Michaux, André
THE ARPAD PLESCH COPY, UNTRIMMED; FROM THE COLLECTION OF JOHN GOLDEN. First edition. Paris: Crapelet; An IX, 1801. Folio (534mm x 345mm). With the half-title and 36 engraved plates by A. Plée and L. Sellier after Pierre Joseph Redouté and Henry Joseph Redouté. Bound in XIXc quarter green pebbled clothover marbled boards. All edges of the text-block untrimmed. Corners bumped, just starting at the head and tail (perhaps 1/8"). Scattered edge-years with peripheral tanning and faint foxing. Bookplate of Arpad Plesch to the front paste-down. Francis Edwards invoice to Edward Dodd (27 September 1977, £610!) laid in. André Michaux (1746-1802, not to be confused with his son François André) explored America from Florida to Hudson's Bay up to the Mississippi, looking particularly for timber that would be useful to the French navy. Arpad Plesch (18891974) was among the greatest collectors of botanical books in history, and the catalog of 1,001 of his finest ( Mille et un livres botaniques de la collection Arpad Plesch) like the Arabian Nights is a constellation of the genre's greatest prizes. The present item was lot 529 (£350) in the 1975 Sotheby's London sale of his collection at the Stiftung für Botanik in Liechtenstein. Purchased at the Sotheby's New York sale of John Golden, 22 November 2022, lot 36. A FULL DESCRIPTION AND SUITE OF PHOTOS WILL BE PRODUCED UPON REQUEST.
London: Printed and Sold by R. Sayer and J. Bennett, 1776. Folio (546 x 419 mm). 23 maps on 30 sheets (all folding or double-page except one single-page) by Henry Mouzon, William Scull, Lewis Evans, and others, handcolored in outline, letterpress title and index, map sheets numbered on versos with several misnumbered, maps hinged on guards; light browning and faint offsetting affecting six maps (The Banks of Newfoundland, no. 13; Lake Champlain, no. 18; Virginia and Maryland, no. 21; Florida, no. 25; Mississippi, no. 26; and South America, no. 29, minor dampstaining on bottom margins of title, index, and first 7 maps. Contemporary speckled calf; rebacked, endpapers renewed, but generally a handsome copy. "One of the most authoritative and comprehensive atlases of America" (Ristow). After the British victory in the Seven Years War, scientific surveys were undertaken that explored and mapped the interiors of the land east of the Mississippi River. The resulting maps, published separately by Jefferys as Geographer to the Prince of Wales (and subsequently to the King), were generally the best available for their respective regions. This atlas was published by Jefferys' successors Robert Sayer and John Bennett, and it provides a comprehensive record of the thirteen colonies during the Revolutionary War era and includes extensive reconnaissance mapping of French Canada, including Newfoundland. "As a major cartographic reference work it was, very likely, consulted by American, English, and French civilian administrators and military officers during the Revolution" (Ristow). REFERENCE: Howes J-81; Phillips, cf. 1166, 1165; William Ristow, "Bibliographical Note," in American Atlas [facsimile of 1776 edition], 1973; Sabin 35953, not. PROVENANCE: Ingilby (contemporary ownership inscription on title-page) Dillon/Dunwalke Library (bookplate and shelfmark) Sotheby's New York, 15 June 2006, lot 204 (undesignated consignor)
London: Printed by Richard and John E. Taylor, 1850. First edition. Large Folio (21 3/4" x 14 1/2", 555mm x 370mm). With 32 hand-colored lithographed plates by John Gould and Henry Constantine Richter, printed by Hullmandel and Walton. Bound in red half morocco with red marbled boards. On the spine, 5 raised bands. Author and title gilt to the second panel. Chips to morocco spine bands and lettering piece. Marbled end papers. Light foxing. Bookplate of Marcel Jeanson, 7091, utrumo legere jocundum. Jeanson was a French industrialist, collector and bibliophile (1885-1942), famous for his library dedicated to hunting. Born in Dorset, John Gould (1804 1881) was an artist, ornithologist and entrepreneur, who published many monographs on birds. Though a painter himself, his works were more often illustrated by his wife Elizabeth (1804 1841), and, particularly after her death, Henry Constantine Richter, Joseph Wolf and William Matthew Hart. The most prolific ornithological artist of the XIXc, Gould rivaled Audubon in ambition and quality. He is considered the father of bird study in Australia, and the Gould League is named after him. This monograph, Gould s fourth, on American gamebirds (his only work focusing on the Americas), was originally issued in three parts by subscription 1844, 1846 and 1850. He considerably enlarged the number of recorded species of the American partridge family. Gould was particularly impressed by the beautiful Callipepla californica, presented to the Zoological Society of London by Captain Beechey, in 1830. He dedicated this monograph to the French ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), Napoleon s brother and the author of American Ornithology. Gould made solid contributions to science as well. He helped identify species in the collection of four-hundred fifty birds that Charles Darwin presented to the museum of the Zoological Society in 1837. His beautiful drawings assured his popularity among a wealthy clientele, while the reliable scientific information in his tomes made for a wider commercial success. Nissen, IVB 376; Zimmer p. 257.
