Pavier quartos
The Pavier quartos, also known as the "False folio," are a group of plays printed in quarto format by William Jaggard for Thomas Pavier in 1619, though some bear earlier false dates. They were sold singly, but also as a bound-together set, hence the nickname "False folio"---the bound-together version has been seen as an attempt at a one-volume edition of Shakespeare's collected plays, preceding the the "First Folio" of 1623. At the time, all were thought to be by Shakespeare. The Folger collection includes one bound-together set in its original binding, the the Edward Gwynn copy), which is often referred to in-house simply (but confusingly) as "The Pavier Quartos."
There is no standard order for the bound-together versions, so the plays are listed in here by "STC number", the number assigned in A.W. Pollard, A Short-title catalogue of books printed in England, Scotland, & Ireland and of English books printed abroad, 1475-1640 (2nd ed.)
- Sir John Oldcastle (STC 18796; not actually by Shakespeare)
- Folger has 7 copies plus a fragment (Hamnet record)
- Henry V (STC 22291)
- Folger has 7 copies (Hamnet record)
- King Lear (STC 22293)
- Folger has 6 copies (Hamnet record)
- The Merchant of Venice (STC 22297)
- Folger has 4 copies (Hamnet record)
- The Merry Wives of Windsor (STC 22300)
- Folger has 7 copies plus a fragment (Hamnet record)
- A Midsummer Night's Dream (STC 22303)
- Folger has 7 copies (Hamnet record)
- A Yorkshire Tragedy (STC 22341, not actually by Shakespeare)
- Folger has 6 copies (Hamnet record)
- Henry VI, Part 2 (first part of STC 26101, as the first part of The Whole Contention Between the Two Famous Houses, Lancaster and York...Divided into Two Parts)
- Henry VI, Part 3 (second part of STC 26101, as the second part of The Whole Contention Between the Two Famous Houses, Lancaster and York...Divided into Two Parts)
- Pericles (third part of STC 26101, in continuous register with The Whole Contention Between the Two Famous Houses, Lancaster and York...Divided into Two Parts but a separate title page)
- Folger has 3 complete copies; 5 copies containing only Henry VI, Part 2 and Henry VI, Part 3; 1 copy containing only Henry VI, Part 1; 2 copies containing only Henry VI, Part 2; and five copies containing only Pericles (Hamnet record)