The Roman Antiquities Of Dionysius Halicarnassensis, Translated Into English, With Notes And Dissertations By Edward Spelman, Esq.

London: Booksellers Of London And Westminster, 1758. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. Very Good. Four Volumes, Complete, 11" Tall, 456 + Errata To Vol I At End; 439 + Errata To Vol Ii At End; 438 + Errata To Volume Iii At End; 516 (Including Index And Advertisement) + Errata To Vol Iv At End. Spine Labels In Correct Sequence. Original Speckled Calf, Very Nicely Re-Backed In Full Calf, Five Bands, Gilt In All Compartments, Morocco Spine Labels. Moderate Wear To Boards, Spines Clean And Excellent. In Each Volume There Is A Large, Elaborate Personal Bookplate Of M. Robert Guggenheim, Washington (Bookplate Signed "Bird '07"). Binding Very Strong, Hinges Tight, No Other Names Or Marks, No Stains, But Boards Worn Through At Corners And Much Of Bottom Edges, With Binder's Repairs . Dionysius Of Halicarnassus (Greek: ????????? ?????????? ????????????? "Dionysios Son Of Alexandros Of Halikarnassos", C. 60 Bc - After 7 Bc) Was A Greek Historian And Teacher Of Rhetoric, Who Flourished During The Reign Of Caesar Augustus. His Literary Style Was Atticistic - Imitating Classical Attic Greek In Its Prime. He Went To Rome After The Termination Of The Civil Wars, And Spent Twenty-Two Years Studying Latin And Literature And Preparing Materials For His History. During This Period, He Gave Lessons In Rhetoric, And Enjoyed The Society Of Many Distinguished Men. The Date Of His Death Is Unknown. His Great Work, Entitled ??????? ??????????? (Rhomaike Archaiologia, Roman Antiquities), Embraced The History Of Rome From The Mythical Period To The Beginning Of The First Punic War. It Was Divided Into Twenty Books, Of Which The First Nine Remain Entire, The Tenth And Eleventh Are Nearly Complete, And The Remaining Books Exist In Fragments In The Excerpts Of Constantine Porphyrogenitus And An Epitome Discovered By Angelo Mai In A Milan Manuscript. The First Three Books Of Appian, Plutarch's Life Of Camillus And Life Of Coriolanus Also Embody Much Of Dionysius. His Chief Object Was To Reconcile The Greeks To The Rule Of Rome, By Dilating Upon The Good Qualities Of Their Conquerors And Also By Arguing, Using More Ancient Sources, That The Romans Were Genuine Descendants Of The Older Greeks. According To Him, History Is Philosophy Teaching By Examples, And This Idea He Has Carried Out From The Point Of View Of A Greek Rhetorician. But He Carefully Consulted The Best Authorities, And His Work And That Of Livy Are The Only Connected And Detailed Extant Accounts Of Early Roman History. In 1742 Spelman (D. 1767) Translated Xenophon's Anabasis, Under The Title 'The Expedition Of Cyrus Into Persia, With Notes Critical And Historical,' London. It Went Through Several Editions, And Was Republished As Late As 1849. Spelman's Translation Was Styled By Edward Gibbon 'One Of The Most Accurate And Elegant That Any Language Has Produced'. He Also Translated 'A Fragment Out Of The Sixth Book Of Polybius,' London, 1743, And 'The Roman Antiquities Of Dionysius Halicarnassus, With Notes And Dissertations,' London, 1758. The Latter Work Won The Praise Of Adam Clarke, The Former That Of Edward Harwood [Wikipedia]. .