London: Printed by Richard and John E. Taylor, 1850. Large Folio (21 1/2" x 14 1/2", 548mm x 370mm). First edition. With 32 hand-coloured lithographic plates by John Gould and Henry Constantine Richter, printed by Hullmandel and Walton.Bound in half black morocco over black cloth boards, gilt. 5 raised bands to spine and gilt title to second panel and author to the fourth. John Gould (1804-1881) was an English ornithologist who published monographs on birds, many illustrated by his wife Elizabeth(1804-1841), and other artists, including Henry Constantine Richter, Joseph Wolf and William Matthew Hart. This is the first of Gould's monographs on gamebirds, and was originally issued in three parts by subscription 1844, 1846 and 1850. In this, Gould's fourth monograph, he considerably enlarged the number of recorded species of the American partridge family. Gould was persuaded to undertake this project by the sight of the beautiful Callipepla Californica, presented to the Zoological Society of London by Captain Beechey, in 1830. The elegant design and natural arrangement of the birds on the plates show Gould's mastery of art and science, and reflect his distinctive style. Gould was inspired by the gift of an English Arctic explorer, and received much useful information from a Scottish botanist and finally dedicated the work to the French ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857) the author of American Ornithology. Born in Boston, Charles Barney Cory (18571921) was an America, ornithologist, golfer and author. Cory donated his sizable bird specimen collection to The Field thMuseum in Chicago, and he was given the position of Curator of Ornithology. Nissen IVB 376; Zimmer p. 257.
London: Printed by Richard and John E. Taylor, 1850. First edition. Large Folio (21 1/2" x 14 1/2", 548mm x 370mm). With 32 hand-colored lithographed plates by John Gould and Henry Constantine Richter, printed by Hullmandel and Walton. Bound in brown morocco with elaborate gilt border and decoration of partridges to both boards. Armorial supralibros (Gibbs) to the front board. Gilt inside dentelle. On the spine, 5 raised bands. Title gilt to the second panel, author gilt to the fourth and year gilt to the tail. Partridge pattern continues on the spine. All edges of the text-block gilt. Marbled end papers. Light skinning and wear to the spine. Moderate foxing. Bookplate of Henry Martin Gibbs, (1850-1928) 1891, son of William Gibbs (1790-1875). It reflects the impaled armorial crests of William Gibbs and his wife Matilda Blanche Crawley-Bevey (1817-1887). William Gibbs was an English businessman and religious philanthropist, who made a name for himself importing bird manure from Peru, among other enterprises. Henry Martin Gibbs, one of William s 7 children, was a philanthropist. Born in Dorset, John Gould (1804 1881) was an artist, ornithologist and entrepreneur, who published many monographs on birds. Though a painter himself, his works were more often illustrated by his wife Elizabeth (1804 1841), and, particularly after her death, Henry Constantine Richter, Joseph Wolf and William Matthew Hart. The most prolific ornithological artist of the XIXc, Gould rivaled Audubon in ambition and quality. He is considered the father of bird study in Australia, and the Gould League is named after him. This monograph, Gould s fourth, on American gamebirds (his only work focusing on the Americas), was originally issued in three parts by subscription 1844, 1846 and 1850. He considerably enlarged the number of recorded species of the American partridge family. Gould was particularly impressed by the beautiful Callipepla californica, presented to the Zoological Society of London by Captain Beechey, in 1830. He dedicated this monograph to the French ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), Napoleon s brother and the author of American Ornithology. Gould made solid contributions to science as well. He helped identify species in the collection of four-hundred fifty birds that Charles Darwin presented to the museum of the Zoological Society in 1837. His beautiful drawings assured his popularity among a wealthy clientele, while the reliable scientific information in his tomes made for a wider commercial success. Nissen, IVB 376; Zimmer p. 257.
Bury, Priscilla Susan
THE DE BELDER-PETER JAY SHARP-JOHN GOLDEN COPY. First (and only) edition of "certainly one of the most effective colour-plate folios of its period" (Blunt, Great Flower Books p. 85). Folio (640mm x 485mm). With an engraved title-page and 51 color-printed aquatint plates finished by hand. Bound in contemporary half green russia over marbled boards. Rubbed, with the joints and hinges strengthened in places. Quire 3 worn with repair at the lower fore-corner. Sporadic and faint foxing in the margins. Bookseller's ticket of J. Simcoe of Chester to the front paste-down. Hexandrian (hex-, six; -andrian, masculine) plants -- those having six stamens, per the classification of Linnaeus -- include amaryllis and lily families. Priscilla Susan Bury (née Falkner, 1799-1782) was "raised in the greenhouses of her family home" and was as gifted a botanist as she was a botanical illustrator. Robert Havell Jr., simultaneously working on the Birds of American of Audubon (one of the 79 subscribers to this work), "managed to translate the artist's fine watercolours into aquatints of even more striking beauty" (Tomasi in An Oak Spring Flora, 86). Dunthorne 71; Great Flower Books, p. 85; Nissen, BBI 306; Pritzel 1404; Stafleu-Cowan 937; Tomasi, Oak Spring Flora 86.
