Arader Galleries - Aradernyc

About this Item: Amsterdam, 1594. ONE OF THE FIRST MAPS TO SHOW THE DOUBLE HEMISPHERICAL FORM AFTER RUMOLD MERCATOR'S WORLD MAP OF 1587 AND THE FIRST MAP TO USE DECORATIVE PICTORIAL BORDERS Engraving: 17" x 23" References: Rodney W. Shirley, The Mapping of the World (London, 1983), n. 187. At the time of its publication, Plancius's large-scale, overwhelmingly detailed and decorative map of the world represented innovations in mapmaking on several levels. A minister of the Reformed Church in Holland, Plancius became an expert on navigation and on Dutch explorations to the Indies. He was one of the first to appreciate the significance of earlier Portuguese charts, and in 1602 was appointed official cartographer to the Dutch East India Company. As such, he had access to privileged information regarding the latest geographical discoveries, information not available to many of his competitors. This world map was first issued separately in 1594 or shortly thereafter, engraved by Jan van Doetecum, a craftsman of great skill whose signature appears in the lower left-hand corner and who was associated with a number of Plancius's maps. The two main terrestrial hemispheres are based on those in Plancius's earlier world map of 1590, updated by geographical details and with the addition of two celestial spheres. Korea is drawn as a peninsula for the first time ever on a map, and Japan is shown with an improved, if still not entirely correct, outline. New Guinea, which had previously been represented as a separate island, is now joined to the southern continent named "Magallanica". The elaborate pictorial borders were inspired by drawings in the works of Theodore de Bry, published a few years earlier, and were another of Plancius's innovations that established a pattern of cartographical decoration that lasted for over a century. Symbolical female figures, landscape vignettes, and highly animated illustrations of animals indigenous to each area represent the regions of the world. Included are elephants and camels, a giraffe, a unicorn, an ostrich, the footless bird of paradise, parrots, snakes, monkeys, a rhinoceros, a crocodile, and a giant armadillo. Plancius's map had a widespread influence on other mapmakers and is rarely available to collectors. Book. Seller Inventory # 000449

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 1.

About this Item: Ca 1838-1840., 1840. HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. CARMICHAEL, F. - WOOD, Carlos C. (1792-1856). An Important Album of Sketches in Hawaii. Ca 1838-1840. Oblong folio (9 2/8 x 11 6/8 inches). 5 comic sketches by F. Carmichael; 12 exceptionally fine pen and ink drawings of views and portraits in Pitcairn Island and Hawaii, including one which stretches over 2 pages, and one in South America all by the same unknown artist; 6 sketches by Carlos C. Wood, and one watercolour drawing by an unknown artist, several leaves watermarked 'J. Whatman / Turkey Mill / 1837' (some leaves and gatherings loose). Contemporary quarter red roan, ticket of Ackermann's Repository (covers detached). Provenance: "Jane Ross, H.M.S. President, Valparaiso May 7th 1838", inscription on front pastedown. AN EXCEPTIONALLY IMPORTANT ALBUM OF SKETCHES IN HAWAII, THE MARQUESAS ISLANDS and PITCAIRN ISLAND, INCLUDING THE SECOND KNOWN, AND FIRST DETAILED PANORAMA OF HONOLULU, THE EARLIEST KNOWN VIEW OF KEALAKEKUA BAY TAKEN FROM KA'AWALOA - 'View of the Town Harbour of Honolulu, Woahou, Sandwich Islands', depicting from left to right the prominent 'foreign' buildings including Pearce and Brewer's trading house with American flag, the British Consulate, Seamen's Bethel Church, Robinson's shipyard, Honolulu Fort, Oahu Charity School, 2 sketches on facing pages, 170 x 540mm. - 'View of Karakakoa Bay, Hawaii, where Cook was killed', showing the thatched houses of Chiefess Kapiolani, and the coconut tree stump upon which Captain Bruce of the Imogene affixed a copper plaque in memory of Cook on 17 October 1837, 130 x 260mm. - 'View of the Volcano of Kiruea [i.e. Kilauea], Island of Hawaii', 150 x 210mm. - 'New Burial Ground under Banyan tree, school house and flagstaff, Pitcairn's Island, 1837', 160 x 250mm. - 'Pitcairn's Island, 1837', being a general view from offshore, 140 x 280mm. - 'The Tattauing on the leg of Tahitianain [sic] wife to the King of Santa Christina Marquesas', 170 x 230mm. - 'Head of a Marquesian of Resolution Bay', 230 x 170mm. - 'Head of a Marquesian Boy of Resolution Bay', 230 x 170mm.; all the above by the same hand, in black ink, captioned below in brown ink, the last three with blue and yellow wash - View of a ruined church probably in Latin-America, by the same hand as the above, black ink Preceeded by 5 comic sketches of Peruvians, signed or initialled 'F. Carmichael' or 'FC', pencil and watercolour, some captioned below in brown ink and dated at Callao, 1838 and 1839 Followed by 6 sketches of military and naval subject matter in Valparaiso and elsewhere, Chile, signed or initialled by Lt. Col. C.C. Wood, pencil, charcoal, and ink. THE SECOND EARLIEST PANORAMIC DRAWING OF HONOLULU - a new discovery in an album of Hawaiian views. The first known panorama is in the Bishop Museum - an ink and wash view dated 1834. Of smaller scale and from further out at sea, it gives only a general impression of the shore and lacks the building-by-building detail of the present image (see Forbes, Encounters with Paradise, plate 48). Two similar panoramas were printed or executed in 1840, and one appears in Edward Belcher's 1843 narrative of the voyage of HMS Sulphur in 1836-42. It was also at this time that the Lahainaluna Seminary Press began to publish engravings, including in 1838 a depiction of Honolulu from inland, after a drawing done by Edward Bailey at the foot of Punchbowl Hill (Forbes, Engraved at Lahainaluna, plate 27). While the Pacific sketches are unsigned, there is good reason to think the artist was on board HMS Imogene.The Imogene visited Honolulu, the Marquesas Islands, Pitcairn, Valparaiso and Callao between October 1837 and June 1838. In October 1837, Captain Bruce and the crew of the Imogene were at Kealakekua Bay, where they fastened a memorial plaque to the stump of a coconut tree near the site of Cook's death. The view of the Bay in the present album - the earliest known drawing of the Bay from the Ka'awaloa side - clearly shows the stump in question. The album bears the. Seller Inventory # 72lib1394

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 2.

