1. Encyclopedia Britannica For Sale
2. Encyclopedia Britannica Software
3. Encyclopedia Britannica 2015 Ultimate Edition

This article needs additional citations for. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: – ( June 2016) Encyclopedias of various types had been published since antiquity, beginning with the collected works of and the of, the latter having 2493 articles in 37 books. Encyclopedias were published in Europe and China throughout the, such as the of (early 5th century), the Speculum majus ( Great Mirror) of (1250), and Encyclopedia septem tomis distincta ( A Seven-Part Encyclopedia) by (1630).

Most early encyclopedias did not include biographies of living people and were written in, although some encyclopedias were translated into English, such as De proprietatibus rerum (On the properties of things) (1240). However, English-composed encyclopedias appeared in the 18th century, beginning with Lexicon technicum, or A Universal English Dictionary of Arts and Sciences by (two volumes, published 1704 and 1710, respectively), which contained articles by such contributors as. Wrote a very popular two-volume in 1728, which went through multiple editions and awakened publishers to the enormous profit potential of encyclopedias.

Although not all encyclopedias succeeded commercially, their elements sometimes inspired future encyclopedias; for example, the failed two-volume A Universal History of Arts and Sciences of (published 1745) grouped its topics into long self-contained treatises, an organization that likely inspired the 'new plan' of the Britannica. The first encyclopedia to include biographies of living people was the 64-volume (published 1732–1759) of, who argued that death alone should not render people notable.Earliest editions (1st–6th, 1768–1824) First edition, 1771. —, at a meeting of theThe vivid prose and easy navigation of the first edition led to strong demand for a second. Although this edition has been faulted for its imperfect scholarship, Smellie argued that the Britannica should be given the benefit of the doubt:With regard to errors in general, whether falling under the denomination of mental, typographical or accidental, we are conscious of being able to point out a greater number than any critic whatever. Men who are acquainted with the innumerable difficulties of attending the execution of a work of such an extensive nature will make proper allowances.

To these we appeal, and shall rest satisfied with the judgment they pronounce. After the success of the first edition, a more ambitious was begun in 1776, with the addition of history and biography articles.

Smellie declined to be editor, principally because he objected to the addition of biography. Macfarquhar took over the role himself, aided by pharmacist, M.A., who was known as an able writer and willing to work for a very low wage. Macfarquhar and Bell rescued Tytler from the debtors' sanctuary at Holyrood Palace, and employed him for seven years at 17 shillings per week.

Tytler wrote many science and history articles and almost all of the minor articles; by ' estimate, Tytler wrote over three-quarters of the second edition. Compared to the 1st edition, the second had five times as many long articles (150), including 'Scotland' (84 pages), 'Optics' (132 pages), and 'Medicine' (309 pages), which had their own indices. The second edition was published in 181 numbers from 21 June 1777 to 18 September 1784; these numbers were bound into ten volumes dated 1778–1783, having 8,595 pages and 340 plates again engraved. A error caused page 8000 to follow page 7099. Most of the maps of this edition (eighteen of them) are found in a single 195-page article, '.The second edition improved greatly upon the 1st, but is still notable for the large amount of now-archaic information it contained.

For example, 'Chemistry' goes into great detail on an obsolete system of what would now be called alchemy, in which earth, air, water and fire are named elements containing various amounts of. Tytler also describes the architecture of in detail (illustrated with a copperplate engraving) and, following, includes a remarkably precise, beginning with its creation on 23 October 4004 B.C. And noting that the of 2348 B.C.

Lasted for exactly 777 days. The 2nd edition also reports a cure for:He chose a spot of ground on which no plants had been sown, and there he made a hole large and deep enough to admit the patient up to the chin.