THE "FIRST AMERICAN BIRD BOOK WITH COLOURED PLATES PUBLISHED IN AMERICA" (Fine Bird Books). THE GOLDEN SET. First edition, first issue. Nine volumes. Philadelphia: Robert Carr for Bradford and Inskeep, 1808-1814. Small folio (344mm x 245mm). With 76 hand-colored engraved plates by Alexander Lawson, George Murray, John G. Warnicke and Benjamin Tanner after Wilson. Bound in XIXc half red morocco over paper boards by N.G Hawley of Rochester, NY (his tickets to the front paste-down). Some wear to the extremities, with a few chips and stains to the backs. Tissue guards present in vols. 4 and 7-9. Volume indexes bound variably at front or rear of each vol., 7 pp. subscriber's list and general index at rear of vol. 9; a few light dampstains, occasionally heavy browning, spotting, and oxidization (as usual), scattered marginal tears with a few minor losses to text leaves, "Ruffed Grous" (Vol. 6: plate 49) just shaved. Armorial bookplates of A.J. Porier to the front paste-down of each volume. The Scottish background of Wilson (1766-1813), his study of Divinity, and his apprenticeship to a weaver, gives little inkling of his contribution to a field which occupied only the last five years of his life. While in prison in 1786, he anonymously published a book of poetry, Watty and Meg, upon the example of Robert Burns. He emigrated to America in 1794, where he taught school at Milestown, Delaware. Wilson was 40 years old when, inspired by the flights of birds and geese over his school, he left teaching to try to classify and describe all the bird species in America. He traveled extensively in the northeast and south where he studied 320 species, discovering several not previously known, while he taught himself the technique of drawing. ''In the 76 plates included in his book, Wilson portrayed more than three-quarters of the species of birds known to have existed in America at that time. His work would be overshadowed by the monumental vision of John James Audubon by mid-century, yet the text of Wilson's book was of major scientific importance. Wilson paved the way for much of what would follow, and the excellence of his contributions brought Wilson the distinction of being considered the Father of American Ornithology'' (M.R. Norelli, American Wildlife Painting, New York, 1982.) Anker 533; Fine Bird Books, p. 114; Nissen, IVB 992; Sabin 104597; Zimmer, p. 679
John Gould. A Monograph of the Odontophorinæ, or Partridges of America. London: Printed by Richard and John E. Taylor, 1850. First edition. Large Folio (21 1/2" x 14 1/2", 548mm x 370mm). With 32 hand-colored lithographed plates by John Gould and Henry Constantine Richter, printed by Hullmandel and Walton. With 50 blank pages to the rear. Bound in black morocco with pebbled boards, gilt. Elaborate gilt panels and inside dentelle. On the spine, 5 raised bands. Title gilt to the second panel, author to the fourth, year to the tail. Marbled end papers. All edges of the text-block gilt. Extremities and bands lightly rubbed. Light foxing throughout. Bookplate of Henry George Charles Lascelles (1882-1947), 6th Earl of Harewood, to the front pastedown. He was an army officer and peer, who married Mary, Princess Royal in 1922, and thus was son-in-law of King George V and Queen Mary. Born in Dorset, John Gould (1804-1881) was an artist, ornithologist and entrepreneur, who published many monographs on birds. Though a painter himself, his works were more often illustrated by his wife Elizabeth (1804-1841), and, particularly after her death, Henry Constantine Richter, Joseph Wolf and William Matthew Hart. The most prolific ornithological artist of the XIXc, Gould rivaled Audubon in ambition and quality. He is considered the father of bird study in Australia, and the Gould League is named after him. This monograph, Gould's fourth, on American gamebirds (his only work focusing on the Americas), was originally issued in three parts by subscription 1844, 1846 and 1850. He considerably enlarged the number of recorded species of the American partridge family. Gould was particularly impressed by the beautiful Callipepla californica, presented to the Zoological Society of London by Captain Beechey, in 1830. He dedicated this monograph to the French ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), Napoleon's brother and the author of American Ornithology. Gould made solid contributions to science as well. He helped identify species in the collection of four-hundred fifty birds that Charles Darwin presented to the museum of the Zoological Society in 1837. His beautiful drawings assured his popularity among a wealthy clientele, while the reliable scientific information in his tomes made for a wider commercial success. Nissen, IVB 376; Zimmer p. 257.
Bury, Priscilla Susan
THE FAIRHAVEN COPY. First edition. Folio (628mm x 476mm). With an engraved title-page and 51 color-printed aquatint plates finished by hand. Bound in modern half red morocco. Top edge of the text-block gilt, fore- and lower edges untrimmed. A little soiling to the boards. Some light creases. Foxing to the preliminaries and a general light offsetting. A very good example. Hexandrian (hex-, six; -andrian, masculine) plants -- those having six stamens, per the classification of Linnaeus -- include amaryllis and lily families. Priscilla Susan Bury (née Falkner, 1799-1782) was "raised in the greenhouses of her family home" and was as gifted a botanist as she was a botanical illustrator. Robert Havell Jr., simultaneously working on the Birds of American of Audubon (one of the 79 subscribers to this work), "managed to translate the artist's fine watercolours into aquatints of even more striking beauty" (Tomasi in An Oak Spring Flora, 86). Henry Rogers Broughton (19001973), second baron, was the brother of the first Baron Fairhaven (Urban Huttleston Rogers Broughton), a title created for their father, Urban Hanlon Broughton, who died before it could be bestowed. Their mother was the heiress of Henry H. Rogers, the stupendously wealthy oil magnate who became a senior executive of Standard Oil. Armed with their grandfather's fortune, the Broughtons were able to buy and to maintain Anglesey Abbey in Cambridgeshire. The second Baron Fairhaven amassed one of the great collections of natural history books and art (donated to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge). The present volume was bought from the second part of his epochal sale (Sotheby's London, 29 November 2022, lot 287). Dunthorne 71; Great Flower Books, p. 85; Nissen, BBI 306; Pritzel 1404; Stafleu-Cowan 937; Tomasi, Oak Spring Flora 86.
