which possesses perminent public interest either on account of its intrinsic value , or as a matter of history , or as illustrating the character of the distinguished Author , or as embodying his views upon the almost endless variety of topics , philosophical , moral , religious , scietific , historical , and political ,so ably discussed by him . " .This is a very good set . A ll of the volumes are in the original bindings . It is a very well matched set and I think that it is likely that the books have been together as a set since publication . The cloth covers are elaborately decorated . The cloth shows some wear , especially to the corners of the boards and at the head and foot of the spine panel . But , overall , the cloth has held up well . The bindings are tight on all the volumes . The interiors are clean , no names of previous owners or marks of any kind . All of the volumes show some foxing , primarily to the endpapers and title pages -- very little to the text pages . Volume I has a frontispiece portrait of Jefferson by Gilbert Stuart -- tissue guard intact . Volume I also has a large foldout handwritten copy of Jefferson's draft of the Declaration of Independence . This is a very scarce set , especially in the original Taylor & Maury binding and in this very good condition .