An Exact Abridgment of the Records in the Tower of London, From..

1657. A Notable Abridgment of the Parliament Rolls Cotton, Sir Robert [1570/1-1631]. Prynne, William [1600-1669], Editor. An Exact Abridgment of the Records in the Tower of London, From the Reign of King Edward the Second, Unto King Richard the Third, Of All the Parliaments Holden in Each Kings Reign, And the Several Acts in Every Parliament: Together With the Names and Titles of All the Dukes, Marquesses, Earls, Viscounts, And Barons, Summoned to Every of the Said Parliaments. Collected by Sir Robert Cotton. Revised, Rectified in Sundry Mistakes, And Supplied with a Preface, Marginal Notes, Several Omissions, And Exact Tables, Both of the Special Matters, Great Officers, Speakers, Nobles, And Other Persons Therein Contained by William Prynne. London: Printed for William Leake, 1657. [xxxiv], 204, 281-444, 449-483, [1], 533-716, [144] pp. Pagination irregular. Text complete. Folio (11-1/2" x 7"). Eighteenth-century mottled calf, blind rules to boards, raised bands, blind ornaments and lettering piece to spine, marbled edges, blind tooling to board edges. A few minor scuffs to boards, light rubbing to extremities, joints just starting at foot, corners bumped and somewhat worn, front hinge cracked, later armorial bookplate (of Sir Frederick Evelyn) and twentieth-century bookplate (JE) to front pastedown. Light toning to interior, light foxing to a few leaves, light soiling and a few minor stains to title page. $650. * First edition. As Holdsworth notes, the importance of the Parliament Rolls was so great during the seventeenth century that "transcripts were made for private use, and published by private enterprise." He adds that the most important of these was produced by Prynne. It is based on a manuscript that is now attributed to William and Robert Bowyer. It records the substance of Acts of Parliament and other particulars, that are not extant in print, among the statutes or the Parliament Rolls, and supplies the purpose of a useful index to the Rolls of Parliament. It was reissued in 1679 and 1689. Holdsworth, A History of English Law II:423. English Short-Title Catalogue R1629.