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The Butterflies of North America with Colored Drawings and Descriptions

Edwards, William Henry New York, Cambridge and Boston: Hurd and Houton, The Riverside Press [and] Houghton Mifflen and Company, 1874 [and] 1884. Two volumes. Large Quarto (11 1/4” x 9”, 285mm x 225mm). With 101(of 102) lithographed plates with hand-coloring. Bound in Contemporary half brown morocco over marbled boards. On the spine, five raised bands with text gilt to the second and fouth panels with elaborate gilt design in the others. Gilt edges to the text block. Tissue guards. Extremities rubbed, especially on the spine. Light wear on the boards. Some off-setting and foxing. In vol. I, lacking final plate. In voll. II, front free endpaper and second page detached, as well as rear free endpaper. William Henry Edwards (1822-1909) was an American businessman, entomologist and explorer. He was a pioneer in coalfield development in West Virginia and came from a prominent family. He graduated from Williams College in 1842, where he studied Natural History, a new discipline. After studying law briefly, he dedicated himself to the serious collecting and study of lepidoptera. He also traveled with his uncle and wrote A Voyage Up the River Amazon, published in 1847. In The Butterflies, volume I includes Edwards’ Synopsis of North American Butterflies and volume II contains the list of Species of the Diurnal Lepidoptera of America. These 2 volumes of a final 3 volume set that became his greatest achievement, published in 1874, 1884 and 1897. In the preface to the third volume, Edwards gives credit to the women who contributed to the lithography and hand-coloring of the plates. The illustrations were drawn by Mary Peart, and hand-colored by Lydia Bowen and her sister Patience Leslie. There is a ticket on the front pastedown of G. Schmidt & Brothers, Binders. Nissen ZBI 1234.
  • $5,750
  • $5,750
History of the Indian Tribes of North America

History of the Indian Tribes of North America

MCKENNEY, Thomas L. (1785-1859) and James HALL (1793-1868) 3 volumes, folio (19 ¾ x 14 in.; 50.2 x 35.6 cm). 120 handcolored lithographed plates heightened with gum arabic, including 117 portraits after C.B. King and 3 scenic frontispieces after Rindisbacher, leaf of lithographed maps and table, 17 pages of facsimile signatures of subscribers, leaf of testimonials regarding the genuineness of the portrait of Pocahontas, state C of vol. 1 title-page, state D of the War Dance frontispiece and state F of Red Jacket, vol. 2 title-page in state B, vol. 3 title-page in state A; vol. 3 frontispiece plate trimmed and repaired, faint text offsetting to 4 plates in same, WITHAL AN IMMACULATE, BRIGHT COPY WITH VIVID COLORING. Half green morocco over pebbled green cloth, gilt titles in decorative border on upper covers, the spine in 7 compartments gilt (2 lettered), yellow-coated endpapers; rebacked and recornered to style; covers rubbed, a few water spots on front cover of vol. 2, dampstaining to flyleaves in all three volumes. FIRST EDITION, "OF THE GRANDEST COLOR PLATE BOOK ISSUED IN THE UNITED STATES UP TO THE TIME OF ITS PUBLICATION AND ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT OF THE CENTURY" (Reese), with Volumes I and 2 in the second issue, and Volume 3 in the first issue. Its long publication history spanned twelve years and involved multiple lithographers (mainly Peter S. Duval and James T. Bowen) and publishers, but the final product is one of the most important and distinctive books in Americana. Soon after his appointment as Superintendent of Indian Trade in 1816, Thomas L. McKenney struck upon the idea of creating an archive to preserve the artifacts and history of Native Americans. The Archives of the American Indian became the first national collection in Washington and were curated with great care by McKenney throughout his tenure as Superintendent and then in 1824 as first head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. A visit to the studio of artist Charles Bird King inspired McKenney to add portraits to the Archives. For the next twenty years, King would capture the likenesses of the many visiting Indian dignitaries who had come to Washington to meet the "Great Father" (i.e., the president), as well as rework the less skillful portraits of James Otto Lewis. The original paintings were deposited with the War Department and eventually transferred to the Smithsonian, where in 1865, a fire destroyed most of them. Consequently, their appearance in Indian Tribes is the only recorded likeness of many of the most prominent Indian leaders of the nineteenth century. McKenney was preparing to publish a collection of the Indian portraits when he lost his position at the Bureau during Andrew Jackson's house cleaning in 1830. Other setbacks befell the project: publishers went bankrupt, investors dropped out, and expenses soared mostly like as a result of the depression that followed the financial panic of 1837. McKenney finally enlisted Ohio jurist and writer James Hall to assist with the project. Hall completed the individual biographies of each subject and put the finishing touches on the general history. Meanwhile, James Otto Lewis, likely bitter that he would receive no credit for his portraits that King had reworked, published his own Aboriginal Port-Folio in 1835. Unfortunately for Lewis, the illustrations were of inferior quality and few of its later numbers were ever completed. By contrast, McKenney and Hall's work was a resounding artistic success-the lithographs were of such impeccable quality that John James Audubon commissioned James T. Bowen to produce the illustrations for a revised edition of his Birds of America. While an artistic tour de force, the work wasn't a financial success. Its exorbitant price prohibited all but the wealthy and public libraries from subscribing. REFERENCES: BAL 6934; Bennett 79; Field 992; Howes M129; Lipperheide Mc4; Reese, Stamped with a National Character 24; Sabin 43410a; Viola, The Indian Legacy of Charles Bird King (L64F11bisE)
  • $135,000
  • $135,000
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The English Moths and Butterflies: together with the plants, flowers, and fruits whereon they feed, and are usually found. All drawn and coloured in such a manner, as to represent their several beautiful appearances, being copied exactly from the subjects themselves, and painted on the best Atlas paper.

