J. Ebsworth (1824-1908) English, Westminster Drolleries 3 Volume Set (1875-76). Limited Edition. 

Size: (each) 7 5/16 X 4 13/16 X 1 in. 

This three-volume set is titled Westminster Drolleries, edited by J Woodall Ebsworth and published in Boston and Lincolnshire by Robert Roberts between 1875 and 1876. The books are titled The Westminster Drolleries, The Merry Drolleries, and The Choyce Drolleries and were originally published between 1656 and 1672. This is a limited edition set of 400 from 1875 and 1876. The drolleries referred to a popular collection of songs and poems which were intended to be performed at courts and theaters, and they were short ballads which focused on humor and lightheartedness and provided a glimpse into the musical and literary tastes of 17th-century England, and Ebsworth’s set was reprinted from the original 17th century editions. Joseph Woodfall Ebsworth (1824 - 1908) was an English clergyman known as an editor of ballads, a poet and an artist. Born in Lambeth, his family moved to Edinburgh in the 1820’s and he moved to Glasgow on his own in 1848, where he became a master at the School of Design. In 1853 Ebsworth took a solitary walking tour through central Europe and Italy; he returned to Edinburgh in 1854 and busied himself with painting, engraving, and writing prose and verse. In 1875, he published these editions of The Westminster Drolleries of 1671 and 1672 and The Merry Drolleries of 1661 and 1670. The Choyce Drolleries of 1656 followed in 1876. The books are three-quarter bound, with five raised bands and gilt lettering and gilt devices   on  the spines, marbled boards, marbled endpapers with armorial bookplates and a small seller’s label from Glasgow on the front paste-downs, a small penciled note on the first blank endpapers which says the books are from a limited edition of 400, a note from Robert Roberts, the publisher, which says the books are limited editions and gives the edition number of each book (#362, #266, and #388 respectively), then the half titles, an engraved frontis piece and the titles pages, the dates are in Roman numerals at the bottom of the title pages, the top edges are gilt, and the set is considered a first edition thus because it is the first set published after the originals from the 1600’s. Westminster Drolleries has 1875 in gilt at the bottom of the spine, one page of Contents, a one-page Prelude, an Introduction that runs from i- xliv, 125 pages of text in the first part and 132 pages of text in the second part, a 75-page appendix, a Table of First Lines that runs from lxxvii to lxxxiv, followed by three pages of ads at the rear. Merry Drollery Compleat has 1875 at the bottom of the spine, an engraved frontis with a protective tissue guard, the title page in red and black letters, a short dedication page, one page of Contents and a one-page Prelude, a forty page Introduction (b - xl), 350 pages of text, another list of Contents from 351 to 357, a two-page list of ads for books sold by Simon Miller, an Appendix that runs from 363 to 403, Additional Notes to the Westminster Drolleries on 405  - 408, and eight pages of ads at the rear. Choyce Drollery has 1876 in gilt at the bottom of the spine, a frontis engraving with a protective tissue guard, the title page in red and black letters, a dedication page, two pages of Contents (vii - viii), a two-page Prelude, an Introduction that runs from xi to xxxviii, 255 pages of text, a 16-page Supplement of Reserved Songs from Merry Drollery in 1661, a long Appendix that runs to page 409, a Table of First Lines in Merry Drollery (411 to 418), First Lines of the Antidote Songs on 419 and 420, a two-page farewell by the editor (Ebsworth) and a four page finale (421 to 426), and nine pages of ads at the rear. The books measure 7 5/16 x 4 13/ 16 inches wide and are in great condition. The bindings are tight and the pages and text are clean, with faint brown spots near the title pages, and an attractive limited edition set that sheds light on English entertainment in the 17th century and great for historians of English music and literature. There are only 400 copies of this set, prices range from $40 to $350 for individual books from the set, and we found only one complete set by Ebsworth in blue cloth that goes for over $500, and we believe this is a more attractive set.