INTRODUCTION

LITERARY HISTORY.

Two quarto editions (Q. 1, Q. 2) of this play were published in the year 1609, both having the following title-page: “THE LATE, | And much admired Play, | Called | Pericles, Prince | of Tyre | With the true Relation of the whole Historie, | aduentures, and fortunes of the said Prince: | As also, | The no lesse strange, and worthy accidents, | in the Birth and Life, of his Daughter | MARIANA. | As it hath been diuers and sundry times acted by | his Maiesties Seruants, at the Globe on | the Banck-side. | By William Shakespeare. | Imprinted at London for Henry Gosson, and are | to be sold at the signe of the Sunne in | Pater-noster row, &c.”

It was formerly supposed that Q. 1 and Q. 2 belonged to one and the same edition, and that the numerous differences between the copies were due to corrections made during the printing; but careful examination shows that, as the Cambridge editors have pointed out, there were two separate editions, Q. 2 being printed from Q. 1.