"THE MOST IMPORTANT COLOUR PLATE BOOK ON BRITISH TOPOGRAPHY" (Tooley). First edition, special issue (plates printed on card). Eight volumes. London: T. Davison for Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown and William Daniell, 1814[-1825]. Quarto (351mm x 253mm). With 308 hand-colored aquatint plates with grey wash borders, by and after Daniell, on card and mounted on guards. Bound in contemporary diced half Russia (re-backed) over marbled boards. Extremities lightly rubbed. Lacking the engraved dedication and uncolored 'Kemaes Head' plate in vol. I, occasional spotting and staining. ALS (signed "W. Daniell," dated 9 July 1825) to an unknown subscriber pasted onto the front end-paper of vol. III (one page, 185mm x 114mm). Tooley suggests that as few as 25 of these special sets may have been issued. The ALS presents the final part of the publication and sending his thanks for the 'kind and constant support' he has received. Abbey, Scenery 16; Tooley 177.
Ptolemy, ed. and illust. Gerardus Mercator
Geographia: Cologne: Godfried von Kempen, 1584. Second edition (first 1576). Italia: Amsterdam: Jodocus Hondius, 1595. First edition. Folio (395mm x 267mm). Geographia: with 26 of 28 hand-colored engraved maps, of which all are double-page (one of the missing maps, Egypt, is single-page; the other missing map is of North Africa), and lacking the M4 and c4 blanks. Italia: 17 of 22 double-page hand-colored engraved maps; including the first state of Rumold Mercator's "Europa ad magnae Europae Gerardi Mercatoris P. imitationem Rumoldi Mercatoris." Bound in later (XVIIIc?) paste-paper boards backed in vellum. On the spine, "MERCA-/TOREM/~/ORVIS[sic]/TERRA-/RUM./A[NN]O/1584" in ink manuscript. Worn generally, with the front board detached. Ink notations to the front board. Blind-stamped paper label to the title-leaf. Tanned generally, with some foxing. Marginal worming with reinforced edges to the last 2-3 leaves. Superb contemporary color throughout. Gerardus Mercator (1512-1594) was called by Ortelius the "Ptolemy of our times," and the maps in the Ptolemy volume are among the only maps published by him during his lifetime. Van der Krogt 1:502; VD-16 P 5219. A FULL DESCRIPTION AND SUITE OF PHOTOS WILL BE PREPARED UPON REQUEST.
THE BADIA DI TORRECHIARA-PHILADELPHIA FREE LIBRARY COPY, WITH SUPERB CONTEMPORARY COLOR. Amsterdam: Blaeu, 1650. Latin edition. Vol. II, pt. II only of 6 voll. Folio (510mm x 325): with 15 hand-colored double-page engraved maps. Bound in contemporary Dutch vellum (apparently a remboîtage -- a complete recasing of a book), re-backed. Presented in a cloth pull-off case. Letterpress over-slip to the title-page. A short marginal repair to the title-lead. Map of Peru and Chili a little abraded. Ink-stamp ("PAX") of the Benedictine Abbey of Santa Maria della Neve in Torrechiara to the title-page. A list of maps "Americae," "Insulae Americanae," "Nova Belgica et Anglia Nova," "Barmudas," "Nova Virginiae," "Virginiae et Floridae," "Nova Hispania et Nova Galicia," "Novum Regnum Granatense et Popayan," "Venezuela, cum Novae Andalusiae," "Guiana sive Amazonum Regio," "Brasilia," "Paraguay, o Prov. De Rio de la Plata cum Tucuman et S.ta Cruz de la Sierra," "Magellanica," "Chili," and "Peru." Of particular interest is the map of "Nova Belgica et Anglia Nova." Burden 241 and 242; Koeman I, Bl 24C
Weinmann, Johann Wilhelm
First revised edition. Four volumes. Augsburg: Johann Elias Haid, 1787. Folio (395mm x 258mm). With 4 engraved title-pages heightened in red and gold, and 1,025 hand-colored engraved plates, of which 14 are double-page, after Ehret, Ridinger, Seutter and J.J. Haid. Bound in contemporary calf. On the spine, five raised bands. Rubbed and chipped at the extremities. One of the lettering-pieces to vol. IV perished. Foxed generally. Marginal worming to the first 50 plates of vol. IV. First revised edition. "Printed in color from the original mezzotint plates (finished by hand) from Weinmann's influential masterwork Phytanthoza iconographia (1737-1745) issued without the descriptive text. Rare and valuable record of the plants cultivated in the early 18th century, based on Weinmann's own collection. The high artistic standard of its plates, became an important source for copyists, and appeared in designs for Meissen porcelain. Many are "of particular interest on account of the colour printing, especially the plates of Aloes and Cactus depicted in pots of different designs, and the folding plates of gourds" (Dunthorne 327, first edition); Nissen 2126 (notes); Pritzel 10139; Stafleu/Cowan 17050." A FULL DESCRIPTION AND SUITE OF PHOTOS WILL BE PRODUCED UPON REQUEST.
