NOBODY, AND SOME-BODY. With the true Chronicle Historie of Elydure, who was fortunately three severall times crowned King of England. by [Two Original Woodcuts] - 1606: The true Coppy thereof, as it hath been acted by the Queens Maiesties Seruants. Printed for Iohn Trundle and are toobe sold at his shop in Barbican, at the sign of No-body.

[Smith, Alexander], NOBODY, AND SOME-BODY. With the true Chronicle Historie of Elydure, who was fortunately three severall times crowned King of England. The true Coppy thereof, as it hath been acted by the Queens Maiesties Seruants. Printed for Iohn Trundle and are toobe sold at his shop in Barbican, at the sign of No-body. Two woodcut illustrations from the first edition of 1606, one is the hand-colored title page woodcut vignette with The Prologue on the verso. The other is of "Somebody," without hand-coloring. Both of these woodcuts have vertical chain lines. 17 cm x 11.5 cm Additionally, these two woodcuts are sold with a facsimile reprint of the 1606 edition, printed for private circulation in Glasgow, December 1877, in an edition of only fifty copies. As much an exact reproduction as a reprint, it is a typographical facsimile, the peculiarities of type and spelling carefully preserved. The importance of preserving illustrations of early seventeenth century habits is demonstrated by a notable allusion in the play to the treatment of thieves taken in the theatres of the day: "somebody once pickt a pocket in this Play-house yard, /was hoysted on the stage and shamd about it." [The letter "s" in "hoysted," "Stage" and "shamd" is faithfully reproduced in the old letter form not available here.] The hand-colored title page has been trimmed across the bottom, the final phrase "Barbican, at the sign of No-body" was lost.

Additionally, the reproduced limited edition text is accompanied by a small archive of supporting correspondence and articles. Numerous articles are pasted onto front endpaper, and between the initial blanks: a clipping from Academy, March 2, 1878; the entry from H. Southeran & Co.'s Catalogue, April 30, 1878; an entry by Alexander Smith from Notes and Queries, September 11, 1878; Smith's entry in Notes and Queries, June 6, 1874, pages 441 - 443, which gives a textual examination and brings up Shakespeare's Tempest text. As for the dating of the original play, Smith quotes Ben Johnson: "As there is no date to the play, the year in which it was printed must remain a matter of conjecture. John Trundle, the publisher, as far as I can learn, carried on business, perhaps from 1598 until, at least, 1625. Ben Johnson in Every Man in his Humour, makes referenceto Trundlein these words Act I, Scene 2: 'Well, if he read this with patience I'll be gelt, and troll ballads for Master John Trundle yonder, the rest of my mortality.'"

Manuscript material relating to this limited edition consists of 2 1/2 page unsigned manuscript by the editor Alexander Smith in which he recounts how he came to know of Nobody, and Some-Body through his friendship "... with Dr. George H. Kingsley -- brother to the late Canon Kingsley -- the librarian to the Earl of Ellesmore.. He was kind enough to procure for my use three old plays of great rarity and interest one of them being 'Nobody & Somebody." He details his bibliographic work on the play subsequent to his discovery of it. Two ALS by E. Christie-Miller to Smith about the woodcut illustration and thanks for the receipt of copy of this reprint. Two additional reproductions (1877) of the original woodblock prints are laid in. See also: STC (2nd Ed.), 18597; ESTC S113225.