About this Item: [Paris: Dépôt de la Marine], [1776-1793-1822]., 1822. Folio (26 6/8 x 20 2/8 inches). Letterpress title-page and table of contents. Fine double-page engraved map of the world after the discoveries of La Perouse, and 33 further maps. Contemporary French red morocco gilt (a bit scuffed at the extremities). Provenance: Musée de la Citadelle Vauban, their sale 16th July 2010, lot 70. The fine maps, all clear dark impressions include "Carte générale de l'Océan atlantique ou occidental. Publié par ordre du Ministre pour le service des vaisseaux français en 1786", 8th edition, "Côtes d'Espagne : Guipuzcoa, Biscaye et Pays des quatre villes d'après les plans levés en 1788 par Don Vicente Tofino" 1793, "Port du Passage" 1793, "Baie, port et ville de Saint Sébastien" 1793, "Anse et barre de Bilbao" 1793, "Port de Santona" 1793, "Port de Santander" 1793, "Côtes d'Espagne : Asturies et partie de Galice d après les plans levés en 1788" 1793, "Anse de Gijon" 1793, "Port de Vivero, Ribadero et Cedeira" 1793, "Havre de Barquero et Estaca de Vares" 1793, "Côtes d'Espagne : partie de la galice depuis le cap Ortegal jusqu'au Cap Silleiro" 1793, "Plan des Havres de Ferrol, Betanze et la Corogne" 1792, "Port de Ferrol" 1793, "Port de Camarinas" 1793, "Anse et Havre de Corcubion" 1793, "Plan du Havre de Pontevedra" 1793, "Havre de Vigo" 1793, "Carte réduite de la Côte de Portugal. dressée d'aprés les opérations trigonométriques de M. Siera.En 1811. Dépôt général de la Marine en 1816", "Plan de la Bare de Lisbone" 1816, "Carte de la Côte méridionale de Portugal et d'Espagne. Tofino. Siera" 1804, "Plan du mouillage de Lagos. Sr Le Roy" 1737, "Plan hydrographique de la Baie de Cadiz levé en 1807. Dépôt général de la Marine" 1811, "Carte réduite des îles Açores. M. de Fleurie, 1769 et par Don Vicente Tofino, 1788. Dépôt général des Cartes et Plans" 1791, "Plans de la rade d'Angra et de Fayal" 1788 and 1791, "Carte des îles Canaries et d'une partie des côtes occidentales d'Afrique. Chevalier de Borda, 1780", "Carte particulière des îles Canaries et des Côtes voisines d'Afrique. Chevalier de Borda, 1776", "Carte réduite Guillaume de L'ISLE (1675-1726) 29 (212) Carte des îles du Cap-Verd.par Mr. d'Aprés de Mannevillette. M. de Fleurieu et de M. l Abbé de Pingré" 1774; extra-illustrated with "Carte réduite de l'Archipel des Bisagots. 1818 par MM. Givry. et Roussin" 1822, "Carte générale de la côte de Guinée. 1750", "Carte particulière de la Coste d'Or. Département de la Marine" 1750, "Carte réduite des Costes occidentales d'Afrique" 1754, "Carte réduite d'une partie des Costes occidentales et méridionales de l'Afrique" 1754. Compiled from charts available to the French Admiralty, and prepared for Napoleon I (Emperor of the French 1804-1814), who landed in Alexandria as part of his Egypt campaign in July of 1798. Once there, Napoleon's orders were to dislodge the English from their Oriental possessions, build a canal through the Isthmus of Suez, improve the situation of the Egyptian people and establish a permanent French colony. Defeated by Nelson at the Battle of the Nile in August, he nevertheless remained entrenched in Egypt and the Ottoman Empire until August of the following year, when he sailed back to France. Catalogued by Kate Hunter. Seller Inventory # 72lib142

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 3.