The interstices of the pit were then carefully filled up with the fresh mould, so that the earth might everywhere come in contact with the patient's body. In this situation the patient suffered to remain till he began to shiver or felt himself uneasy.The patient was then taken out, and, after being wrapped in a linen cloth, was placed upon a mattress, and two hours afterwards his whole body was rubbed with the ointment composed of the leaves of the and hog's lard. Dated 1797The third edition was published from 1788 to 1797 in 300 weekly numbers (1 shilling apiece); these numbers were collected and sold unbound in 30 parts (10 shilling, sixpence each), and finally in 1797 they were bound in 18 volumes with 14,579 pages and 542 plates, and given title pages dated 1797 for all volumes. Again edited this edition up to 'Mysteries' but died in 1793 (aged 48) of 'mental exhaustion'; his work was taken over by, later Bishop Gleig of Brechin (consecrated 30 October 1808).

Again contributed heavily to the authorship, up to the letter M., Macfarquhar's partner, bought the rights to the Britannica from Macfarquhar's heirs.Nearly doubling the scope of the 2nd edition, Macfarquhar's encyclopedic vision was finally realized. Recruited by Gleig, several illustrious authorities contributed to this edition, such as Dr., who introduced modern chemical nomenclature in a chart appended to the Chemistry article, and would go on to re-write that article in the 1801 supplement (see below), and, Secretary of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, who wrote several well-regarded articles on sciences then called. The third edition established the foundation of the Britannica as an important and definitive reference work for much of the next century. This edition was also enormously profitable, yielding 42,000 pounds sterling profit on the sale of roughly 10,000 copies. The 3rd edition began the tradition (continued to this day) of dedicating the Britannica to the reigning British monarch, then; calling him 'the Father of Your People, and enlightened Patron of Arts, Sciences and Literature', Gleig wished.that, by the Wisdom of Your Councils, and the Vigour of Your Fleets and Armies, Your MAJESTY may be enabled soon to restore Peace to Europe; that You may again have leisure to extend Your Royal Care to the Improvement of Arts, and the Advancement of Knowledge; that You May Reign long over a Free, Happy and a Loyal People. Comparing the 5th edition, top, with the 6th.

The only change was the typeface, which included the removal of the from the font.Constable also produced the sixth edition, which was completed in May, 1823. It was published in 40 half-volume parts, priced 16 shillings in boards (32 pounds for the set).

The editor was. The 6th edition was a reprint of the 5th with a modern typeface. It even used the preface to the 5th edition, dated December 1, 1817, as its own. Only the short page, 'Advertisement To The Sixth Edition', which was bound in volume 1 after the forward and dated January, 1822, set it apart.

In that advertisement, it is claimed that some geographical articles would be updated, and that the articles in the supplement to the 3rd edition would be inserted into the encyclopedia in their proper alphabetical places. Although the advertisement claimed that these articles would be included in this manner, they were not, and the author of the preface to the 7th edition states that none of this material entered the main body until that edition, and even gives a list of the articles which were. Comparing the 5th edition to the 6th, showing one of the geographical updates. The population of New York City was increasing rapidly, and that figure needed to be revised.Almost no changes were made to the text, it was basically a remake of the 5th with very minor updates. All in all, the fourth, fifth, and sixth editions are virtually the same as each other.

Rather than revising the main text of the encyclopedia with each edition, Constable chose to add all updates to the supplement. It's probable that the 6th edition only exists because of the need to remove the, which had gone out of style, from the font, which required the whole encyclopedia to be re-typeset.The Supplement to the 5th edition was finished in 1824, and was sold with those sets, as well as with sets of the 6th edition, to be delivered at its completion. This supplement curiously was started during the production of the 5th edition but was not finished until after the 6th was completed. It also was sold as a unit for owners of the 4th edition, and became known as 'Supplement to the 4th, 5th and 6th edition.' Unfortunately, Constable went bankrupt on 19 January 1826 and the rights to the Britannica were sold on auction; they were eventually bought on 16 July 1828 for 6150 by a partnership of four men: (a publisher), Alexander Wight (a banker), Abram Thomson (a bookbinder) and Thomas Allen, the proprietor of the. Not long after, Black bought out his partners and ownership of the Britannica passed to the Edinburgh publishing firm of.Britannica by the 6th edition was in some regards hopelessly out of date.