Wilkes, Benjamin London: printed for and sold by Benjamin Wilkes, [1749?]. Large Quarto (12” x 10”, 305mm x 254mm). First edition. With 120 hand-coloured engraved plates after Wilkes. Bound in Modern brown Morocco, decorated in blind. On the spine, 5 raised bands, with title and butterflies in gilt. Marbled endpapers. Slight rubbing to the extremities. Repair to bottom of p. 8. Occasional staining and off-setting throughout. Benjamin Wilkes (fl. 1740-1750) was an artist and naturalist in London. He had a collection of English lepidoptera and began studying entomology on his own. Following an invitation from a friend, he became a member of the Aurelian society, a group of zoologists. Wilkes published his notes and illustrations over 10 years. His work is noted for presenting the three stages of butterfly development-caterpillar, chrysalis, and fly states, along with the plants, flowers and fruits, where they fed. There is a 2 page list of subscribers. Wilkes died of a fever one week after he completed this opus. According to the first edition,“The price of this work colour’d is Nine Pounds.” There is an ink ownership manuscript to the title page of Wyatt Newston (sp?). Lisney pp. 124 and 125. Nissen ZBI 4410a.
  • $9,000
  • $9,000
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The Insects of Great Britian, Systematically Arranged, Accurately Engraved, and Painted from Nature, with the Naturual History of Each Species

Lewin, William London: J. Johnson, 1795. Vol. 1. First edition, first issue. Quarto (10 1/2” x 8 1/8”, 264mm x 208mm ) With 46 hand-colored engraved plates by and after Lewin. Bound in 19th century polished green calf decorated in double-gilt fillet and in blind with foliate roll-tooled border. On the spine, gilt with five raised bands and author and title gilt to red morocco lettering piece in second panel. Marbled endpapers and marbling to the text block. Title and text in French and English. Wide margins. Extremities and spine worn. Some rubbing to the boards. Foxing and offsetting throughout with frequent pencil notes. Spine worn, starting at the head. There are two plates out of order with plate 6 after plate 8 and plate 28 after 23. William Lewin (1747-1795) was an English naturalist and illustrator. By 1783, he was an active painter of natural history subjects. His friend John Latham sponsored him at the Linnean Society and helped his career. “The figures engraved from the subjects themselves, by the author, and painted under his immediate direction.” (Nissen). All the species known at the time were described and illustrated. Lewin intended to create a series, but he died suddenly in 1795 with only this volume completed. This is a rare first issue with the title page “Insects of Great Britain” and ends with “End of the first Volume.” The second issue changes the title to the “Papilios of Great Britain.” Lisney 410. Nissen 2488.
  • $3,650
  • $3,650
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A Natural History of English Insects. Illustrated with a Hundred Copper Plates, Curiousl;y engraven from the Life: and (for those who desire it) Exactly coloured by the Author, Eleazar Albin, Painter.