About this Item: Benjamin Franklin and D. Hall, Philadelphia, 1755. Small folio (10 3/8 x 7 3/4 in.; 26.3 x 19.6 cm.). IV, 32 pp.; closed tear at top margin of title-page, a few other small marginal repairs, mostly at inner margins, some light foxing. WITH A FINE HAND-COLORED COPY OF EVAN S "GENERAL MAP OF THE MIDDLE BRITISH COLONIES, IN AMERICA.1755", engraved on a full, folded sheet (20 7/8 x 27 3/8 in.; 53 x 70.2 cm.), frame (39 3/4 x 32 1/4 in.; 110.9 x 81.9 cm.); lightly offset and with a few short fold separations. Maroon morocco gilt binding by Lakeside Press. VERY RARE FIRST EDITION AND FIRST STATE OF BOTH THE TEXT AND MAP, WHICH IS "CONSIDERED ONE OF THE LANDMARKS OF AMERICAN CARTOGRAPHY:" (Schwartz). The map has been beautifully colored by a contemprary hand, as evidenced by the oxidation of the green pigment (verdegris) on the verso. In both the map and the explanatory text (each of which were sold separately), Evans emphasizes the importance of the Ohio Valley in Great Britain s battle with the French for dominance in North America. JUST TWO COPIES OF THE FIRST STATE OF THE MAP HAVE BEEN SOLD AT AUCTION SINCE 1978, AND ONLY ONE OF WHICH WAS ACCOMPANIED BY THE FIRST PRINTING OF THE TEXT. Evan s map was MASTERPIECE OF CARTOGRAPHIC SYNTHESIS, AND ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT MAPS PUBLISHED IN AMERICA BEFORE INDEPENDENCE (Schwartz and Ehrenberg). He incorporated information from his own observation with that from the best available sources. His intense study of sources was distilled into this ambitious performance which builds upon the work which had resulted in his Map of Pennsylvania, New-Jersey, New-York, and the three Delaware Counties of 1754. For Virginia, Evans consulted an early state of Fry and Jefferson s Map of the most inhabited part of Virginia and William Mayo s Map of the Northern Neck of Virginia. From the Fry and Jefferson maps, Evans adjusted the longitudinal position of the Potomac River and added the area claimed by the Ohio Company to Pennsylvania. He also consulted Walter Hoxton s Mapp of the Bay Chesepeake Bay. His sources for Connecticut were the maps of William Douglas and Thomas Pownall (to whom Evans dedicates the map in the upper left panel). The map was eagerly anticipated by colonists who had heard rumors that Evans had amassed new information on the Ohio Valley, not available in John Mithchell's map of the same year. Mitchell was Evan s major competitor, and his A Map of British and French Dominions had appeared five months before teh Evans map. The differences in their border delineations exposed both to critical scrutiny, and Evans had the advantage due to the greater accuracy of his data. Mitchell s map was also more of a general map, and from the start Evans had set his emphasis on the Ohio Valley, the region that was the source of friction between England and France. The borders in the Evans map were based on much better information. However Mitchell had the benefit of official sanction: the Board of Trade and Plantations had sponsored his map. Evans was working without such support, and thus the official response to Evans map was cautious. Nonetheless, the great detail and research which informed the Evans map assured its place as one of the most significant maps of the age, and those living in the Colonies recognized its accuracy. "The map evidently excited considerable interest in the Colonies, and according to what Governor Pownall says in 1776, it was for a long time generally accepted as the standard authority for settling voundair3es, purchases, etc. on account of the extreme care and accuracy with which it had been prepared" (Henry N. Ste3vens, Lewis Evans, His Map, p.6). It was published in eighteen editions between 1755 and 1814, and Thomas Kitchin and John Bowles both published pirated editions (in 1756 and 1765 respectively). PROVENANCE: Siebert, 21 May 1999, 267 for $100,000 plus a 12.5% premium for a total of $112,500. ot REFERENCES: Campbell 543; Church 1003; Evans 7412; Hildeburn 1412s; Howes E-226; Miller 606; Pritchard & Taliaferro 34. Seller Inventory # 65BBB83

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 4.

About this Item: Benjamin Franklin and D. Hall, Philadelphia, 1755. 4to (9 1/4 x 6 3/4 in.; 23.3 x 17.2 cm.). 32 pages. LARGE ENGRAVED FOLDING MAP "A General Map of the Middle British Colonies" (50 x 67 cm. platemark, 53.2 x 70.8 cm. sheet). Modern red morocco; blue cloth folding case. "ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT MAPS PUBLISHED IN AMERICA BEFORE INDEPENDENCE" (Schwartz and Ehrenberg). Second state of the map, with "The Lakes Cataraqui" added just north of Lake Ontario; second edition of the text, first issue, without the addition of the R. and J. Dodsley name and address in the imprint. The second edition of Evans's text is virtually a page-for-page resetting of the first edition with sub-titles added on pp. 6 and 11 and the numeral 2 inserted to the left of the signature on the directional line of the first two leaves of each quire. The map was issued both with and without the Analysis, in which Evans carefully acknowledges his sources. Evans's map was a masterpiece of cartographic synthesis, incorporating information from his own observation with that from the best available sources. His intense study of sources was distilled into this ambitious performance, which builds upon the work which had resulted in his Map of Pennsylvania, New-Jersey, New-York, and the three Delaware Counties of 1754. For Virginia, Evans consulted an early state of Fry and Jefferson's Map of the most inhabited part of Virginia and William Mayo's Map of the Northern Neck of Virginia. From the Fry and Jefferson, Evans adjusted the longitudinal position of the Potomac River and added the area claimed by the Ohio Company to Pennsylvania. He also consulted Walter Hoxton's Mapp of the Bay of Chesepeack, with the Rivers, Potomack, Potapasco, North East, and part of Chester for his delineation of Chesapeake Bay. His sources for Connecticut were the maps of William Douglas and Thomas Pownall (to whom Evans dedicates the map in the upper left panel). The map was eagerly anticipated by colonists who had heard rumors that Evans had amassed new information on the Ohio Valley, not available in John Mitchell's map of the same year. Mitchell was Evans's major competitor, and his A Map of the British and French Dominions had appeared five months before the Evans map. The differences in their border delineations exposed both to critical scrutiny, and Evans had the advantage due to the greater accuracy of his data. Mitchell's was also a more general map, and from the start Evans had set his emphasis on the Ohio Valley, the region that was the source of friction between England and France. The borders in the Evans map were based on much better information. But Mitchell had the benefit of official sanction: the Board of Trade and Plantations had sponsored his map. Evans was working without such support, and thus the official response to Evans's map was cautious. Nonetheless, the great detail and research which informed the Evans map assured its place as one of the most significant maps of the age, and those living in the Colonies recognized its accuracy. "The map evidently excited considerable interest in the Colonies, and, according to what Governor Pownall says in 1776, it was for a long time generally accepted as the standard authority for settling boundaries, purchases, etc., on account of the extreme care and accuracy with which it had been prepared" (Henry N. Stevens, Lewis Evans, His Map, p.6). It was published in eighteen editions between 1755 and 1814, and Thomas Kitchin and John Bowles both published pirated editions (in 1756 and 1765 respectively). PROVENANCE: Frank S. Streeter (bookplate). From the Streeter sale: Christie's, 16 April 2007, lot 185 at a price of $168,000. including buyer's premium. Campbell 543; Church 1003; Evans 7412; Hildeburn 1412a; Howes E-226; Miller 606; Pritchard & Taliaferro 34; Sabin 23175; Schwartz & Ehrenberg p.165; Stevens Nuggets I:1019; Streeter sale II:819 (first ed. of the text); The World Encompassed 255; Thomson 384; Winsor V:85. For more information about this book, or a warm welcome to see. Seller Inventory # 000166

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 5.

