The Bibliomania; or, Book-Madness; Containing Some Account Of The History, Symptoms, And Cures Of This Fatal Disease. In an Epistle addressed to Richard Heber Esq. [Signed copy].

London:: Printed for Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme by W. Savage,, 1809.. First edition.. 8vo. Hardcover.. Fine binding modern quarter calf over marbled boards gilt rules at spine ends and gilt black title label. New endpapers. Title page and B1 printed in black and red. Outer margin textblock edges uncut (not uncommon) .A2 & B1 with tiny repair to outer margin edge no affect. Some minor foxing. Presentation inscription from author removed from original front pastedown and adhered to new pastedown. A nice copy of a rare first edition signed by the author. ÒThomas Frognall Dibdin (1776-1847) English bibliographer who helped to stimulate interest in bibliography by his own enthusiastic though often inaccurate books, by his share in founding the first English private publishing society, and by his beautifully produced catalog of Lord SpencerÕs library (which collection later became the nucleus of the John Rylands Library, Manchester). His father, the captain of a sailing ship, was the inspiration for his uncle Charles DibdinÕs song ÒTom Bowling.Ó Both of DibdinÕs parents died on the passage from India to England in 1780, and at age four he became the ward of his motherÕs younger brother, Charles Compton. Educated at St. JohnÕs College, Oxford, Dibdin began a legal career but took holy orders in 1805. His Introduction to the knowledge of rare and valuable editions of the Greek and Latin Classics (1802) attracted the notice of Lord Spencer, through whose patronage Dibdin obtained a clerical appointment in London. His Bibliotheca Spenceriana (1814Ð15) became famous for the high quality of its printing. Dibdin traveled widely in search of books and manuscripts, and his Bibliographical, Antiquarian and Picturesque Tour in France and Germany (1821) is typical of his work in containing much lively anecdote, many factual errors, and some excellent engravings. His Bibliomania (1809) contributed to the publicÕs interest in old and rare books. Among his many other works is the two-volume autobiography Reminiscences of a Literary Life (1836).Ó [-Britannica].