The supplement to the 3rd edition contained updates which were not included in it, and which had become dated themselves anyway, the 4th edition expanded the text somewhat but revised very little, and the 5th and 6th were just reprints of the 4th. The supplement to the 4th/5th/6th edition addressed the issue of updates in a clumsy way, often referring back to the encyclopedia, essentially making the reader look everything up twice.

What was needed was a completely new edition from the ground up. This was to be accomplished with the magnificent 7th edition.A. Black editions (7th–9th, 1827–1901) Seventh edition, 1842. Endpaper from the 7th editionThe 7th edition was begun in 1827 and published from March 1830 to January 1842, although all volumes have title pages dated 1842.

It was a new work, not a revision of earlier editions, although some articles from earlier editions and supplements are used. It was sold to subscribers in monthly 'parts' of around 133 pages each, at 6 shilling per part, with 6 parts combined into 800 page volumes for 36 shillings. The promise was made in the beginning that there would be 20 volumes, making the total £36 for the set.

Volume 1 was only 5 parts, entirely made up of dissertations. Volume 2, in 6 parts, was the beginning of alphabetical listings. The 12th part, another dissertation, was ready in 1831, and would have been the first part of volume 3, but the publishers put it into a separate volume at 12 shillings. In total the subscribers wound up paying for 127 parts (£38, two shillings).It was edited by, who was assisted by, LLD. It consisted of 21 numbered volumes with 17,101 pages and 506 plates. It was the first edition to include a general index for all articles, a practice that was maintained until 1974. The index was 187 pages, and was either bound alone as an unnumbered thin volume, or was bound together with volume I.

Many illustrious contributors were recruited to this edition, including Sir,. Did all of Zoology, Dr. Hampden did all of Greek philosophy, and contributed the excellent article Architecture., who wrote Chemistry for the 3rd edition supplement 40 years earlier, was recruited to write that article again for the 7th edition. Mathematical diagrams and illustrations were made from woodcuts, and for the first time in Britannica's history, were printed on the same pages as the text, in addition to the copperplates.The 7th edition, when complete, went on sale for £24 per set. However, Adam Black had invested over £108,766 in its production: £5,354 for advertising, £8,755 for editing, £13,887 for 167 contributors, £13,159 for plates, £29,279 for paper, and £19,813 for the printing. In the end, roughly 5,000 sets were sold but Black considered himself well-rewarded in intellectual prestige.Title pages for all volumes were printed in 1842 and delivered with the completed set. An index to the entire set was created that year as well, and was the first of its kind for Britannica.

Being only 187 pages long, it did not warrant its own volume, and was sent to bookbinders with instructions to include it at the beginning of volume 1, the dissertations volume, which had been printed in 1829. This same arrangement would also be used for the 8th edition, but not the 9th.Eighth edition, 1860. 1858 advertisement for then-available volumes 1 through 19 of the 8th edition, cloth-bound at 24 shillings per volumeThe 8th edition was published from 1853 to 1860, with title pages for each volume dated the year that volume was printed. It contained 21 numbered volumes, with 17,957 pages and 402 plates. The index, published in 1861, was 239 pages, and was either bound alone as an unnumbered 22nd volume, or was bound together with volume I, the dissertations volume. Four of these dissertations were carried over from the 7th edition, and two were new to the 8th. The five included in volume 1 of the 8th (1853) were authored by Dugald Stewart, James Mackintosh, Richard Whately, John Playfair, and John Leslie, in that order, with the Whately work being a new one.

A sixth dissertation, by J.D. Forbes, was issued in 1856, in a separate quarto volume, 'gratis, along with Vol. XII'.The alphabetical encyclopedia began at the beginning of volume 2.