About this Item: The Hague: Henri Scheurleer, 1736., 1736. 4 volumes, 4to (9 6/8 x 7 6/8 inches). Title-pages printed in red and black with engraved publisher's devices, engraved folding map of Canton (early tape repairs), 52 engraved plates (some folding), including a number of city plans, 5 engraved vignette head-pieces, 6 diagrams in the text, many by J. C. Philips after A. Humblot, others by Humblot after J. van de Spyk, one by Philippe van Gunst, most unsigned, woodcut head- and tailpieces and woodcut initials throughout (a few of the illustrations in volume 2 colored by a modern hand, pale marginal stains towards the end of volume one, some stains to the early gutters of volume 2, small marginal tear to the folding plate of the "Peking Observatory" in volume 3.) Contemporary mottled calf, spines gilt in compartments, red and black morocco lettering-pieces (extremities a bit worn with minor loss, hinges starting). Provenance: 19th-century ownership inscription of Julie Mestral-Tavel on the recto of the first blank in each volume, except volume two, which is lacking the first blank and has the slightly later ownership inscription of Julie Mestral-Paynerne in a different hand on the title-page. "The first definitive European work on the Chinese empire" (Hill). First quarto edition, with a new preface and bibliography, first published in Paris the previous year in a folio edition. The illustrations are reduced versions of the plates of the first edition (some of which were woodcut) and fine engravings of Chinese life including city plans, ceremonies, artisans at work, costumes, etc. The maps were published separately by Bourguignon d'Anville in 1737, also reprinting the contents of the1735 edition. Du Halde became a Jesuit in 1708, and was commissioned by his superiors to bring together the published and manuscript accounts of Jesuit travelers in China. He first began by editing much of the comprehensive "Lettres édifiantes et curieuses écrites des missions étrangères" (1702-1776), one of the most important sources for Jesuit missionary activities in the 18th century. His later "Le Description." includes reports of 27 Jesuit missionaries, all listed in the preface, and covers every aspect of Chinese life and culture. The first printed account of Vitus Bering's first expedition to Alaska in 1725-1728, is included in volume four: "The original report traveled a circuitous route to fall into Du Halde's hands. The Danish Vitus Bering (1681-1741) had entered the Russian navy as a young man and risen through the ranks. His expedition was sponsored by the Russian Czar Peter the Great. When Bering returned to St. Petersburg in 1730, five years after the death of Peter the Great, his account and an accompanying map were sent as a gift to the King of Poland, who gave them to Du Halde with permission to do with them "as he saw fit". In this way the first account of Bering's important exploration was published in France rather than in Russia, where the full narrative was not published until several years later" (Hill). Brunet II, 870; Cordier "Sinica", p. 48; Hill 498. For more information about this book, or a warm welcome to see it and other books in our library at 72nd Street, NYC, please contact Kate Hunter, M.A. Oxon, in the Rare Book Department. Seller Inventory # 000033

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 6.

About this Item: Paris: Chez l'Auteur, F. Schoell et Hautel, 1808-1827 [1828], 1828. 4 volumes in 2, folio (20 1/4 x 13 in.; 51.4 x 33 cm). 140 stipple-engraved plates printed in color and finished by hand by Bouquet, Dien, Gabriel, Massard, Robert and others after Redouté, Poiteau, Turpin, and others (a few heightened with gum arabic in vol. 3), title-pages for vol. 1 in French and Latin, dedication to Louis XVIII in vol. 2; short closed tear in upper gutter pl 8 of vol. 1, pl. 24 of vol. 3 shaved at outer margin, some occasional faint spotting to plates and light foxing (chiefly marginal) to text and vol. 1 title-page, text leaves to plates 11-27 and terminal leaf browned in vol. 4, and plates in vol. 4 misbound (as 1-4; 6; 9; 5; 7-8; 10-37). Contemporary green morocco richly gilt by J. Wright, covers ruled with triple fillets and embellished with roll-tool borders incorporating grape, floral, pineapple, and acorn tools, the spines in 6 compartments gilt with floral tools and raised bands (one reserved for lettering), gilt dentelles, marbled endpapers, edges gilt. THE BOTFIELD COPY OF THIS EARLY FLORA OF THE WEST INDIES, FIRST EDITION. According to Brunet, only 150 copies of this lavish work were published in 32 fascicules. Relatively little is known of Tussac's early life, but as a botanist he travelled around the West Indies, visiting Santo Domingo and Martinique in 1786, Haiti and Jamaica in 1802. In Haiti he briefly became curator of a botanic garden before returning to France at the end of that year. Tussac's preface to this work gives a vivid account of his travels and adventures, as well as an account of Toussaint-Louverture's slave rebellion in Santo Domingo. Most of his drawings had been destroyed by fire during the rebellion, but he was able later to recreate them from his notes and collected specimens. REFERENCES: Brunet V:987; Nissen BBI 2017; Great Flower Books 78; Dunthorne 312; Stafleu & Cowan 15:397 PROVENANCE: Beriah Botfield (his sale, Christie's London, 30 March 1994, lot 90; Christie's New York, 6 December 2013, lot 188; Sotheby's New York 18 December 2019, lot 203). Seller Inventory # 65ERM0214

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 7.