Albin, Eleazar London: Printed for the Author: And sold by William and John Innys, 1720. First edition. Quarto (11 1/4” x 9”, 287mm x 230mm). With Dedication and 100 hand-coloured engraved copper plates. Bound in Contemporary calf panelled in gilt with foliate cornerpieces. On the spine, 6 raised bands and author and title gilt to a red morocco lettering piece in the second panel. Hand-coloured engraved plates by Albin. Hullet, H. Terasson and van Gucht after Albin. Each plate is dedicataed to a subscriber or well-known person, likely Albin’s patrons and those interested in his drawings of insects. The plates are numbered in roman numerals. Plate C is misbound at the front. Plates 51, 53 and 61 are numbered in manuscript. Boards and extremities heavily worn. Staining, foxing and offsetting throughout. Eleazar Albin (fl. 1713-1759) was an English naturalist and watercolorist. He is considered to be one of the premier entomological book illustrators of the 18th century. Little is known of his early life, although he may have been born in Germany. By 1708, he had taken the surname Albin. In 1709-1710, he met Her Grace Mary, the Duchess Dowager of Beaufort, who encouraged him to study insects. He emphasized that his insects were drawn from personal observation, unlike many of his predessors. Upon the death of his patroness in 1715, Albin struggled to fund his project and relied on subscriptions until this first publication in 1720. Lisney 122; Nissen ZBI 58.
  • $5,800
  • $5,800
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A Natural History of English Insects. Illustrated with a Hundred Copper Plates, Curiousl;y engraven from the Life, and Exactly coloured by the Author, Eleazar Albin, Painter. To which are added Large Notes and many curious Observations by W. Derham, D. D. Fellow of the Royal Society.

Albin, Eleazar London: William Innys, 1749. Fifth edition. Quarto (11 3/8" x 9 ", 290mm x 228mm) with 100 hand-coloured engraved plates. Bound in Contemporary straight-grained red morocco gilt, gilt edges to the text block. On the spine, rebacked, five raised bands with title and author gilt to the second and third panels, and publication year to the foot. Hand-coloured engraved plates by Albin, Hullet, H. Terasson and van Gucht after Albin. Without W. Derham's "Notes" as usual. Marbled endpapers. Some spots to the boards. Extremities rubbed. Foxing and toning throughout, especially in plate X. Browning to upper blank margins of dedication and preface leaf. Eleazar Albin (fl. 1713-1759) was an English naturalist and watercolorist. He is considered to be one of the premier entomological book illustrators of the 18th century. Little is known of his early life, although he may have been born in Germany. By 1708, he had taken the surname Albin. In 1709-1710, he met Her Grace Mary, the Duchess Dowager of Beaufort, who encouraged him to study insects. He emphasized that his insects were drawn from personal observation, unlike many of his predessors. Upon the death of his patroness in 1715, Albin relied on subscriptions until the first publication in 1720. Armorial bookplate The Rt. Honorable Lord Gray, John, 15th (1798-1867). Lisney 123; Nissen ZBI 58.
  • $5,500
  • $5,500
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Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition. During the Years 1838, 1839, 1840, 1841, 1842.