The price was reduced to 24 shillings per volume, cloth-bound. In addition to the Edinburgh sets, more sets were authorized by Britannica to the London publishers Simpkin, Marshall and Company, and to of Boston.Since died in 1847, Adam Black selected for its editor Dr., a professor of medical jurisprudence at Edinburgh University. Traill fell ill, he was assisted by a young Scottish philosopher, John Downes. Black was able to hold costs to roughly £75,655. This edition began the tradition of a contributors' banquet to celebrate the edition's completion (5 June 1861).The Eighth edition is a thorough revision, even more so than the Seventh. Some long articles were carried over from the 7th edition, but most were completely re-written, and new articles by illustrious contributors were added. In all, there were 344 contributors, including, the Rev., Dr., Baron, Sir, Professors, and (Lord Kelvin).

Is listed for the first time. This edition also featured the first American contributor to the Britannica, who wrote a 40,000-word hagiographic biography ofIn being a living proof that pure patriotism is not a delusion, or virtue an empty name, no one of the sons of man has equalled George Washington. This section possibly contains. Please by the claims made and adding.

Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( April 2016) The landmark ninth edition, often called 'the Scholar's Edition', was published from January 1875 to 1889 in 25 volumes, with volume 25 the index volume. Unlike the first two Black editions, there were no preliminary dissertations, the alphabetical listing beginning in volume 1. Up to 1880, the editor, and author of the Foreword, was —the first English-born editor after a series of Scots—and afterwards. An intellectual prodigy who mastered advanced scientific and mathematical topics, Smith was a professor of theology at the Free Church College in Edinburgh, and was the first contributor to the Britannica who addressed the historical interpretation of the, a topic then already familiar on the Continent of Europe. Smith contributed several articles to the 9th edition, but lost his teaching position on 24 May 1881, due to the controversy his (ir)religious articles aroused; he was immediately hired to be joint editor-in-chief with Baynes.The 9th and 11th editions are often lauded as high points for scholarship; the 9th included yet another series of illustrious contributors such as, and., then 25, contributed an article about that, being unenthusiastic, was never printed.

There were roughly 1100 contributors altogether, a handful of whom were women; this edition was also the first to include a significant article about women ('Women, Law Relating to'). Evolution was listed for the first time, in the wake of 's writings, but the subject was treated as if still controversial, and a complete working of the subject would have to wait for the 11th edition. The 8th edition has no listing for the subject at all.Compared to the 8th edition, the 9th was far more luxurious, with thick boards and high-quality leather bindings, premier paper, and a production which took full advantage of the technological advances in printing in the years between the 1850s and 1870s. Great use was made of the new ability to print large graphic illustrations on the same pages as the text, as opposed to limiting illustrations to separate copperplates. Although this technology had first been used in a primitive fashion the 7th edition, and to a much lesser extent in the 8th, in the 9th edition there were thousands of quality illustrations set into the text pages, in addition to the plates.

The 9th edition was a critical success, and roughly 8,500 sets were sold in Britain. Authorized the American firms of of New York, of Boston, and Samuel L. Hall of New York, to print, bind and distribute additional sets in the United States, and provided them with stereotype plates for text and graphics, specifications on the color and tanning quality of the leather bindings, etc., so the American-produced sets would be identical to the Edinburgh sets except for the title pages, and that they would be of the same high quality as the Edinburgh sets. Scribner's volumes and Hall volumes were often mixed together in sets by N.Y.

Distributors and sold this way as they were interchangeable, and such sets are still found this way. A total of 45,000 authorized sets were produced this way for the US market. Scribners' claimed U. Copyright on several of the individual articles.In spite of this, several hundred thousand cheaply produced bootlegged copies were also sold in the U.S., which still did not have copyright laws protecting foreign publications. Famous infringers of that era include the Joseph M.