8vo., (8 6/8 x 5 6/8 inches). Fine large engraved folding map of the Hydrological Basin of the Upper Mississippi by Emory after Nicollet (title-page top outer corner renewed). Modern half red calf gilt. "THE EARLIEST ACCURATE MAP OF THE EASTERN SEABOARD OF THE CENTRAL PLAINS" (Ehrenberg) First edition, House Issue. Nicollet, a French-born scientist and would-be astronomer, arrived in New Orleans in 1832 and soon became intimate with the wealthy Chouteau family, who were preeminent in controlling the fur trade of the Mississippi Valley, with operations extending northward into the Illinois country. They persuaded him to join them in expeditions they were sending into the St. Louis region. "Nicollet embarked on the first of these explorations in 1836, searching for the source of the Mississippi River. In this quest he came into contact with the Chippewa Indians and reported his findings on their language, customs, religious practices, relations with other tribes, and attitudes toward American settlers to U.S. Army officers stationed at Fort Snelling, at the juncture of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers, the site of present-day Minneapolis. Nicollet impressed his new American friends in the U.S. Army. As a result of their recommendations Secretary of War Joel Poinsett invited him to Washington, D.C., and gave him various assignments. One of these in 1838 was a commission to conduct a survey of the upper Missouri country, accompanied by Lieutenant John C. Frémont. In the following year he continued the survey by steamboat and also explored the sources of the Red River and the North Dakota country. When he returned to Washington, D.C., in 1840, he prepared some of the first accurate maps of the region northwest of the Mississippi River. In these projects he worked closely with the eminent Swiss émigré Ferdinand Hassler, chief of the U.S. Coast Survey.The significance of Nicollet's life in the United States was as an explorer and mapmaker. A scientist of note, he was one of the illustrious circle of talented, adventurous, and highly skilled men who gathered around Hassler. That group developed the first accurate scientific data about the still-unknown regions of the Mississippi Valley. In his brief career as a pioneer explorer he contributed much to westward expansion in the nineteenth century and to more accurate knowledge of the Native Americans in that area" (Gerald D. Nash for ADNB). Nicollet's celebrated "Map of the Hydrographic Basin of the Upper Mississippi River", reduced by Emory and first published separately in 1842, was "based on some 90,000 instrument readings and 326 distinctly determined astronomical points. With its overall regional concept of a 'hydrographic basin,' Nicollet's map and the accompanying report were years ahead of their time. Had he lived one more decade, Nicollet would undoubtedly have become the official government cartographer of the whole trans-Mississippi West" (Goetzmann, Exploration and Empire, 1993, p. 313). Buck 339. Graff 3022. Howes N152; Schwartz & Ehrenberg (Plate 165), pp. 265-68; Sabin 55257; Streeter III:1808; Wagner-Camp-Becker 98; Wheat, Transmississippi West II, p. 180. Catalogued by Kate Hunter.
Vancouver, George
First edition. Four volumes (three text plus atlas). London: G.G. & J. Robinson, & J. Edwards, 1798. Text: quarto (11 3/4" x 9", 302mm x 230mm): [8], xxix, [9], 432; [10], 504; [10], 505, [3]. With 17 engraved plates and 1 engraved chart. Atlas: folio (21 1/4" x 16 3/4", 540mm x 425mm). With 10 folding engraved charts and 6 engraved plates. Text: bound in contemporary calf (re-backed with the original back-strips laid down) with a triple gilt fillet border. On the spine, five raised bands. Author and title gilt to black sheep in the second panel, number gilt to black sheep in the fourth. Atlas: bound in contemporary half calf over marbled boards. On the spine, six raised bands. Spines darkened slightly, corners bumped with some repair; a bit of offsetting from plates, light foxing; maps with a few splits at folds, minor tears, a bit of offsetting, light foxing to views, front endpaper starting from foot, light bump at top right corner slightly affecting plates and maps (mostly in margins); very good or better. "First edition, including the atlas, of one of the great accounts of Pacific exploration, rivaling the works of Cook and La Perouse. Streeter writes that "This narrative is one of the most important accounts of the exploration of the Pacific Northwest and New Zealand, and valuable source information about Tahiti and the Hawaiian Islands in the last decade of the eighteenth century. Cowan considered the account to be superior to any of its kind and the chief authority on the areas explored during this period. Vancouver (1758-1798) was an extraordinarily capable explorer, having sailed with Cook on the second and third voyages (1772-4, 1776-80) and served under Rodney and Alan Gardner. It was Gardner who recommended him for a voyage in search for a northwest passage to the Great Lakes. The present narrative is the complete account of that voyage, accompanied by an atlas of maps and views of the areas explored. Vancouver died on May 10, 1798, his brother John completing the task of preparing and editing the narrative. Among the important features of the narrative are the engraved views in Volume II of the Mission of San Carlos and the Presidio of Monterey, probably the first published views of California. It is possible that the artist sailing with La Perouse, who visited Monterey in 1786, drew a sketch of the Mission, but no views of California scenery appear in the La Perouse atlas." Howes is of the opinion that "of all modern exploring voyages to the Pacific those of Cook, La Perouse and Vancouver were the most important," Hill holds out that "This voyage became one of the most important ever made in the interests of geographical knowledge," and Lada-Mocarski states emphatically that "this is one of the most important voyages for the history and the cartography of the northwest coast in general and of Alaska in particular." The engraved views were drawn by William Alexander from sketches made on the spot by expedition members. Cowan p.654-5; Forbes 298; Graff 4456; Hill, Pacific Voyages, pp.303-4; Hill (2nd Ed.) 1753; Howes V23; Lada-Mocarski 55; Sabin 98441; Streeter Sale 3497; Tweney 78; Verner, Stuart-Stubbs, no 41; Wagner N.W.C. p.209 et seq.; Zamorano Eighty 77." A FULL DESCRIPTION AND SUITE OF PHOTOS WILL BE PRODUCED UPON REQUEST.
