The Works of Nathaniel Lee

484pp. In blood red cloth-covered boards with gilt titles on spine. 8vo. Cloth is a little worn, with mild scratch on front panel, gently rubbed and rounded at corners and spine ends, mildly sunned over spine. Ex polytechnic library with bar code and stamp on front paste down and light annotations on title page else internally neat, clean, bright and tight. Contains Lee's The Tragedy of Nero, Emperor of Rome; Sophonisba, Or Hannibal's Overthrow; Gloriana, Or the Court of Augustus Caesar; The Rival Queens, Or the Death of Alexander the Great; Mithridates, King of Pontus; and Oedipus, with a general critical introduction, a brief life of Nathaniel Lee and a critical introduction to each play. Lee (1653-1692) has received little critical attention but in his day he was an important figure - friend and collaborator of Dryden and Purcell; patronised by Rochester, Dorset, Mulgrave and the Duchess of Portsmouth; close associate of Otway, Aphra Benn and Betterton; and author of extremely popular plays - five of them among the most successful productions of the restoration era.