ADAM, ROBERT | Ruins of the Palace of the Emperor Diocletian at Spalatro in Dalmatia. [London]: Printed for the Author, 1764 

ADAM, ROBERT

Ruins of the Palace of the Emperor Diocletian at Spalatro in Dalmatia. [London]: Printed for the Author, 1764 

Folio (536 x 365 mm), engraved frontispiece and 60 engraved plates on 54 sheets, some double-page and/or folding, printed list of subscribers; dampstaining and foxing throughout, a few plates cropped to the plate mark sometimes affecting captions or plate numbers, scattered marginal tears and repairs. Half morocco over decorative paper-covered boards; worn, covers detached.

Sold as a collection of plates, not subject to return. 

First edition. An elaborate description of a rare private residence of the Imperial period. Of this publication Edward Gibbon remarked (The Decline and Fall, chap. 12): "There is reason to suspect that the elegance of his designs and engravings has somewhat flattered the objects which it was their purpose to represent."