London: Richard and John E. Taylor for the author, 1850. First edition. Large Folio (21 1/2" x 14 1/2", 548mm x 370mm). With 32 hand-colored lithographed plates by John Gould and Henry Constantine Richter, printed by Hullmandel and Walton. Bound in green half morocco with pebbled boards, gilt. On the spine, 6 raised bands. Title gilt to the second panel, author to the fourth. Marbled end papers. All edges of the text-block gilt. Extremities, hinges and bands worn. The morocco skinned in places. Mild, even tanning. Ink stamp of the Library of C. B. Cory, Boston, to the front free end-paper and to the title-page. Embossed stamp of the Field Columbian Museum Library to the title page. Born in Dorset, John Gould (1804-1881) was an artist, ornithologist and entrepreneur, who published many monographs on birds. Though a painter himself, his works were more often illustrated by his wife Elizabeth (1804-1841), and, particularly after her death, Henry Constantine Richter, Joseph Wolf and William Matthew Hart. The most prolific ornithological artist of the XIXc, Gould rivaled Audubon in ambition and quality. He is considered the father of bird study in Australia, and the Gould League is named after him. This monograph, Gould's fourth, on American gamebirds (his only work focusing on the Americas), was originally issued in three parts by subscription 1844, 1846 and 1850. He considerably enlarged the number of recorded species of the American partridge family. Gould was particularly impressed by the beautiful Callipepla californica, presented to the Zoological Society of London by Captain Beechey, in 1830. He dedicated this monograph to the French ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), Napoleon's brother and the author of American Ornithology. Gould made solid contributions to science as well. He helped identify species in the collection of four-hundred fifty birds that Charles Darwin presented to the museum of the Zoological Society in 1837. His beautiful drawings assured his popularity among a wealthy clientele, while the reliable scientific information in his tomes made for a wider commercial success. Nissen, IVB 376; Zimmer p. 257.
Humboldt, Alexander von
First edition. Two volumes (two text volumes bound in one, atlas). Paris: F. Schoell, 1811-1812. Text: quarto (13" x 10", 335mm x 250mm): 92, 904, errata leaf. Atlas: folio (22 1/2" x 16 1/2", 570mm x 410mm): [iv], 1 2-4; with 19 engraved plates, of which 10 are double page; several in sepia, bronze and brown aquatint. Text: bound in contemporary mottled calf. Atlas: bound in contemporary marbled boards, presented in a custom black clam-shell box. Both text and atlas conserved by Brockman in 2024 [full report available upon request]. Persistent damp-stain throughout the atlas, mitigated. Lacking the vol. II text title-leaf, with pp. 348-349 repeated in its place. The essential text of Mexico and the American west, with Humboldt's social, physical and cartographic analysis. From the collection of J. Kislak. Howes H 786; Graff 2009; Streeter, Textas 1042n; WCB 7a:3a:2. A FULL DESCRIPTION AND SUITE OF PHOTOGRAPHS WILL BE PRODUCED UPON REQUEST.
London: Printed by Richard and John E. Taylor for the author, 1850. First edition. Large folio (21 1/2" x 14 1/2", 545mm x 370mm) With 32 hand-colored lithographed plates by John Gould and Henry Constantine Richter, printed by Hullmandel and Walton. Bound in green half morocco over pebbled boards, gilt. On the spine, six raised bands with title gilt to morocco in second panel and author to the fourth. Elaborate decoration. Marbled endpapers. Gilt edgs to the text-block. Extremities and hinges worn. Some skinning to morocco. Bookplate Edward Francis Searles, 2072. Born in Dorset, John Gould (1804-1881) was an artist, ornithologist and entrepreneur, who published many monographs on birds. Though a painter himself, his works were more often illustrated by his wife Elizabeth (1804-1841), and, particularly after her death, Henry Constantine Richter, Joseph Wolf and William Matthew Hart. The most prolific ornithological artist of the XIXc, Gould rivaled Audubon in ambition and quality. He is considered the father of bird study in Australia, and the Gould League is named after him. This monograph, Gould's fourth, on American gamebirds (his only work focusing on the Americas), was originally issued in three parts by subscription 1844, 1846 and 1850. He considerably enlarged the number of recorded species of the American partridge family. Gould was particularly impressed by the beautiful Callipepla californica, presented to the Zoological Society of London by Captain Beechey, in 1830. He dedicated this monograph to the French ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), Napoleon's brother and the author of American Ornithology. Gould made solid contributions to science as well. He helped identify species in the collection of four-hundred fifty birds that Charles Darwin presented to the museum of the Zoological Society in 1837. His beautiful drawings assured his popularity among a wealthy clientele, while the reliable scientific information in his tomes made for a wider commercial success. Edward Francis Searles (1841-1920) was an interior and architectural designer, born in Methuen, Massachusetts. Nissen, IVB 376; Zimmer p. 257.
