The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, two volume set (complete)

Oxford University Press, 1971, two large volumes, hardcovers, in slipcase with top compartment, complete, each volume 24 cms x 31.1 cms x 7.5 cms, condition: very good.

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP), a University of Oxford publishing house. The dictionary, which published its first edition in 1884, traces the historical development of the English language, providing a comprehensive resource to scholars and academic researchers, and provides ongoing descriptions of English language usage in its variations around the world.

In 1933, the title The Oxford English Dictionary fully replaced the former name in all occurrences in its reprinting as 12 volumes with a one-volume supplement. 

In 1971, the 13-volume OED1 (1933) was reprinted as a two-volume Compact Edition, by photographically reducing each page to one-half its linear dimensions; each compact edition page held four OED1 pages in a four-up ("4-up") format. The two-volume letters were A and P; the first supplement was at the second volume's end. 

                                                                             It is customary to use a magnifying glass due to the size of the text blocks.

 THE (COMPACT) OED IS A TIMELESS RESOURSE FOR THOSE LOOKING TO NOT ONLY FIND THE PRECISE MEANING OF AN ENGLISH WORD, BUT ALSO THE WORD'S MEANING THROUGH TIME AND THE GENESIS OF THE WORD INTO BEING.

EVERYONE,  I AM SURE, IS FAMILIAR WITH THE ONE VOLUME OED, THE ABRIDGED OR THE CONCISE, BUT HERE, IN THE COMPACT OED,  IS THE LANGUAGE  IN ITS FULL UNABRIDGED MAJESTY.

The compartment (top draw) is for the magnifying glass (present).