Antiquarian and Collectors’ Books

AFRICA. – Hanns VISCHER. Across the Sahara, From Tripoli to Bornu. London: Edward Arnold, 1910. First edition, signed and inscribed by the author with ink cartoon portrait of the author, 8vo (221 x 137mm.) Half-title, plates, 20pp. publisher’s advertisements to rear. (Toning, lacking map to rear, plates heavily browned to upper margins, marginal tear to p.xi.) Original red cloth, gilt lettering to upper cover and spine (upper cover with fading, extremities rubbed). Note: the inscription reads: ‘Viva l’ armée, á mon trés cher ami a Commandant G.I. Mais, the author, Hanns Vischer’ with an ink ‘Portrait of the author’ showing him astride a galloping giraffe. Provenance: G.I Mais (ink inscribed to by the author).

WHITE, Gilbert. The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne. London: T. Bensley, 1789. First edition, 4to (247 x 182mm.) Folding engraved frontispiece, 2 half-titles with engraved vignettes, 5 engraved plates including 1 folding, errata leaf to rear. (Lacking plate 3, ‘The Mytilus’, frontispiece browned and with surface tears, offsetting of plates, occasional creasing, staining to I4, remains of armorial bookplate to initial blank.) Contemporary calf (inner hinge weakened, extremities rubbed). Note: as usual, pp. 441-442 omitted from the pagination. Provenance: West Sussex County Council (label to rear pastedown, stamp verso title).

CALLOT, Jacques. De Droeve Ellendigheden van Den Oorloogh. [Amsterdam:] G. Van Shagen, [circa 1730.] Oblong 4to (182 x 267mm.) 18 engraved plates, including the title, cut and mounted on later paper. (Spotting to laid paper of title-plate and last plate, a wave to all the leaves.) Near contemporary calf half, black morocco lettering piece to the spine (slight warping and fading to the boards). Note: complete with all 18 plates. A later Dutch impression engraved by L. Schenk of Callot’s ‘Les Grandes Misères de la Guerre’ which was first printed in 1633. Provenance: Woodbine Parish (name-plate to front pastedown).

MANUSCRIPT. [A hand-written collection of three long contemporary poems. N.p.: circa 1818.] 90pp., manuscript, 4to (223 x 174mm.) 2 engraved portrait frontispieces, being Princess Charlotte of Wales and her husband, Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, 45 unnumbered leaves in a single hand with manuscript title-pages for Lord Byron’s ‘The Prisoner of Chillon’, Thomas Campbell’s ‘O’Connor’s Child, or the Flower of Love Lies Bleeding’, and Samuel Roger’s ‘Jacqueline’. (Light browning, damp-staining verso the front-free endpaper, abrasions verso portrait of Princess Charlotte.) Contemporary red full straight-grain morocco (extremities rubbed and scuffed, small loss and sunning to spine panel). Note: Princess Charlotte had defied her father in marrying for love. George IV had wanted Charlotte to marry William, Prince of Orange, but in marrying Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfed Charlotte had become a symbol of hope against her unpopular father and grandfather and was also a literary heroine for the romantic sensibility of the time. She was happily married to Leopold for eighteen months before dying in childbirth at the age of twenty-one. Her fate – similar to that of the tragic protagonists of the three poems- plunged the country into a period of national mourning.

HAZLITT, William. A View of the English Stage; or, a Series of Dramatic Criticisms. London: Robert Stodart, 1818. First edition, 8vo (222 x 136mm.) 2pp. publisher’s advertisements to rear. (Spotting to first leaves, occasional browning, lacking half-title, blanks replaced.) Near contemporary brown half calf over marbled paper-covered boards, two brown morocco lettering pieces to the spine, t.e.g. (extremities rubbed, endpapers replaced). Provenance: John Burne (gift inscribed to on title, dated 1870); Alex Grant (gift inscribed from on title); Philip D. (gift inscribed to on initial blank, dated 1943); James Birdie (gift inscribed from on the initial blank). – And a further four volumes (Bernardin Saint-Pierre’s ‘Paul and Virginia’, 1819, 8vo, and Henry Richard Lord Holland’s ‘Some Account of the Life and Writings of Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’, 1806, 8vo, and [Thomas Kitson Cromwell’s] ‘The Lives of Eminent and Remarkable Characters Born or Long Resident in the Counties of Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk’, 1820, 8vo) (5).