Tarleton, [Banastre], Lieutenant-Colonel
First edition. London: for T. Cadell, 1787. Quarto (11 ¾" x 9 1/8", 297mm x 233mm): with 5 folding engraved maps, of which 4 have hand-color in outline. Bound in contemporary blue-drab boards (re-backed) backed in grey paper with a paper label. All edges of the text-block untrimmed. Conserved by Brockman in 2024 [full report available]. Some staining to the boards, with wear at the extremities. The spine and paper label modern. Some tanning at the edges, with the odd passage of foxing. Split in the text-block at U-X and Nn-Pp. LACKING QUIRE Oo. Many quires unopened: K3.4, L, M-O, P3.4, Q-Ee1.2, Ff3.4-Ii, Ll3.4-Mm, Nn3.4, Pp-3B1.2, 3E3.4-3T1.2, 3U3.4. Sir Banastre Tarleton (1754-1833; Lt.-Col. at the time of publication, eventually General) was mostly associated with the British Legion in New York, but the present work principally describes his expedition under Lord Cornwallis to capture Charleston, South Carolina -- famously disastrous. The present example shows essentially no use, with its unopened quires and full margins. Church 1224; Clark Old South 317; Howes T37; Nebenzahl Battle Plans of the American Revolution 60, 83, 90, 92, 197 ("this well engraved map [of the siege of Yorktown in Virginia] conveys considerable useful information"); Sabin 94397. A FULL DESCRIPTION AND SUITE OF PHOTOGRAPHS WILL BE PRODUCED UPON REQUEST.
THE JOHN GOLDEN SET. First edition in French. Six volumes in two. Nuremberg: by the Author, 1764&-1773. Quarto (255mm x 198mm). With 4 (of 6) letterpress title-pages, 6 hand-colored engraved title-pages and 190 hand-colored engraved plates after J. C. Keller, J. C. Dietzsch et al. Bound in contemporary crushed morocco (re-backed). On the spine, five raised bands. Title and author ("Coquillages/ de/ Knorr") gilt to the second panel, number gilt to the third. Marbled end-papers. All edges of the text-block gilt. Rubbed generally, with patches of wear at the extremities. Foxing to the first letterpress title, with scattered mild tanning and offsetting. The greatest eighteenth-century work of conchology, Knorr s Delices (a German edition, Vergnügen der Augen und des Gemüths, began publication in 1757) gathers the specimens of the Wunderkammern of Nuremberg, Amsterdam and beyond. The descriptions there was a contemporaneous Latin edition, and a later Dutch edition are unusually descriptive and readable, and not, as so often, truncated and terse. Still, nothing lacks in precision; vol. VI includes a concordance to Rumpf, who came to supplant Linnæus as the authority on mollusks. Knorr died in 1761, and so the introduction to each part but the first is signed by his heirs. Perhaps this is the reason that the title-page is sometimes found bearing the year 1760 and sometimes 1764; his death may well have delayed publication of the first volume. Nissen, ZBI 2236. A FULL DESCRIPTION AND SUITE OF PHOTOGRAPHS WILL BE PRODUCED UPON REQUEST.
Mount, William, and Thomas Page
London: J. Mount, T. Page, W. Mount, 1780. Folio (478 x 305 mm). 21 engraved full-sheet maps, 4 engraved in-text maps; tissue repair to lower margin of title, browning, foxing, and offsetting, occasional staining, some short splits to folds, one or two instances of restoration to splits. Contemporary calf, early manuscript notes on free endpapers listing names of various contemporary sea captains and their ships; rebacked and recornered, ring-shaped scorch mark to upper board; endpapers torn and restored. Maps include: 1. "A New and Correct Chart of the North Part of America." (double-page) 2. "A New Generall Chart for the West Indies" (double-page) 3. "A New and Accurate Chart of the Vast Atlantic or Western Ocean" (double-page, folding) 4. "A Chart of the Sea Coast of New Found Land." (double-page) 5. "The Harbour of Casco Bay." (double-page) 6. "A New and Correct chart of the Coast of New-Found-Land" (double-page, folding) 7. "Island of St Peter s" (in-text) 8. "A Chart of the South-East Coast of Newfoundland" (double-page, folding) 9. "A Map of the Coast of New England." (double-page, folding) 10. "A Draught of New York." (double-page) 11. "Virginia, Maryland, Pennsilvania [sic], East & West New Jersey" (double-page, folding) 12. "Barbados" (in-text) 13. "A Draught of Virginia" (double-page) 14. "Antegua [sic]" (in-text) 15. "A New Mapp of the Island of St. Christophers [sic]" (double-page) 16. "A Draught of South Carolina and Georgia." (double-page, folding) 17. "A Correct Chart of the Caribbee [sic] islands" (double-page) 18. "A Correct Chart of Hispaniola" (double-page, folding) 19. "A Draught of the West End of the Island of Porto [sic] Rico" (double-page, folding) 20. "A New & Correct Chart of Cuba" (double-page, folding) 21. "A New and Correct Draught of the Bay of Matanzas" (in-text) 22. "Bermuda" (in-text) 23. "A New & Correct Chart of the island of Jamaica" (double-page, folding) 24. "A Chart of the Coast of Guayana [sic]" (double-page, folding) 25. "A New and Correct Chart of the Trading Part of the West Indies" (double-page, folding) "The first significant collection of charts exclusively of the American coasts to be published in England" (Cumming 9). Influenced by the Dutch pilot books of Pieter Goos (see lot 21), the English Pilot series was started by John Seller in 1671. "For British trading in North America and for the colonists there, the publication of The English Pilot: The Fourth Book must have been a godsend. For the first time an English sea atlas presented charts of the whole eastern seacoast of North America. To modern eyes the charts are crude and sparse of detail; but to the navigator of American waters in that period, it was his Bible. Whatever its shortcomings, there was really no substitute, no real competitor, for over sixty years" (Cumming 39). Perhaps due to its usefulness, 37 editions were published from 1689 to 1794, as were three pirated editions. Over the course of these editions, the charts went through various changes, beginning with the addition to the 18 charts in the first edition to an eventual 26 in the final edition. Verner specifies that 64 different chart titles have been recorded from the editions he examined. Given its practical nature and use, copies of any edition rare. Full description available on request.
