A TREATISE ON SKATING

First published in 1772, Robert Jones’s Treatise on Skating is the oldest surviving instructional book about ice skating. It begins with advice on choosing skates and starting to skate, then details more difficult maneuvers for advanced skaters. Multiple editions, some containing new material, were published in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Today’s readers will find this glimpse into the beginning of figure skating fascinating. This edition includes the full text of the original 1772 edition and later additions, an introduction and commentary, a comprehensive summary of the previous editions, and a new section on Jones’s skates.