Anthology of Greek Literature
Publication information: Lipsiae: Carolo Tauchnitii, 1829-69
Description: There are eleven volumes, bound in black with gold lettering on the spine. They are housed in brown leather case, with a steel plate with Browning’s name engraved riveted to the top. Each volume is inscribed on the flyleaf with the autograph of Robert Browning and the date, June 10, 1873. This is evidence that Browning had all of the volumes uniformly rebound in 1873, since the publication dates are varied. In many cases, at the end of a section in a volume, Browning in his own hand has entered the name of the place where he finished reading that section and the date of its completion. These dates vary from 1864 to 1885.
It is in Browning’s poem “Bishop Blougram’s Apology” (published in the Men and women collection of 1855) that he refers to the “little Greek books, with the funny type / They get up well at Leipsic.” This is in a passage where Bishop Blougram is describing to Gigadibs many items that would be desirable to carry on an overseas journey. It would appear that Browning is describing his own traveling library of Greek classics.
A guide to Robert Browning’s annotations and markings is available with the set.