NY, Putnam/Knickerbocker Press, (n.d.)[1895-1900]. Thirty-three volumes; number 688 of 1000 numbered copies. James Fenimore Cooper was perhaps the most popular American author of the first half of the 19th century, and by the end of the century numerous editions of his collected works had been printed. The "Iroquois Edition" is considered to be the finest edition printed of Cooper: leatherbound, with elaborate gilt tooling, attractive engravings by a number of the best illustrators of the day, protective tissue guards and title pages printed in multiple colors and with photogravure vignettes. Even the indication of the limitation was elaborate: hand numbered on the colophon and additionally punched into the paper. Cooper's works have survived into the 20th and 21st century largely as a result of his "Leatherstocking Tales" -- including The Last of the Mohicans, The Deerslayer, and others -- which featured Natty Bumppo, the prototype of the natural man, and thus an icon in the American imagination. Two volumes have very shallow chips at the crown; one has slight rubbing to two of the raised bands. Mercedes of Castile has been rebound in a binding that approximates but does not entirely match the other volumes, and has repaired tears on the colophon and frontispiece, not affecting text or image. Overall an attractive, near fine set of works by an early American author whose writings helped define our national self-image. [#023391] SOLD