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SessaBks

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Dandyism displayed

Dandyism displayed, or, the follies of the Ton; humbly dedicated (without permission) to a lord of the Willow-Boys; to the noble Sham-Peter & his white charger, prince of the dandy blood royal; and to that renowned son of Mars and Venus, the great captain . To which is added, What is a dandy?

Bisset, J. Uncommon chapbook: a sarcastic look at the manners and customs of dandies, addressed directly to a variety of subcategories including actors, booksellers, undertakers, staymakers, pastry cooks, and "salesmen and pawnbrokers of the Jewish persuasion" ? as well as to dandy concubines and "celebrated ladies of the Ton" including the Opera House Sisters, Mother Bang, and the Misses G ? y. This is the stated second edition, with => a frontispiece offering four sketches by George Cruikshank: a woman and man each shown in morning and evening dress. In this copy, the man in each pair has been brightly hand-colored with a fair amount of delicacy, leaving the woman uncolored. The work is rarely encountered in any form, with a search of WorldCat finding => no reported U.S. institutional holdings and vanishingly few overseas. Provenance: From the chapbook collection of Albert A. Howard, small booklabel ("AHA") at rear. 8vo (16.8 cm, 6.61"). Frontis., [2], [7]?28 pp. Cohn, George Cruikshank: A catalogue raisonn?, 221. Later speckled paper wrappers, rubbed and chipped, splitting at joints with covers essentially separated. Age-toned; offsetting from frontispiece to title-page. => Scarce, and worthy of recasing.
  • $450
Biblia sacra veteris et novi testamenti

Biblia sacra veteris et novi testamenti, iuxta vulgatam editionem maiori qu?m antehac unquam doctorum studio, ad veritatem Hebraicam & probatiss, exemplarium fidem emendata.

Bible. Latin. 1574. Vulgate. Pierre Saint-Andr? gave this reissue of Fran?ois Estienne's 1567 edition a new title-page; the separate title-page of the New Testament bears both the original imprint, "Ex Officina Francisci Stephanj. M.D. LXVII," and the => Stephanus woodcut device. F. Estienne II, son of Robert I, seems to have been left wealthy by his famous father; he printed a small number of items from 1562 onward, apparently as the mood struck him, with one gap of more than ten years. The date of his last imprint was 1582, and he left Geneva sometime thereafter. The text of the present production, which makes use of Robert Estienne's verse divisions, is printed in double columns with decorative headpieces and capitals and is => illustrated with 22 in-text vignettes (although the folding map is not present here), including Noah's ark and the tabernacle with its furnishings. Binding: Contemporary calf, covers framed and panelled in gilt-stamped beaded rolls surrounding a central gilt-tooled diamond-shaped medallion; corners with gilt fleurons, spine with gilt-stamped beaded bands and compartment decorations. All edges gilt, and remants/evidence of clasps present. Provenance: One leaf with early inked inscription reading "ex dono Joseph Rowens"; later bookplates of the James Buckham Memorial and Charles Holbrook libraries at the Pacific School of Religion (Berkeley, CA). Evidence of Readership: Title-page with traces of mostly effaced early inked inscription; blank leaf between Old and New Testaments with one small early inked word, lined through; occasional early marks of emphasis and underlining in red, one early marginal note. 8vo (16.7 cm, 6.57"). [8], 435, [1], [1]?131 (i.e., 113), [27] ff.; illus. (fold. map lacking). Darlow & Moule 6160. N.T.: Adams B1075; Renouard (2nd ed.), Annales de l'imprimerie des Estienne, p. 159. Bound as above, with most gilt significantly rubbed and dimmed; rubbed and scuffed overall but solid. Endpapers refurbished some time ago; front pastedown and free endpaper with PSR bookplates affixed as above, these bearing small rubber-stamps affirming the volume's proper deaccession. First few leaves crumpled, final leaf rumpled and partially adhered to rear free endpaper; one leaf with small hole affecting a few letters; some upper edges trimmed closely, touching headers and leaf numbers; a handful of corners torn away not touching text. Old waterstaining affecting the text block?s final third, very light to begin with, darkens significantly across the last portion with the last few leaves and rear endpapers showing onetime action of mold long since stabilized; otherwise only the light soil as of ordinary use is occasionally apparent, with a few scattered small ink stains. A volume that obviously has seen much service and is priced accordingly, while yet => a sturdy, usable, and interesting copy of a noteworthy Bible.
  • $1,000
  • $1,000
Paraguay

Paraguay, Brazil, and the Plate. Letters written in 1852?1853.

Mansfield, Charles Blachford, & Charles Kingsley. Posthumously published first edition, including a sketch of the author's life by Kingsley along with a map, portrait, and illustrations. According to the DNB, Mansfield was one of the earliest Englishmen to visit the capital of Paraguay, and "certainly the first to go there merely to take notes"; he has a number of thoughts regarding the future of South America, while the DNB highlights the "bright and careful descriptions of Paraguayan society, the scenery, plant and bird life" contained in these letters, which include similar entries for the other stages of Mansfield's travels. Binding: Contemporary dark blue calf, covers framed in single gilt fillet, spine with gilt-beaded raised bands and gilt-stamped floral compartment decorations. Board edges and turn-ins with gilt rolls. All edges gilt; endpapers of striking blue and gilt marbled paper. 12mo (18.6 cm, 7.32"). Frontis., xxi, [1], 504 pp.; 1 fold. map, illus. Palau 149416. On Mansfield, see: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online). Bound as above, spine slightly dimmed, extremities rubbed. Ownership marking (?) at foot of half-title and pencilled annotation on title-page both now almost completely effaced. Pages faintly age-toned with leaves prior to text (only) showing a few instances of foxing; otherwise, a very clean and fresh copy and one with => the folding map in excellent condition.
  • $650