About this Item: [London]: 1727., 1727. 2 volumes in one. Folio (21 4/8 x 14 4/8 inches). Engraved allegorical frontispiece after W. Kent, vignette title-pages with engraved portrait of Jones, 136 numbered plates printed from 102 copper-plates on 97 leaves (24 double-page, 5 folding) by P. Fourdrinier, H. Hulsbergh, J. Cole and A. Herisset, most drawn by Henry Flitcroft, the designs credited to Jones, Kent and Lord Burlington, engraved head- and tailpieces after Kent (without the half-title, intermittent light browning, one or two pale marginal stains). Contemporary half vellum, morocco lettering piece on the spine (extremities a bit scuffed, vellum lightly soiled). Provenance: with the 18th-century discreet ink library stamp of K.F. Stevens on the front paste-down; the bookplate of James Lees-Milne (1908-1997), architectural historian and conservationist on the front paste-down; and the bookplate of Harold Douthit also on the front paste-down. First edition. "The Designs of Inigo Jones is an impressive and important book. Yet oddly enough more influential than any single building depicted in it were its plates of doors, windows, niches, etc. These plates seem to have had a formative effect upon Gibbs's Book of Architecture (1728) and from that point on became a standard feature of eighteenth-century pattern books" (Harris p.251). The publication of 'The Designs' was initiated and funded by Lord Burlington, who had purchased a group of drawings by Jones and his pupil John Webb and 5 drawings by Palladio from Jones' collection in 1720. These were copied by Henry Flitcroft and, together with drawings by Kent and Burlington, engraved by Hulsbergh and others. Intent on promoting public works, in particular the building of a royal palace, Kent and Burlington devoted more than two-thirds of the plates in volume one to designs for a palace at Whitehall, even though this was the work of Inigo Jones's pupil John Webb. Volume one also included a plan, elevation and section of Chiswick House by Burlington, with chimneypieces by Kent. Volume two included the Queen's House at Greenwich, Burlington's dormitory of Westminster school, and a remarkable design for a palace on the Thames at Richmond. Jones's designs for the portico of Old St. Paul's follow at the end of volume two, together with seven plates of Palladio's S. Giorgio Maggiore in Venice. RIBA notes that "most copies. want the half-title." Fowler 162 (lacking frontispiece); Harris 385; Millard British 34 (lacking half-title); RIBA 1624 (lacking half-title and frontispiece). Seller Inventory # 72lib1112

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 8.

About this Item: L. A. Besancon, Natchez, 1838. 12mo, 232, (11) pp. (ads). Large folding engraved map printed on blue paper, with contemporary hand outline coloring. Contents lightly foxed; seperation minor separation at intersection on map repaired on verso. Bound in contemporary tree sheep, which is lighty rubbed at extremities, and has been rebacked, with the original spine gilt laid down. Near fine. Although the title states that this is volume one of the Register, it was apparently all that was published. The folding map, "Besancon's Map of Mississippi," was lithographed by Nathaniel Currier. For more information about this book, or a warm welcome to see it and other books in our library at 72nd Street, NYC, please contact Kate Hunter, M.A. Oxon, in the Rare Book Department. Seller Inventory # 001378

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 9.

About this Item: [Preface:] Cologne: Bertram Buchholtz, 1594., 1594. Full Vellum. Condition: Very Good. Small folio (10 3/8 x 7-1/2 in.; 26.4 x 19.1 cm). Engraved title-page with three figures representing France, Austria and Switzerland, 39 fine engraved double-page maps of Europe; title-page with letterpress overslip, soiled, fore-edge somewhat frayed, a few marginal repairs, most leaves guarded, some marginal dampstaining, centerfold splits to maps 12, 26, and 34, map 33 browned, overslips on right and left platemarks on map 28. Contemporary limp vellum, manuscript title on spine, edges stained red; joints split at the head and foot of the spine, somewhat browned with a few stains, lacking two pairs of ties; recent repairs to wear on top of spine. Modern slipcase covered in artist's vellum. FIRST EDITION AND EXCEPTIONALLY RARE OF THE EARLIEST ATLAS BY METELLUS (AKA JEAN MATAL AND SEQUANUS). Worldcat locates only two copies in Europe. Metellus, a respected cartographer in his day, was born in Burgundy and but spent much of his working life in Louvain. Many of the maps in this volume are after those in Gerard Mercator's Galliae Tabule Geographicae. Metellus later relocated to Cologne where in 1598 his maps of America, after those of Wytfliet, were published in the German edition of Acosta's "De Natura Nova Orbis" as "Geographische und historische. Landschafft America". REFERENCES: Burden 115 forward; Shirley T.met 1; VD 16 ZV 304009 PROVENANCE: early ownership inscriptions partially obscured on the title-page; ink library stamp of Dr. Revillout on the title-page; later bibliographical inscription on the front paste-down and mss. foliation on the verso of the maps. Book. Seller Inventory # 72lib99

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 10.

About this Item: Valldolid: Franciso Fernandez de Cordova, 1545, 1545. Single leaf (13 1/4 x 9 in.; 33.7 x 22.9 cm). Single leaf woodcut map, first state from a single woodblock, 16 rhumb lines, with text in 2 ruled columns on verso from Libro Tercero, Chapter VII ("Del concierto y orden de las cartas de marear") and woodcut diagram in right column; edges a bit chipped. AN IMPORTANT CHART FORMULATED AND PUBLISHED DURING THE EARLIEST PERIOD OF EUROPEAN COLONIAL EXPANSION TO THE AMERICAS. Medina travelled with Cortés to the New World and collaborated with other cartographers to produce his magnum opus from which this map was taken. The present map of the New World, from the third book of his monumental treatise on navigation, is the first known depiction of the so-called Tordesillas Meridian bisecting the Americas west of the Azores and Cape Verde Islands. The Treaty of Tordesillas was based on the papal bull "Inter Caetera" (1493). Its intent was to apportion the trading and colonizing rights of the New World between the Spanish Crown and Portugal. The Aragonese Alexander VI decreed a Line of Demarcation that evenly divided lands of North and South America vertically, granting everything west of the line to Spain and everything to the east to Portugal. It vividly illustrates for the first time the future influence that the latter was to have over the country we know as Brazil. Central America and the Isthmus of Panama are very accurately delineated, and the Yucatan is correctly shown as a peninsula. The map also depicts the trade routes from Spain and her possessions by the use of a series of seven ships in a circular movement, heading south-westerly on the outward bound journey and returning via the Gulf Stream to the north-east. The map was reprinted in the first edition of "Libro de grandezas de España (Seville, 1548) with one notable difference. In that edition, and the subsequent one of the same title in 1549 only, there appeared a second woodcut which was printed below the American half of the map, extending its coverage to the Strait of Magellan. To accommodate this, the lower border of the lefthand side has been removed and is not seen again (Burden). A singular opportunity to obtain one of the most important maps of 16th century colonial expansion in the Americas, as Medina's complete work, rarely appears at auction or in the trade, and fetches in excess of a half a million dollars. REFERENCES: Burden 14, state 1. Seller Inventory # 65ERM0226

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 11.