Stoddart, who employed a spy in the Britannica's own printshop, Neill and Company, in Edinburgh. The spy would steal the proofreader's copies and send them by fastest mail to the United States, allowing Stoddart to publish his version simultaneously with the Britannica and at nearly half the price ($5 versus $9 per volume). His right to do so was upheld in an infamous decision by Justice Arthur Butler who arguedTo reproduce a foreign publication is not wrong. There may be differences of opinion about the morality of republishing a work here that is copyrighted abroad; but the public policy of this country, as respects the subject, is in favor of such replication.It is supposed to have an influence upon the advance of learning and intelligence. Black and The Times of London produced the 10th editionThe 1903 advertising campaign for the tenth edition was an onslaught of: hand-written letters, telegrams, limited-time offers, etc. The following quote, written in 1926, captures the moodWho that is old enough does not remember the 'campaign' of 1903, the insidious payment by instalments, the sets dumped at your door, bookcase and all, on receipt of a guinea, the scholarships, the competition questions, the reply-paid telegrams pursuing you to the innermost sanctuary of your home ('From my bath I curse you', one man wired back!), the 'Going, going, gone' tactics—'Only five days left and one of them the shortest!' So irrelevant, but so arresting!

Courtney, long-time employee of the Britannica, from her book, Recollected in TranquillityAn excellent collection of prospectuses received by a single person (C. Parker) in that year has been preserved by the (catalogued under #39899.c.1). The advertising was clearly targeted at middle and lower-middle-class people seeking to improve themselves. The advertising campaign was remarkably successful; over 70,000 sets were sold, bringing in over £600,000 pounds profit. When one British expert expressed surprise to that so many people would want an outdated encyclopedia, he replied, 'They didn't; I made them want it.' Even after the Tenth edition was published, some American infringement companies were still printing thousands of copies of the Ninth without the supplements.

Some of these companies were adding their own 'Americanized' supplements, but none of them reproduced the Tenth. Copyright violation did not end until shortly before the Eleventh edition came out.Eleventh edition, 1910.

If you try to donate the books to a school, library, or thrift store, they won't accept them. These institutions receive so many encyclopedias that they normally end up sending them to a paper recycle center. Selling the books online will prove rather expensive when you try to ship them to the buyer.Your best bet is to put these out at a yard sale and see if anyone would like to buy them from you.

Encyclopedia Britannica For Sale

If the books are nicely illustrated, a few crafters will take the books to make crafts with them.It is very hard to get rid of these books because they have no real value to people. All the information is readily available online and people no longer need these types of reference books.

Encyclopedia Britannica Software

Generally, age of books mean the value increases but this is not usually the case with encyclopedias. As a rule encyclopedias were purchased for a family seeking to give their children an advantage by having 'research' books right at their fingertips but the Internet has made information so easily available that students much prefer this media. Your 1944 set is not one of the sought after editions and you will probably have a difficult time selling it even a low price.

Encyclopedia Britannica 2015 Ultimate Edition

Here is one set listed on eBay that has been listed a long time but will most likely never sell. The price has been reduced several times. One problem with this set is 2 volumes are missing and high shipping cost. Shipping is always expensive and very difficult for someone to pack. If you are interested in selling your set you might want to list it on your local Craigslist as you can ask any starting price and if no one shows an interest you can lower the price. This way there is no shipping involved. Best AnswerResearch on the year - 1969 - shows some very low prices and some very high asking prices but selling prices are low.

You can continue to research eBay, Etsy, Amazon and other Google sites as well as your local Craigslist but sets are very slow sellers at any price. Many sellers keep relisting their books for months and months and many never sell. Here is a link to listings presently on eBay and the books that sold (sold is in green numbers) so you can see there are not a lot of sets sold for very much money. Best AnswerMany people have old books they think are valuable and would like to sell.

Most old dictionaries, references etc., have very little value-a few dollars at most. Encyclopedias dated after 1923 are essentially worthless but crafters may be interested for the old pictures. Goodwill, Salvation Army, etc., receive donations of tons of old encyclopedias but send them to recycling centers or dumps as they cannot use or sell them.You can check online for old book collectors for price possibilities. Everything is now online and updated constantly so old books are just that-old.