"Philadelphia: Lea and Blanchard, 1845. Large octavo (11 1/8"" x 7"", 283mm x 180mm) Five text volumes and an atlas. Text volumes with 64 engraved plates and 9 double-page maps; and over 250 woodcut and steel engraved text illustrations mostly after Joseph Drayton and Alfred T. Agate. Atlas with 5 folding maps, the first Chart of the World is hand-colored. Bound in Publishers olive cloth stamped in gilt and blind. Superlibros in gold with eagle and ship. On the flat spine, decoration in gilt and blind. Wear to the head and tail of spines and extremities. Spines sunned. Untrimmed. Light foxing and offsetting throughout. Tissue guards. Ownership manuscript of William Norris and JC Branner to the title pages. From the distinguished collection of Delmer and Mary Lou Daves. Charles Wilkes (1798-1877) was an American naval officer, ship captain, and explorer. In 1838 he was given command of the government exploring expedition. Known as The Wilkes Expedition, it was a maritime expedition of the Pacific, Antartica, and Northwest United States. He enlisted the help of naturalists, botanists, taxidermists, artists, and a minerologist and philogist. Among his achievements, Wilkes was the first to announce the existence of the Antartic in 1839. The Expedition was the first governmental sponsorship of scientific endeavor and was instrumental in the nation's westward expansion. Specimens gathered by expedition scientists became the foundation of the Smithsonian Institution. Significant contributions in the fields of geology, botany, conchology, anthropology and linguistics came from the scientific work of the expedition (Dictionary of American Biography). Joseph Drayton (1795-1856) was an engraver and portraitist. As the official artist of the Expedition, he was among the best traveled artists. Alfred T. Agate (1812-1856) was an American painter and miniaturist. He was a skilled artist, appointed honory member of the National Academy of Design. He worked as a portraitist and botanist under Charles Wilkes. Sadly, he suffered on the Expedition and died of consumption at age 34. Wilkes' narrative influenced some important American writers. Such as Herman Melville's Queegueg from Moby Dick has been attributed to Wilkes tattooed chief in Volume 2. According to Bonham s sale 22 June 23, lot 113, this belonged to the collection of Delmer and Mary Lou Daves. American actress Mary Lou Daves began her career in Hollywood as Mary Lou Lender in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Her work on the silver screen included films such as The Stratton Story, Back Street, No Man of Her Own, and State Fair as well as notable television appearances on the Bob Cummings Show, Playhouse90, and Dragnet. Though it was her time on the 1938 Harold Lloyd comedy Professor Beware where she met and subsequently married the budding film director Delmer Daves. As both writer and director, Daves would go on to contribute his talents to movies such as Destination Tokyo, a wartime submarine drama starring Cary Grant and John Garfield, Dark Passage, a melodrama staring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall in 1947, and Broken Arrow, starring James Stewart in 1950. They were married for 39 years. Howes W-414; Sabin 103994; Streeter Sale 528.
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Illustrations of Natural History;. Wherein are exhibited upwards of two hundred and forty figures of exotic insects, According to their different Genera; very few of which have hitherto been figured by any author

London, printed for the author, 1770-1782. 3 volumes. Large quarto (12 x 9 1/2 , 305mm x 240mm). Text in English and French. With 146 (of 150) hand-coloured engraved plates mostly by and after Moses Harris, and 2 plates by P. Mazell after Mary Garside. Vols. I and II are bound in modern brown polished calf over blue boards. Vol. III is bound in the original publisher s boards. On the spine of Vols. I and II, 5 raised bands with text gilt to red Morocco lettering piece in the second panel and floral decoration in blind and black on remaining panels. Vol.I lacking index. Vol. III lacking plates 16, 23, 30, and 31, with index page bound at front. Vol. III with backstrip perished and the whole becoming detached. Blue boards lightly rubbed. All volumes uncut. This important entomological work presents insects largely unknown in the Western world at the time. It is known for its scientific as well as artistic merit. A British silversmith and naturalist, Dru Drury (1725-1803) nurtured his early love of insects, studying entomology and forming his own fine collection of specimens. He would advertise for insect exchange or purchase through foreign papers, and contact a network of ship s officers and collectors. He composed a 3 page pamphlet of instructions on collecting. A member of the Linnean Society, his collection became well known, one cabinet alone held 11,000 insects. Nissen ZBI 1160.
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The Butterflies of North America first [-second,-third] series.