About this Item: Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott, 1856, 1856. 8vo (10 3/8 x 6 1/2 in.; 26.4 x 16.5 cm). 50 handcolored lithographs printed by J. T. Bowen, 18 after George G. White, and 32 drawn on stone by William E. Hitchcock; some foxing to text, chiefly marginal and text for plates 6-30 toned, a few plates (with horizontal orientation) trimmed along top margin with minor losses, marginal internal tear to plate 45 and preceding text leaf, not affecting image or text. Contemporary half calf over marbled boards, the spine in 6 compartments gilt with raised bands, red and black lettering pieces, marbled endpapers, edges gilt; extremities rubbed, corners bumped, boards a trifled scuffed. FIRST EDITION IN BOOK FORM, originally issued in ten parts (1853-1856). An important work, it is representative of the era a western expansion of American ornithology. Cassin had approached the Audubon brothers in 1851 with a proposal to create a supplement to the octavo Birds. "At first the Audubons were receptive However Cassin wanted shared credit on the title page and a free hand in correcting the errors of nomenclature of the elder [and late] Audubon, a touchy point with the sons. Cassin went on his own, although clearly following the Audubon format and using J.T. Bowen as a lithographer" (Reese). It was also evidently the first ornithological work by an American to employ trinomial nomenclature. REFERENCES: Anker 92; Ayer, p. 124; Fine Bird Books, p. 64; Nissen IVB 173; Reese, American Color Plate Books 42; Wood, p. 281. Seller Inventory # 65ERM0229

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 12.

About this Item: [Antwerp, J.B. Vrients, 1608], 1608. Double-page engraved map (18 1/4 x 22 1/2 in.; 46.4 x 57.2 cm) with full contemporary handcoloring, wide margins, Italian text on verso; general age toning, pigments oxidize and offset. The first map to be devoted to the Pacific Ocean and to show an early depiction of the West Coast of America; with Magellan's ship "Victoria" depicted: from Vrients' 1608 Italian edition of the Theatrum orbis terrarum. REFERENCE: Van den Broecke 12.1 160816. Seller Inventory # 65ERM0227

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 13.

About this Item: [Antwerp: J. B. Vrients, 1608], 1608. Double-page engraved map (16 3/4 x 22 3/4 in.; 42.6 x 57.8 cm) with fine contemporary handcoloring, Italian text on verso; general age-toning. The first printed map of Japan in an atlas. It was drawn by the Portuguese Jesuit Luis Teixeira and depicts Korea as an island. First published in 1595, this copy is from Vrients' 1608 Italian edition of the Theatrum orbis terrarum. REFERENCE: Van den Broecke 165.1 1608I119 PROVENANCE: "Isseido" (shop stamp on verso). Seller Inventory # 65ERM0228

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 14.

About this Item: Valladolid, 1545. Single-sheet map (5 3/4" x 9 9/16") from Pedro de Medina's "Arte de Navegar" (1545). First state with 16 rhumblines and compass rose. VERY GOOD condition with minor, clean tears and press mark visible in the gutter margin. "Among all arts navigation is the most accomplished one, for not only does it draw from each of them, it also contains, by itself, its most important disciplines: arithmetic, geometry, & astrology." The prologue of Pedro de Medina s groundbreaking "Arte de Navegar" (1545) reveals the work s Medieval heritage, as the quadrivium - the university curriculum of arts - unmistakably locates navigation within its mathematical system of knowledge. Navigation, as Pedro de Medina suggests, builds on the illustration of the world guided by principles of certainty. At the same time, he refers to Ptolemy and proves himself at a transitional moment of cartography and the Renaissance in general. The present map of the New World is thus a particularly RARE and precious testament to both the socio-political and artistic history of the 16th century. Taken from the third book of his monumental treatise on navigation, the present map of the New World or "Nuevo Mundo" is the first known depiction of the so-called Tordesillas Meridian bisecting the Americas West of the Azores and Cape Verde Islands. The Treaty of Tordesillas was based on the bull "Inter Caetera" (1493) in which the Aragonese Alexander VI decreed a Papal Demarcation Line in 1493; it was meant to divide the trading and colonizing rights of the New World between the Spanish Crown and Portugal. The map is also remarkable for its geographical accuracy. Pedro de Medina had travelled with Hernando Cortéz and, upon his return to Spain, was responsible for debriefing ship crews. He thus relied on authentic source material and the mention of Florida is one of the earliest in contemporary map publishing. Similarly, "Nuevo Mundo" is the FIRST MAP to include the Rio Spiritu Santo in Texas. Maybe its most astonishing feature are the ships grouped around the central compass rose. As a motive they derive from early cartographers depiction of vessels and sea monsters to characterize the oceans. Upon closer inspection, however, it appears that they are organized according to what art historians know as simultaneity. The trading ship, departing from Spain, follows the circular movement of the Gulf Stream to reach the Americas; it then takes a Northern route back to Europe. Pedro de Medina utilizes narrative strategies commonly associated with painting to prove a surprising interest in the Stream and its impact on travel routes. The author thus illustrates the practical qualities of sea charts as presented at the beginning of Chapter 7 on the map s verso. The verso includes a woodblock printed diagram and lists the most important elements of sea charts, including the compass rose and rhumblines. "Nuevo Mundo" can thus be seen as an ideal chart which, in addition to its historical and cartographic merits, introduces a subtle use of imagery and narrative strategies commonly associated with fine arts. Its main purpose, however, remains that of navigational practicality. Seller Inventory # 6BD0001

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 15.

