Poster for the Agatha Christie Centenary celebration
Poster. Agatha Christie's name and her centenary dates (1890-1990) border a clever central motif of question marks circling a single point. Heavily autographed by various actors and contributors to Christie productions, among them Maggie Smith, Lauren Bacall, Pauline Moran, Mia Farrow, David Suchet, Peter Ustinov, and Edward Gorey. Gorey's signature is an odd addition among mainly players in the film and television industry, and especially so because no evidence exists (that we know about) of Gorey ever leaving the country. A fascinating bit of Gorey ephemera, and one close to his heart; Gorey was a devotee of Christie, and gravely mourned her passing. Mild creasing at point along perimeter, else near fine. (Measures 30 by 20 in.).- $1,093
- $1,093
Manual Alphabet Card
Bifold 24mo. Illustrated with both single and double hand alphabets, as well as significant typographic ornaments. The card advocates for the peddler, announcing on their behalf that they are deaf and dumb, and that in lieu of employment they must earn a living by offering cards like the present one for ten cents. It concludes with a Suggestion that sign language be more widely taught in public schools, albeit in this instance less as a matter of disability inclusion than one of convenience "when one wishes to talk in silence instead of in whispers." A fascinating bit of emphemera of early, on-the-ground disability advocacy. Mild soiling, else near fine.- $173
- $173
Art for Nigerian Children. With Emphasis on the Creative Use of Local Materials
Leonard, Mary and Adeyemi Adenuga Oblong octavo. 143, (2)pp. A delightfully illustrated guidebook for instructors teaching art in Nigerian schools. Reproduced photographs and line drawings provide visual aids as the reader learns about various techniques incorporate in the classroom, and, interestingly, why it is important to include them. The book, as the title states, emphasizes the use of local materials and the incorporation of Nigerian aesthetics and culture into the curriculum. The book appears only three years after Nigeria gained its independence from Great Britain, and this emphasis on local and national pride indicates the continuance of the pro-independence wave. Bound in quarter orange cloth with buckram-covered boards. Title stamped in black to upper cover. Scant exterior rubbing, printing error has caused a crease to page 81/82, else near fine.- $748
- $748
Poster for Seventh Season of Cape and Islands Chamber Music Festival
Broadside. One of 100 copies signed by Gorey. Advertisement for the 1986 Cape and Islands Chamber Music Festival. Two figures sit on a rooftop, their backs to a weathervane. The figures play the flute and the violin, respectively, while the weathervane angel plays a trumpet. Some creasing around edges and soiling to both sides, else good. Signed by the Colorado String Quartet: violinist Julie Rosenfeld, cellist Sharon Prater, violinist Deborah Redding, and violist Francesca Martin. (Measures 25 1/2 by 17 in.; 648 x 432 mm).- $431
- $431
Group of six vintage Iran travel posters
Six posters, each depicting a unique and iconic scene from Iran, including the Shah Mosque, the Zurkhaneh sports club, and the Shrine of Shah Nematollah Vali. Some edgewear to each, minor creasing to few. (Each measures 39 by 26 1/2 in.; 991x673mm).- $288
- $288
Bromer Booksellers Catalog 113: Edward Gorey
Octavo. 40pp. Illustrated throughout in color and black and white. The catalog represents a generous cross-section of the illustrator's work, including original art, nearly all of the primary works, other works illustrated by Gorey, as well as toys, posters and ephemera. This is the most elaborate dealer catalog of Gorey's works to be offered to date.- $12
- $12
Timing Devices: Poems
Mariani, Paul Tall octavo. 61, (4)pp., + foldout at rear. One of 175 copies, signed by Mariani and Moser at the colophon and inscribed by Moser to Vance Studley at the title page. The rear foldout presents in series Moser's five wood engravings, which also punctuate Mariani's collection of poems. Printed in red and black. Bound by Gray Parrot in quarter vellum with gilt finishes and mauve papers over boards. Marbled endpapers. Mild rubs to corners, else near fine.- $748
- $748
Paul Preston’s Book of Gymnastics: or Sports for Youth
(Picton, Thomas) Square 32mo. 168pp. Illustrations throughout - some of a stick figure in action, others more detailed and artful - provide visual aid to the various physical challenges the book advocates. Among these are such fabled activities as "Horse Exercise," "Leaping with the Pole," and "Giant Stride." A Preface and "Recapitulation" provide the reader - whether they be the sporting youth or the youth's parent or guardian - with a narrative of excersises in an array of historical and cultural contexts. Bound in brown cloth over boards with title stamped in gilt to upper cover. Rubs to corners and tender splitting along rear joint, trace foxing, slight soiling to exeterior. A good copy.- $115
- $115
Little Harry, and the Apples
64mo. 18pp. Engravings as title device and final tail-piece. Prefaced by an alphabet is the story of Little Harry, whose uprightness bears fruit among his friends. Lacking wrappers, evidence of light dampstaining at edges, half-inch tear at tail of spine, else a good copy. Ownership markings on title page.- $115
- $115
Paradise
Dante One of forty-two copies. Five sheets, each one wrapped around a dowel that when twisted reveals the text printed on the underside. Thus the reader can read the first words of Dante's quotation - "Paradise: nature, stardust, music & romance" - and then flip each dowel in turn to show the remainder: ".for not only in my eyes is paradise." Dowels and sheets set into wood frame, which is housed between boards covered in paper repeatedly printed with "Paradise." Trace rubs to corners, else fine. (Measures 2 3/4 by 2 in.; 70x51 mm).- $144