MANUSCRIPT. – Ameila FIELDS. [A hand-written book of original poems.] 1864-1865. 136pp., manuscript, 12mo (153 x 97mm.) A single legible hand in black ink, poems mostly in quatrains but a 5pp. piece in prose relating to Easter, a 3pp. ‘Index’ of titles to rear, some poems preceded with brief introductory notes. (Toning.) Original paper-covered boards (creased and rubbed). Note: the first poem relates to the Great Sheffield Flood of 1864. Thereafter, they are more personal with felt meditations on love- eternal and temporal. There’s also a spirited and vengeful poem called ‘If I were a horse’: ‘Picture him thrown on some stones/ While I unhurt should be/ And when he has got some broken bones/ He’d long remember me’.

POETRY. – Charles Hindley (editor). The Works of John Taylor, the Water-Poet. London and Westminster: Reeves and Turner, 1872. Limited edition, being one of 100 copies only, 4to (276 x 183mm.) Half-title, illustrations. (Toning.) Original green morocco-backed green cloth, t.e.g. (extremities of spine rubbed). Note: self-described as ‘The Water-Poet’ because he worked as a waterman, ferrying people across the Thames. He mainly plied his trade taking actors, patrons and playwrights across to the Bankside theatres. – And a further volume (‘The Works of Lord Byron, including the Suppressed Poems’, 1827, 8vo) (2).

MEINERTZHAGAN, Richard. Birds of Arabia. London: Oliver and Boyd, 1954. First edition, 4to (266 x 187mm.) Colour plates, folding map to rear pocket. (Some marginal spotting and to fore-edge.) Original brown cloth, green lettering to spine, dust-jacket (small tears to extremities and spine ends).

AFRICA. – William VINCENT. The Periplus of the Erythrean Sea. Part the First. London: for T. Cadell Jun. and W. Davies, 1800. 4to (265 x 204mm.) Half-title, engraved frontispiece of Vasco de Gama, large engraved folding chart of the Red Sea, folding chart of the coast of Africa, folding table, engraved ‘General Map of the World’, engraved folding ‘Map of the World taken from an Arabian manuscript of Al Edrissi’, errata leaf to rear. (Browning and offsetting to title, spotting to ‘Coast of Africa’ map and frontispiece.) Contemporary boards (rebacked, heavily rubbed and scuffed). Provenance: F.L. Jonsson (bookplate to front pastedown). – And a further volume (Robert Huish’s ‘The Travels of Richard Lander, into the Interior of Africa, for the Discovery of the Course of the River Niger’, 1836, 8vo) (2).

[COLQUHOUN, Patrick.] A Treatise on the Police of the Metropolis, Explaining the Various Crimes and Misdemeanours Which at Present are Felt as a Pressure Upon the Community. London: H. Fry for C. Dilly, 1796. First edition, 8vo (209 x 126mm.) Title, 1 folding table. (Occasional browning, lacking half-title.) Contemporary marbled calf, red morocco lettering piece to the spine (minor scuffing, joints splitting at head of spine). Note: a scarce first printing of Colquhoun’s work on policing. In 1798, along with Jeremy Bentham, Colquhoun devised a method of utilitarian preventative policing when he established the Marine Police Force on the River Thames.

QUAYLE, Thomas. General View of the Agriculture and Present State of the Islands on the Coast of Normandy, Subject to the Crown of Great Britain. London: Sherwood, Neely, & Jones et al., 1815. First edition, 8vo (202 x 120mm.)  4pp. ‘Index’, 2pp. ‘List of Publications of the Board of Agriculture’, 2pp. publisher’s advertisements. (Toning, lacking map.) Contemporary calf-backed cloth boards (minor loss to upper joint, some fraying to cloth). Note: scarce.

FREEMASONRY. – [John ENTICK (compiler)]. The Free Masons Pocket-Companion… to Which Is Added A Large Collection of Songs, many of which were never published. Edinburgh: Auld and Smellie, 1765. Small 4to (170 x 96mm.) 17pp. ‘List of all the Regular Lodges in Scotland’ to rear. (Lacking front blank, browning and marginal spotting throughout, last leaf with small hole.) Contemporary calf, red morocco lettering piece to the spine (extremities heavily rubbed, minor scuffing). Provenance: George Bellamy (ink name to front pastedown, date 1846); Thomas Layton (ink name to front-free endpaper, date 1872); Ann P.[?] (ink name to front-free endpaper).

