Memoirs Count Grammont Edited Notes by Hamilton Anthony Sir Walter Scott (1 results)

Hardcover. First edition thus. London: John C. Nimmo, [printed by Ballantyne, Hanson, and Co., Edinburgh and London], 1889. 4to [28.4 cm]. xxxvii, [1], 396 pages, including half title. Complete with frontispiece portrait and 11 plates. The other etchings alluded to in the title are vignettes appearing as chapter headpieces and tailpieces. Contemporary half dark blue morocco by Bumpus of Oxford Street (London), with raised bands and gilt tooling on spine, single gilt rules on covers, and top edge gilt. Penciled ownership inscription of North Carolina collector, Forster A. Sondley, on the front flyleaf. Tasteful bookplate of Sondley Reference Library and gilt manuscript call number on front pastedown. Ink stamp on front free endpaper, verso of title, and in margin of one other page. Embossed stamp on title page and on each of the plates, placed on the border of the printed area, not affecting the subject matter. Else very good plus. Binding shows some minor wear, but hinges are solid, inside and out. Occasional and light traces of marginal soiling. Two plates have a small, faint spot of marginal damping, in no way affecting images. Still an attractive copy overall. FIRST ENGLISH EDITION WITH THESE ILLUSTRATIONS, reproducing those of the Parisian edition of 1888. Limited edition; this is no. 565 of 780 copies. A handsomely printed edition of this classic narrative of the service of a French nobleman, Philibert, Comte de Grammont (1621-1707), under two kings: Louis XIV of France and Charles II of England. The work, written by the count's brother-in-law, Antoine Hamilton (1646-1720), was first published in 1713. "A masterpiece of style and of witty portraiture. The most entertaining of contemporary memoirs, and in no other book is there a description so vivid, truthful, and graceful of the licentious court of Charles II." --Enc. Britannica, 11th ed.