- $144
The Wagon-Boy; or Trust in Providence
64mo. 16pp. Five engravings throughout, four of them full page, illustrate scenes of wilderness adventure. The accompanying tale provides both suspenseful and moralistic overtures to keep the young reader hooked. Bound in gray wrappers, which identify the book as "Second Series. - No. 9" offered by the publisher, advertising for whom appears on the rear panel. Trace staining, else a fine copy. Inscription of previous owner in pencil to title page.- $201
- $201
Orphan Willie and Other Stories
24mo. 64pp. Frontispiece wood engraving shows a garden scene. What follows are two moralistic children's tales: that of Orphan Willie, a wandering minstrel, and that of a young girl's education in the nature and value of truth. This copy bound in blue printed paper over boards with a cloth spine; the rear cover advertises Shepley's other fine wares, both scholastic and religious. Exterior somewhat soiled with edges rubbed, some offsetting to interior pages, including evidence of a previous owner's hand. A near fine copy.- $403
- $403
Ars est longa
One of forty copies. Six sheets wrapped around six dowels, so that the viewer can read the Latin aphorism, "Ars est longa / vita est brevis," first, then can twist each dowel to see the English translation and publication information. An innovative structure secured by a wood and card frame held between paper-covered boards. Fine. (Measures 2 3/4 by 2 in.; 70x51 mm).- $144
- $144
Bibliography of REM Miniatures: First Supplement
Massmann, Robert E. One of 250 copies. Illustrated throughout, with many small items of ephemera including a tiny Christmas card, a war ration book with four ration stamps in it, bookplates, and a sample of paper from Dard Hunter's mill. Bound in brown leatherette with illustration on paper to upper cover, housed in orange slipcase. (2 by 1 7/8; 51x48mm).
Crak!
A poster published to promote Lichtenstein's exhibition at the Leo Castelli Gallery in 1963, featuring a French revolutionary firing a gun and inciting her compatriots to action, in Lichtenstein's signature comic-book style with Ben-Day dots. Significant wear to margins, with some punctures to right side glancingly affecting the image, and some creases to image. (Measures 19 1/4 by 27 5/8 in.; 490x700mm).
California on United States Postage Stamps
Weber, Francis J. 65pp. One of 1,500 copies. With the 1969 U.S. postage stamp honoring California's Bicentennial tipped-in as a frontispiece. Illustrated with numerous black & white reproductions of postage stamps. Extremely fine in gilt-stamped blue leather. A.e.g. (3 5/16 by 2 1/4; 84x58mm).
I Want You Controlled
Poster. An ominous image, showing Uncle Sam opening an enormous pill, the contents of whichâ"needles and yet more pillsâ"bury a crowd. Those unburied drag the inert bodies of the victims out of the rubble. A riff on the "controlled substance" designation, the poster suggests that instead of the substances themselves, it is the users who are controlled, trapped within a system with enough resources to serve them but not enough resources to free them, thus keeping addicted citizens on a short leash to a greedy government. The illustrator, Mike Brady, frequently leant his artwork to posters for rock concerts taking place in Michigan, particularly at Michigan colleges. Here he sets his hand to the task for the People's Hard Drugs Committee, likely affilitated with the University of Michigan. Trace creasing toward edges, else near fine. A striking image, still relevant to today's opiod crisis and all its implications. Framed. (22 by 17 in.).
The Beehive
16mo. 16pp. Title-page illustration, frontispiece, and two smaller text figures from wood engravings. Framed as a conversation between young George and his father, the text presents the life of bees as an extended metaphor for virtuous behavior. Despite the ubiquity of most American Tract Society publications, the present title appears quire rare, as it is held in just two institutional collections. Occasional light internal foxing, overall near fine in publisher's printed wrappers, which show some chips and short tears along extemities.
Handwritten notes on sculptures
(Gill, Eric) Three octavo sheets, each one with Gill's notations in graphite and colored pencil. Two sheets list thirty-seven of Gill's sculptures, including his Westminster Stations. Next to the sculptures' names are an array of further identifying notes - personal owner (Rupert Brooke, et al.), location (Glasgow, USA), and insitutions (Tate Gallery), mainly - as well as numbers corresponding to the endnotes provided on the third sheet. This last sheet appears to be a series of tasks that Gill set out for himself in order to fill administrative gaps; a number of the comments mention photographs to be taken or correspondence to associates. Prominent stain from now-removed staples at center-head of the pages, else a near fine glimpse at Gill's approach to the business of being an artist. A Study of Dinosaurs on the Comparative Method, or Comparative Dinosaurs for Students, Amateurs, Fanciers and Breeders
Mudwinkle, H. J. xvi, (20)pp., variously paginated. One of 175 numbered copies. Printed in Andoversford, Gloucestershire by the Whittington Press. Concerning dinosaurs, beetles, railway stations, and cathedrals, complete with a Gracious Foreword by (a nameless royal). Fine in full blue cloth, with the title-page reproduced in gilt on the front, and marbled endpapers. Top edge blue. Housed in a matching slipcase. (Bradbury p. 142). (2 1/2 by 1 7/8; 64x48mm).