Boston: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1888-1884-1897. 3 volumes. Quarto (10 3/ 4 x 8 3 /4, 270mm x 225mm) With 154 hand-coloured lithographic plates. Half-titles to vols l-ll, in vol.ll bound after title and before preface. Third Series volume title bound at beginning of vol. l. Bound in contemporary half black Morocco gilt, edges of text block gilt. On the spine, 4 raised bands, text gilt to second through third panels. Spine sunned and worn, especially at the head of vol. l. Extremities worn. Marbled endpapers. Tissue guards and light offsetting. In vol. I, front free endpaper detached. In 1846, William Henry Edwards (1822-1909) travelled with his uncle Amory Edwards up the Amazon River, as recounted in his popular book A Voyage up the River Amazon (1847). He provided advice, research and letters of introduction to subsequent scientists. In 1868, Edwards began thiis work as a quarto pamphlet series of descriptions and illustrations of North American species. Edwwrds was an American businessman, entomologist and explorer. He was a pioneer in coalfield development in West Virginia and came from a prominent family. He graduated from Williams College in 1842, where he studied Natural History, a new discipline. After studying law briefly, he dedicated himself to the serious collecting and study of lepidoptera. The illustrations here were drawn by Mary Peart, and hand-colored by Lydia Bowen and her sister Patience Leslie. There is an authorial presentation inscription on a pasted slip on prelim To David Bruce with regards of Wm H Edwards 1891. David Bruce (1833-1903) was a Scottish naturalist and collaborator with Edwards. He also performed taxidermy and insect illustration. There is a bookplate on the front pastedown of James J. Waring. He was the first full-time Professor of Medecine at the University of Colorado, where he went to recuperate from tuberculosis. He ran the medical school from 1933-1945. Nissen ZBI 1234.
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Plantae selectae quarum imagines ad exemplaria naturalia Londini in hortis curiosorum nutrita manu artificiosa doctaque pinxit Georgius Dionysius Ehret

THE PERTH COPY. First edition. Ten parts in one volume. [Nuremberg, 1750-1773]. Folio (525mm x 355mm): with 3 mezzotint portraits (Trew, Ehret and J.J. Haid; some examples have a fourth), 10 engraved section-titles heightened in red and gold (seven with ink numeration manuscript) and 100 hand-colored engraved plates by Johann Jacon and Johann Elias Haid after Ehret, heightened gilt. Bound in XXc red morocco by Sangorski & Sutcliffe, with the crest of the Earl of Perth gilt at the head. Without the general title (as often) or the two-decuria supplement issued by Vogel some 40 years after publication began. The Plantae Selectae is considered by Nissen to be the finest botanical work ever printed in Germany. Trew, physician at Nuremberg and amateur botanist, admired the talent and skill of his younger countryman, Georg Ehret, a gardener and flower painter. This work is their major collaboration, although Ehret did contribute several drawings to Trew's Hortus nitidissimis. Ehret is one of the great painters of flowering plants in the eighteenth century and all 100 plates of the Plantae selectae were painted by him. Trew died in 1769, leaving the last three parts uncompleted. The work was finished by Benedict Christian Vogel, Professor of Botany at the University of Altdorf. The work was conceived as early as 1742 when Trew wrote to Christian Thran in Carlsruhe: "Every year I receive some beautifully painted exotic plants (by Ehret) and have already more than one hundred of them, which with other pieces executed by local artists, should later on, Deo volante, constitute an appendix to Weinmann’s publication but will, I hope, find a better reception than his." In 1748, agreement was reached that Johann Jacob Haid from Augsburg should provide the engravings, and the first part appeared in 1750. Trew died before the text of the last three decuriae was written and before the illustrations of Decuriae IX and X were printed. Ex coll. John David Drummond, 17th Earl of Perth (1907-2002); from his sale, Christie's London 20 November 2003, lot 58. Dunthorne 309; Great Flower Books, p. 78; Hunt 539; Nissen BBI 1997; Stafleu-Cowan 15.131.
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Pomologia, dat is Beschryvingen en Afbeeldingen van de beste sorten van Appels en Peeren. WITH Fructologia, of Beschryving der Vrugtbomen en Vrugten. WITH Dendrologia, or Beschryving der Plantagie-Gewassen.