[DEFOE, Daniel.] The Life and Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner. London: T. Wilson and R. Spence, 1805. New edition, 8vo (170 x 98mm.) 4 engraved plates, including frontispiece. (Browning, some leaves with heavy spotting.) Contemporary calf (extremities rubbed, scuffing). Provenance: J.P. Oliver (ink name inscribed to front-free endpaper). – And a further five literary volumes (including Harriet Beecher Stowe’s ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’, 1852, 8vo) (6).

[TIGHE, Mary.] Mrs. Henry TIGHE. Psyche, With Other Poems. London: Longman, Hurst, Rees et al., 1811. Third edition, 4to (261 x 209mm.) Stipple-engraved oval portrait frontispiece after Romney by Caroline Watson, engraver, 2pp. ‘Notes’ to rear. (Offsetting to title, occasional light spotting.) Contemporary boards (rebacked, extremities rubbed). Note: Mary Tighe’s work was a significant inspiration for the Romantic sensibility in England, and on Keats’ work especially. She died in 1810 and it was this third edition of ‘Psyche’- with the first publication of the additional poems- that established her reputation. Provenance: John Thackeray (bookplate to front pastedown); Christ’s Hospital (presentation plate to front pastedown).

SHERIDAN, Thomas. A General Dictionary of the English Dictionary. London: J. Dodsley, C. Dilly and J. Wilkie, 1780. 2 vols., first edition, 4to (257 x 203mm.) Half-titles, 7pp. ‘List of Subscribers’. (Browning and light spotting to preliminaries, occasionally thereafter, dust-soiling to pastedowns, lacking list of Sheridan’s works to rear of vol. 2.) Contemporary tree calf, red and brown morocco lettering pieces to the spines (minor loss to spine ends and joints, extremities bumped, upper hinge of vol. 2 weakened). Provenance: John Thackeray (bookplate to front pastedown); Christ’s Hospital (presentation plate to front pastedown). – And a further two volumes (Samuel Johnson’s ‘Dictionary of the English Language’, 2 vols., ninth edition, 1806, 8vo) (4).

MILITARY. – William FAWCETT. Instructions and Regulations for the Formations and Movements of the Cavalry. [London:] for the War-Office, 1807. Sixth edition, 8vo (232 x 139mm.) Half-title, title, 13 engraved folding plates. (Toning, scratch marks to B7, marginal tear to B2.) Contemporary boards (some loss to spine, extremities rubbed, minor dust-soiling).

OKAPI. – E. Ray LANKESTER. Monograph of the Okapi. Atlas [all published] … with the Assistance of W.G. Ridewood. London: by Order of the Trustees of the British Museum, 1910. Folio (309 x 232mm.) 48 plates, including 2 chromolithographed, tissue-guards. (Toning.) Contemporary black cloth-backed boards (some loss and wear to spine, ink reference to base of spine, some discolouring to cloth). Note: no text volume was published. Provenance: Bradford Public Library (small stamp verso plates).

NEWENHAM, Robert O’ Callaghan. [Picturesque Views of the Antiquities of Ireland. London: Thomas & William Boone, 1830.] 2 vols. in 1, 4to (308 x 247mm.) Dedication, 112 lithographed plates by J.D. Harding after sketches by Robert Newenham, 2pp. ‘List of Subscribers’ and 25pp. text by Robert Newenham preceding the plates. (Marginal pencil annotation to many plates, half the plates with marginal spotting and browning, lacking letterpress title and frontispiece). Original green half morocco over marbled paper-covered boards (extremities bumped and scuffed). Note: scarce.

MANTELL, Gideon. The Fossils of the South Downs; or Illustrations of the Geology of Sussex. London: Lupton Relfe, 1822. First edition, 4to (289 x 214mm.) Half-title, 42 aquatint and engraved plates by Mrs. Mantell, including 1 hand-coloured map, 4 with hand-colouring and 2 folding, 4pp. ‘Subscribers’, 1p. publisher’s advertisement to rear. (Stamp to upper margin of all plates, browning and spotting to plate margins, browning to title, frontispiece heavily spotted.) Later brown half morocco, gilt lettering and reference to spine (endpapers replaced, extremities rubbed). Provenance: West Sussex County Council (labels to front pastedown and verso title).