About this Item: Antwerp: Chistopher Plantin, 1588, 1588. Folio (16 4/8 x 11 4/8 inches). Elaborate engraved allegorical title-page, double-page world map "Typus Orbis Terrarum", undated and with the South American coastline retaining its destinctive bulge [Shirley 153, state 2] (small separation at foot of the centre-fold), 99 double-page maps of the world, and historiated initials, all with MAGNIFICENTLY RICH CONTEMPORARY HAND-COLOUR IN FULL (without A4, the portrait of Ortelius, the map of Spain a bit creased with one or two short marginal tears occasionally crossing the image, and strengthened at an early date along the verso of the left-hand edge and the centre-fold, short early repair to tear on verso of map of Crete), extra-illustrated with large folding prospectus for a map of the Kingdom of Portugal, to be printed in Salamanca, ca 1738-1753, tipped-in after the Contents, and a small folding engraved plate "Carta del Viage de los Israelites", 1747, at end. Beautiful full 17th-century Spanish mottled sheep, the spine in seven compartments, with six raised bands, tan morocco lettering-piece in the second, the others decorated with fine gilt tools of bunches of daisies interspersed with small cleft pomegranate of Aragon tools, French hand-coloured decorative endpapers captioned 'A Paris chez Les Associes No 119' (lower cover and extremities a bit scuffed). Provenance: with the near contemporary ownership inscription at the head of the dedication leaf "Juan de Calder doscientos" and offset onto the verso of the title-page; profuse 18th-century annotations in a neat Spanish script, adding historical context and referencing important relevant texts throughout, with a Table of Contents "Tabla de las Mapas de Cite Libro", in the same hand, dated 14th August, 1757, tipped in after the printed Contents; with an autograph document signed by Ambrosio Gonzalez, dated 19th April 1858, conferring a military command, loosely inserted. THE RARE FIRST SPANISH EDITION OF ORTELIUS'S THEATRUM ORBIS TERRARUM, PUBLISHED IN THE SAME YEAR THAT PHILIP II's SPANISH ARMADA SAILED AGAINST ELIZABETH I's ENGLAND The first edition in Spanish, and the first of Ortelius's atlases to be entirely published, rather than printed, by Christopher Plantin. Subsequently published in 1602 by Vrients, with 117 maps, and in 1609-1612 with 128 maps. "In contrast with previous editions, this edition was solely Plantin's project and consequently Plantin, not Ortelius, took the role of publisher. Ortelius' contribution was limited to printing the maps. Thus, once the texts had been printed, Ortelius' print atelier saw to the printing of the maps on the backs of the sheets and then returned them to Plantin. The publication of this Spanish atlas appears to have been very important for Plantin. Following his return to Antwerp in 1585, he did everything he could to convince the Spanish of his loyalty, despite his stay in the Calvinist, anti-Spanish town of Leiden. One means of attaining this goal was to dedicate a Spanish version of the atlas to the future king, Philip III. By the start of 1587, Plantin had begun to write to individuals who were close to the Spanish court in order to determine whether this gesture would be well received. Plantin did not dare to start to print the text before he was certain that his dedication to the crown prince would be accepted" (Dirk Imhof "The Production of Ortelius Atlases by Christopher Plantin", in Abraham Ortelius and the First Atlas: Essays Commemorating the Quadricentennial of his Death 1598-1998, page 88). That it was is proven by the fact that the atlas went into production, and between 1588 and 1590 255 copies were printed. the Plantin archives record a few copies of the atlas being sent to the Spanish court, with lavish colouring heightened with gold and silver, however the production values of the ordinarily published coloured copies were still very high. For example 'le capne Alberico paid 36 guilders for a coloured and bound copy in September 1588' (Imhof, page 89). The Spanish. Seller Inventory # 72lib1263

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 16.

About this Item: London: Robert Robinson, 1596, 1596. 4to (7 x 5 in.; 17.8 x 12.7 cm). Woodcut device on title-page, head- and tailpieces, historiated initials; washed and pressed, a few headlines shaved. Full 20th century red morocco levant by Rivière, marbled endpapers, edges gilt; upper board detached. THE JOHN L. CLAWSON COPY OF ONE OF THE SUPREME WORKS OF ELIZABETHAN TRAVEL LITERATURE. The second edition of Raleigh's account of his second voyage, with all points conforming to Sabin's 67554. Raleigh's voyage took him to modern Venezuela in search of the mythical city of gold, El Dorado. Although the city was not found, Raleigh argued that Guiana had the potential to yield many riches, and be an advantageous stronghold against the Spanish: "Guiana is a Country that hath yet her Maydenhead, never sackt, turned, nor wrought, the face of the earth hath not been torne, not the virtue and salt of the soyule spent by manurance, the graves have not beene opened for gold, the mines not broken with sledges, nor their Images puld down out of their temples. It hath never been entered by any armie of strength, and never conquered or possessed by any Christian Prince. It is besides so defensible, that if two fortes be builded in one of the provinces which I have seen, the flood setteth in so neere the banke, where the channel also lyeth, that no shippe can passe up, but with Pikes length of the Artillerie, first the one, and afterwards of the other (pp. 96-97). Shakespeare is believed to have obtained his knowledge of the "still vexed Bermoothes" for "The Tempest" from this book. REFERENCES: Alden & Landis 596/85; Church 254; Sabin 67554; STC 20636 PROVENANCE: John L. Clawson (1865-1933), his small morocco ticket and sale, Anderson Galleries, 21 May 1926). Seller Inventory # 65ERM0198

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 17.

About this Item: 0. No Binding. Condition: Fine. 445 fine watercolors (9 x 6 inches), 190 pencil drawings and 210 proof engravings and lithographs (some hand-colored) including studies of snakes, lizards, crocodiles, turtles, and frogs, the majority annotated by the artist, loose in three modern cloth boxes. Provenance: Gift of the artist to Dr A. Günther at The British Museum; autograph note signed of Henry Haversham Godwin Austen (1834-1923) inserted in Part 1: "194 sheets containing the figures of Indian snakes . left at Brit Museum by [Jerdon], shortly before his death & given over to me in 1878 by Dr. Günther, they have been numbered by me just as they were left. H.H. Godwin Austen, London Feb 1879'. JERDON'S UNPUBLISHED ORIGINAL ARTWORK FOR HIS UNFINISHED WORK ON INDIAN REPTILES, intended to follow his previous works "The Birds of India" (1862-64), and Mammals of India (1874). Jerdon handed over part of the artwork to fellow zoologist Dr A. Günther at The British Museum shortly before his death (see provenance), presumably for Günther to bring his unfinished work to completion. Jerdon's work contributed to the latter's Reptiles of British India (1864). This artwork then passed to the distinguished surveyor of India, Henry Haversham Godwin-Austen, for whom the Karakoram peak K2 was originally named Mount Godwin-Austen. Purchased at Christie's 13th July 2006, lot 36. Book. Seller Inventory # 001734

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 18.