Leeuwarden: Abraham Ferwerda and G. Tresling, n. d. [possibly 1763]. Folio (12 3/4" x 8", 325mm x 205mm). 3 parts in one volume. With 39 hand-coloured engraved plates of apples, pears, and other fruits and berries, engraved by Jacob Folkema. Bound in Contemporary half calf over speckled paper boards. On the spine, 6 raised bands with text gilt to red Morocco in the second panel. Gilt plant decoration in the other panels. The boards and extremities are heavily worn with the spine starting at the bottom and along the top hinge. Minor foxing and toning throughout with occaisional seepage through the plates. Lower corner of page H in second work torn without loss of text. Born in Kassel, Germany, Johann Hermann Knoop (1700-1769) systematically researched and cultivated many varieties of apples and other fruits. He wrote numerous books on botany, as well as mathematics and astronomy. In Pomologia, he identifies more than 100 varieties of apples. Princess Maria-Louise van Hessen, a great lover of garden art, appointed him director of horticulture at Mariënberg. The Dowager Princess of Orange and Nassau had a celebrated garden that Knoop contributed to. Knoop learned botany from his father, who was court gardener and manager of the Pleasure Garden at Freienage. The beautiful illustrations appear three-dimensional due to their careful shading and naturalism. Nissen BBI 1077, 1078; Stafleu TL2 3766, 3768
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Le grand théatre profane (– sacré) du duché de Brabant

Two works in four volumes. First edition in French (profane), second edition in French (sacré). The Hague: Chrétien van Lom; Gerard Block, 1730, 1734. Folio (480mm x 292mm). Profane: with 4 engraved plates of arms, one plate of coins and 188 views and plans on 67 sheets. Sacré: with 2 double-page maps, five in-text engravings and 271 engraved plates (21 portraits; the others views, plans, buildings, altars and memorials), of which 74 are double-page. Bound in contemporary polished calf. Rubbed generally, with wear at the joints. A set of two separately-issued but obviously complementary works on the secular and ecclesiastical architecture of the Duchy of Brabant. At the time of printing, Brabant was divided between the Dutch Republic in the north and the Austrian Habsburg Empire in the South; today, all of the territory except the Dutch province of North Brabant is part of Belgium. The “Profane” engravings include plans and panoramic views of cities and towns, while the “Sacré” volumes, first issued in 1729, show not only church and monastic architecture, but details of tombs, memorial plaques, and epitaphs, along with portraits of the bishops of the dioceses of the duchy. The engravings have the crystalline purity of line that set apart the topographical works of Merian a century or so earlier. Many copies of these works were broken up into individual plates, making complete sets of both works in contemporary bindings, as here, especially desirable. Brunet II, 1699.
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Fuggerorum et fuggerarum, quae in familia natae quave in familiam transierunt quot extant

