Pericles is believed to have been written in 1607 - 1608 and was presented in 1608, when the theaters of London briefly resumed their operations during a bright interlude of a plague epidemic that struck the great city that year.

The epidemic manifested itself in the spring of 1608, subsided for a while, and returned on July 28, when the theaters closed again and remained closed until 1609. Although their art had been socially enhanced, life was not easy for the professional actors of the time.

For many works of the Shakespearean canon, one could argue that they are unique for one reason or another. However, Pericles has gained a double negative distinction. It is the only Shakespearean play that survives in a single corrupted version, the Quarto of 1609, one of the most corrupted theatrical texts of the time.

It is also the only play, among those attributed entirely or mostly to Shakespeare, that is not included in the First Folio of 1623. For the other later additions to the canon, the situation is significantly different and their absence from the Folio raises no eyebrows: The Two Noble Kinsmen is a work of named collaboration between Shakespeare and Fletcher, while from Thomas More and Edward III, only fragments can be confidently attributed to Shakespeare.

(...) [Excerpt from the text of the introduction of the edition]