London: Printed by Richard and John E. Taylor for the author, 1850. First edition. Large folio (21 3/4" x 14 1/2", 550mm x 370mm) With 32 hand-colored lithographed plates by John Gould and Henry Constantine Richter, printed by Hullmandel and Walton. Bound in brown half morocco over ribbed boards, gilt. On the spine, five raised bands with title gilt to morocco in second panel. Elaborate decoration in others. Gilt edges to the text-block. Extremities and hinges worn. Head and tail worn. Limited foxing. Ownership ink stamp of the Bolton Public Library Reference Library, Massachusetts, to the verso of the title page. Born in Dorset, John Gould (18041881) was an artist, ornithologist and entrepreneur, who published many monographs on birds. Though a painter himself, his works were more often illustrated by his wife Elizabeth (18041841), and, particularly after her death, Henry Constantine Richter, Joseph Wolf and William Matthew Hart. The most prolific ornithological artist of the XIXc, Gould rivaled Audubon in ambition and quality. He is considered the father of bird study in Australia, and the Gould League is named after him. This monograph, Gould's fourth, on American gamebirds (his only work focusing on the Americas), was originally issued in three parts by subscription 1844, 1846 and 1850. He considerably enlarged the number of recorded species of the American partridge family. Gould was particularly impressed by the beautiful Callipepla californica, presented to the Zoological Society of London by Captain Beechey, in 1830. He dedicated this monograph to the French ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), Napoleon's brother and the author of American Ornithology. Gould made solid contributions to science as well. He helped identify species in the collection of four-hundred fifty birds that Charles Darwin presented to the museum of the Zoological Society in 1837. His beautiful drawings assured his popularity among a wealthy clientele, while the reliable scientific information in his tomes made for a wider commercial success. Nissen, IVB 376; Zimmer p. 257.
Jefferys, Thomas
London: for R. Sayer and J. Bennett, 1778. Folio (542 x 390 mm). Additional engraved double-page title, letterpress title-page, 25 charts on guards (2 folding, 21 double-page, and 2 full-page); some guards renewed, inner blank margin of title-page renewed, folding maps lightly worn in folds, one with a small closed tear at a fold and a repaired tear in the fore-margin, occasional stray smudges and browning, very light offsetting. In full speckled calf, green morocco label to upper board lettered in gilt; skillfully rebacked (with parts of the original spine laid down) and recornered, some rubbing, browning to endpapers. An extremely rare early edition of Jefferys' masterful charts of the Caribbean. Various issues of this work were printed by Sayer and Bennett and Laurie and Whittle into the nineteenth-century, and Sabin only cites editions printed in 1788 or later. Indeed, early editions are very uncommon: only two copies of the 1778 edition have appeared at auction in the last 50 years. Jefferys' first work on the Caribbean, The West-India Atlas, was published in 1775 as a companion to his American Atlas (see preceding lot). Following its publication, Sayer and Bennett produced the present work, which contains only the charts from the Atlas. REFERENCE: cf. Sabin 35956 Full description upon request.
London: Printed by Richard and John E. Taylor, 1850. First edition. Large Folio (21 3/4 x 14 3/4 , 550mm x 370mm). With 32 hand-colored lithographed plates by John Gould and Henry Constantine Richter, printed by Hullmandel and Walton. Bound in green half morocco with pebbled boards, gilt. On the spine, 6 raised bands. Title and author gilt to the second panel. Marbled end papers. Extremities, hinges and bands worn. Head and tail of spine starting. Minor skinning to morocco. Foxing throughout. Tissue guards. Armorial bookplate on the front pastedown of Thomas Curtis, acer et indomitus. Born in Dorset, John Gould (1804 1881) was an artist, ornithologist and entrepreneur, who published many monographs on birds. Though a painter himself, his works were more often illustrated by his wife Elizabeth (1804 1841), and, particularly after her death, Henry Constantine Richter, Joseph Wolf and William Matthew Hart. The most prolific ornithological artist of the XIXc, Gould rivaled Audubon in ambition and quality. He is considered the father of bird study in Australia, and the Gould League is named after him. This monograph, Gould s fourth, on American gamebirds (his only work focusing on the Americas), was originally issued in three parts by subscription 1844, 1846 and 1850. He considerably enlarged the number of recorded species of the American partridge family. Gould was particularly impressed by the beautiful Callipepla californica, presented to the Zoological Society of London by Captain Beechey, in 1830. He dedicated this monograph to the French ornithologist Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), Napoleon s brother and the author of American Ornithology. Gould made solid contributions to science as well. He helped identify species in the collection of four-hundred fifty birds that Charles Darwin presented to the museum of the Zoological Society in 1837. His beautiful drawings assured his popularity among a wealthy clientele, while the reliable scientific information in his tomes made for a wider commercial success. Nissen, IVB 376; Zimmer p. 257.
