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Collection highlights /

Folger First Folio 31

Detail of printed page showing horizontal printer's ornament above

In the late 1800s this First Folio belonged to Scottish shipbuilder and book collector John Scott, Esq., who lived in Halkshill House in Scotland. Henry and Emily Folger purchased this First Folio in 1905 for $1,350.

Like many First Folios, this one is missing some of its original leaves. It lacks the introduction, including the title page, and the last leaf of the play Cymbeline, which is the final play in the book. Three of its missing leaves, in the plays The Two Gentlemen of Verona and Much Ado About Nothing, have been replaced with original leaves from another First Folio—a common practice at one time.

See its book binding

Explore its catalog entry

View in our digital image collection

See where it traveled on tour in 2016