THE LANSDOWNE COPY. Second edition, enlarged. Augsburg: A. Aperger (letterpress) for D. Custos, 1618. Folio (480mm x 360mm): with an engraved title, engraved armorial achievement and 127 engraved portraits within ornate borders by L. and W. Kilian. Bound in contemporary calf gilt. Rubbed, with some wear at the extremities. Final leaf of text with a small repaired tear, touching a few letters. With the armorial bookplate of the Marquess of Lansdowne. The Fugger family, mostly merchants and bankers, rose to great influence and acquired great wealth in the XVc and XVIc. The present work was originally printed in 1593 and contained just 71 portraits by Flemish engraver Dominicus Custos (1560–1612). It was probably printed in quite a small run, as very few copies of the first edition survive. After Custos’ death, the artist’s stepsons, engravers Wolfgang and Lukas Kilian, updated and augmented the work with additional portraits, bringing the total number to the present 127. The recto of each leaf displays a full-page engraving containing the portrait of a family member surrounded by an ornate architectural, circular, or square frame, their coat of arms displayed prominently above them, and heavily embellished with decorative motifs, statuesque figures, putti, and emblems (the versos of the portraits contain genealogical information, such as births, deaths, marriages, and any offspring). The Fuggers settled in Augsburg in the fourteenth century; the first recorded member of family came from a humble weaving background; within a couple of generations, through a series of fortunate marriages and enterprising business tactics, the descendants worked their way into the merchant class and were eventually granted noble status. The present work covers five generations of family history, commencing with a portrait of Jakob Fugger the Elder (1398-1469), followed soon after by his youngest son, Jakob II, nicknamed “the Rich” (1459-1525), who became one of the wealthiest men who ever lived. It is interesting to note, however, that this work is not dominated by the men of the family; 62 of the portraits represent women. Partly because of this, the book is an especially rich source for costumes of the period, featuring as it does an exquisite array of garments, headpieces, jewelry, and accessories of the highest quality. STC German C-1515; VD17 3:310169E.
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Oeuvres

Paris: Jean Moyreau, 1737. Folio (560mm x 435mm): with 45 hand-colored plates (of a total possible count of 100, lacking the portrait), of which 6 are double-pages. Bound in contemporary morocco by Manoury (re-jointed, with repairs to the had and tail). This work is composed entirely of very large folio engraved plates depicting landscapes, hunting scenes, and battles by Philip Wouvermans (or Wouwermans, 1619-1668), a Dutch painter renowned for his exceptional and highly sought-after depictions of horses. The present collection contains a wide variety of subjects—from a humorous "traffic jam" on a rural road that results in a pitcher of spilt milk, to more sombre depictions of warfare — but the common thread throughout all of these images is the presence of horses and deference to equine culture. As Benezit tells us, "Many artists have painted horses, but none with such devotion, none who cared about the social life of the animal, so to speak. He painted as a technician but also as a poet." According to Bryan, these engravings are the most significant work of Jean Moyreau, a French printmaker and publisher who was admitted into the Académie française in 1736. Lewine tells us that Moyreau engraved a total of 78 plates after Wouvermans (the last being in 1754), and that "other artists have done work in the engraving line after Wouvermans up to 1780, and these later productions are often found added in large or small numbers;" as a result, "copies differ as regards the number of plates, as they were published at intervals." Lewine records as many as 106 plates in a single copy, but bibliographies usually record a maximum of 100. Regardless of the number of plates present, this work is very rare on the market: RBH records just four copies in more than 40 years, only one of which was "complete" with 100 plates. Cohen-de Ricci 1068; Lewine, p. 576; Benezit IX, 1426 and XIV, 1096; Bryan III, 378.
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The war between the United States and Mexico illustrated, embracing pictorial drawings of all the principal conflicts

