Nice condition copy of "The Story of NELL GWYN" - And the Sayings of Charles the Second by Peter Cunningham. 1891; John Wiley's Sons; New York. The book features a frontispiece portrait of Gwyn, and numerous illustrated plates. Decorative floral end papers. At the front and back of the book are newspaper articles from the 1900's - 1920's about Gwyn that have been pasted to the end papers. "Gwyn was a celebrity figure of the Restoration period who was praised by the likes of Samuel Pepys for her comic performances as one of the first actresses of the English stage. She became best known for being a long-time mistress of King Charles II of England and Scotland. Called "pretty, witty Nell" by Pepys, she has been regarded as a living embodiment of the spirit of Restoration England and has come to be considered a folk heroine, with a story echoing the rags-to-royalty tale on Cinderella."
Condition:
The front pastedown has paper remnants of what appears to be a bookplate that has since been removed. The front decorative end paper has separated from the spine 1/3 of the way up from the bottom. The text pages are in great condition - mostly clean with only an occasional smudge or light foxing here and there. The front and rear end papers each have old newspaper clippings/articles about Gwyn that have been glued onto buying the pages. Overall the book is in Very Good condition.
Product code: 1891 The Story of NELL GWYN and the Sayings of Charles the Second, buying Illustrated, Early Actress