First edition. New York & Philadelphia: [Plon Brothers of Paris for] D. Appleton & Co. and George S. Appleton, 1851. Folio; text: 580mm x 435mm, plates: 508mm x 638mm. With a lithographed map by Erhardt-Schieble and 12 hand-colored lithographed plates, heightened in gum arabic, by Bayot (in one example Bayot & Bichebois) after Nebel, printed in Paris by Lemercier. Text backed in contemporary red cloth over contemporary cloth-backed dun thick paper wrappers, with the publisher's red moiré cloth title-label gilt laid down to the front wrapper. Plates matted in acid-free passes-partouts, presented within a modern four-fold red cloth portolio, all within a modern red morocco-backed clam-shell box. A particularly fine example. an account of the major battles of the Mexican-American War (1846-1848) by a man considered the first modern war correspondent; it is highlighted by vivid color plates Bennett considers "the very best American battle scenes in existence." In the preface Kendall (1809-1867) tells us the plates are almost all based on sketches "drawn on the spot by the artist. So far as regards the general configuration of the ground, fidelity of the landscape, and correctness of the works and buildings introduced, they may be strictly relied upon. the greatest care has been taken to avoid inaccuracies." A co-founder of the "New Orleans Picayune," Kendall was already a well-known journalist when he began reporting on the war over Texas between the U.S. and Mexico. Firmly believing that Texas should join the Union, Kendall travelled with the U.S. troops led by Generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott, sending dispatches to the "Picayune" with unprecedented speed. He was sufficiently involved in battles to capture a Mexican cavalry flag and to be wounded in the knee. "Eyewitness to War" considers this work "the climax of the confluence of journalism and lithography," declaring that the illustrations by Carl Nebel (1805-1855) are "the eyewitness prints that must be compared against all others," and noting that Kendall's text was either a first-hand account or was based on "the official reports of the different commanders and their subordinates." Of the dozen large folio views that comprise the value of this work, the most famous is the triumphant scene showing Scott's entrance into Mexico City, with the U.S. flag flying over the National Palace. Kendall and Nebel agreed that the latter's paintings should be drawn on stone, printed, and hand coloured in Paris, where Nebel's renowned series of fifty lithographic plates, Voyage pittoresque et archéologique dans la partie la plus intéressante du Méxique, had been produced. Both men travelled to France to supervise the project, undertaken by noted lithographer Adolphe Jean-Baptiste Bayot (1810-1866) and printer Joseph-Rose Lemercier (1803-1887), head of a leading Parisian workshop known for pioneering work in lithography. The "Picayune" praised the final result in a (perhaps biased, but not inaccurate) July 1850 review: "We have never seen anything to equal the artistic skill, perfection of design, marvelous beauty of execution, delicacy of truth of coloring, and lifelike animation of figures. They present the most exquisite specimens ever exhibited in this country of the art of colored lithography; and we think that great praise ought to be awarded to Mr. Kendall for having secured such brilliant and beautiful and costly illustrations for the faithful record of the victories of the American army." Bennett, "American 19th Century Color Plate Books" p. 65; Sandweiss et al., "Eyewitness to War: Prints and Daguerreotypes of the Mexican War, 1846-1848" pp. 36-37; Howes K 76; Sabin 37362.
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Travels through North & South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida, the Cherokee Country, the Extensive Territories of the Muscogulges or Creek Confederacy, and the Country of the Choctaws; Containing an Account of the Soil and Natural Productions of those Regions, Together with Observations on the Manner of the Indians.

Philadelphia: James and Johnson, 1791. First edition. Octavo (8” x 4 1/2”, 200mm x 115mm) With engraved frontispiece, portrait of Mico Chlucco King of the Seminoles, folding map of East Florida, and seven engraved natural history plates. Bound in Contemporary mottled sheep, possibly publisher’s. On the flat spine, gilt decoration, and red morocco lettering-piece in second panel. Page 291 misnumbered (as 289) with remaining pagination continuing from 289 with page 487 misnumbered as 478. Extremities heavily worn with front hinge starting, nearly detached. Foxing, staining, and off-setting throughout. William Bartram (1729-1823) was born in Philadelphia, son of John Bartram whom Linnaeus so admired. Like his father, William was unsatisfied to observe in his backyard; instead, he traveled extensively in the Southeast (from 1773), leaving some of the earliest and most vivid descriptions of that part of the country. His was the great curiosity of the savant, not limiting himself to the flora or fauna, terrain or cultures he encountered, but weaving all into a tapestry of the region. He was the first naturalist properly to explore the thickly forested and swampy terrain of Florida, and it is this for which his writing is most prized. The density of editions in Bartram’s lifetime is a testament to their enduring appeal. Due to the lyrical nature of Bartram’s narrative, it influenced British and American authors, including Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and William Wordsworth. “The classic of southern natural history exploration, with much on the southern Indian tribes. Bartram’s account of the remote frontier, of the plantations, trading posts, and Indian villages at the end of the eighteenth century is unrivaled.” (Streeter) Christopher Marshall ownership inscription on front free endpaper. Marshall (1709-1797) was a leader in the American Revolution, known for his diary. Bookplate of Isaac R. Marshall, No. 46., on the front pastedown. Howes B223,; Sabin 3870