About this Item: London: Sayer and Bennet, 1776, 1776. Small 4to (9 1/2 x 7 1/4 in.; 24.1 x 18.4 cm). Engraved title-page with vignette, engraved dedication, preface, and index leaves, 37 handcolored engraved maps (one of Ireland, the 4 provinces, and 32 counties) and corresponding engraved explanatory leaves; faint offsetting of maps to text throughout, occasional spotting chiefly in gutters, closed tears to inner edge of map 23 (County Tyrone) with a few minor losses. Contemporary marbled boards; rebacked, boards somewhat scuffed, edges rather worn. FIRST EDITION. The atlas provides a general map of Ireland, which is then divided into the four provinces, with its subdivisions of counties "Shewing their Boundaries, Extent, Soil, Produce, Contents, Measure, Members of Parliament, and Number of Inhabitants; also the Cities, Boroughs, Villages, Mountains, Bogs, Lakes, Rivers, and Natural Curiosities Together with the Great and Bye Post Roads." REFERENCE: Chubb VIII PROVENANCE: Several 18th- and 19th-century signatures on title-page. Seller Inventory # 65ERM0219

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 19.

About this Item: [Antwerp], 1584 [but ca. 1592], 1592. Double-page engraved map (18 1/2 x 22 1/4 in.; 47 x 56.5 cm) WITH FULL, UNRETOUCHED, CONTEMPORARY HANDCOLORING. Decorative title cartouche and other, embellishments, Latin text on verso; some pigment oxidation and toning, 3 small internal tears in left inside margin, strengthened on verso with a portion of an index, partially obscuring text. One of the earliest western maps of China, drawn by the Portuguese mapmaker Luis Jorge de Barbuda, based upon his personal experiences in the country, and reports by the Portuguese Jesuits who had established a mission in China in 1577. Tooley remarked that this map remained the standard type for the interior of China for over 60 years. The limits of China were given as the Great Wall in the north and Cauchin China in the south. It is attractively embellished with sea ships, wind wagons, animals, birds, and Tartar yurts across the plains and steppes of Central Asia; and it was the first to illustrate a portion of the Great Wall of China. The four transcriptions of Chinese characters in the text on the verso were an early introduction to the Chinese language for Europeans. First published in 1584, "Las Philippinas" was added above "Sinus Magnus" in this, the second state. REFERENCES: Tooley, p. 106, pl. 78 Van den Broecke 164. Seller Inventory # 65ERM0221

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 20.

About this Item: [London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1823-1825], 1825. Oblong folio (20 x 26 1/2 in.; 50.8 x 67.3 cm). 18 (of 35) handcolored aquatint plates of various sizes mounted on guards; facsimile title-page, some marginal repairs and soiling, 7 plates with center fold, last plate loose. Modern blue half calf, gilt calf label on front cover. EIGHTEEN VIEWS OF SCOTLAND DURING THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION. The Scottish-born Clark earned fame as a painter of English landscapes, and his talents as an engraver are demonstrated in the present series. Abbey suggests that the plates appeared in parts, and no general title-page was ever issued. No complete copy has been traced in auction records of the last 50 years. The sweeping views here comprise Hamilton, Aberdeen, Port-Glasgow, Ayr, Peebles, Jedburgh, Dundee, St. Andrews, Stirling, Linlithgow, Dunkeld, Elgin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Renfrew, Dingwall, and Inverness. REFERENCE: Abbey Scenery 489. Seller Inventory # 65ERM0220

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 21.

About this Item: Roorkee: The Thomason College Press, 1867. 0, 1867. No Binding. Condition: Fine. 8vo., (9 x 6 inches). Conetmporary half black calf, marbled boards(extremities worn, joints weak). WITH AN EXTENSIVE COLLECTION OF ORIGINAL ARTWORK: 360 watercolors (9 x 6 inches), 105 pencil drawings, 190 proof engravings and lithographs (some hand-colored) and 11 photographs including studies of bats, rodents, whales, bears, cats, monkeys, apes, elephants, rhinoceroses and cattle, the majority annotated by the artist, interleaved with printed text leaves, some with penciled corrections. Loose in three modern cloth boxes. THE UNPUBLISHED ORIGINAL ARTWORK FOR JERDON'S THE MAMMALS OF INDIA, with corrected page proofs. Jerdon, a keen ornithologist and naturalist, went to India as an Army medical officer with the East India Company in 1836. He corresponded with the naturalist William Jardine (1800-1874) on the ornithology of India and his scientific publications on the zoology of the subcontinent began in 1839. Lord Canning later granted him special leave to complete his major works on the vertebrata of India, "The Birds of India" (1862-64) and "The Mammals of India" (Roorkee, 1867). "His work, although valued for its keen observations, was marred by over-reliance on memory and unmethodical recording of detail; a similar lack of attention in domestic matters led to constant debt" (DNB); this indebtedness may be the reason why he was not able to fund the engraving of his artwork, which would have added greatly to the expense of the work, and consequently the artwork for his Mammals remained unpublished. Having contracted an illness in Assam, he returned to England in 1870 where he continued to work on his Reptiles of India until his death in 1872. Purchased at Christie's 13th July 2006, lot 35. Book. Seller Inventory # 001727

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 22.

About this Item: Eustathius Vignon, Geneva, 1587. Two parts in one, volume. Folio (13 4/8 x 8 4/8 inches). Titles within historiated woodcut borders, printed in Greek and Latin in double columns, engraved double-page double-hemispherical world map: Mercator's "Orbis Terrae Compendiosa Descriptio", Geneva 1587 (13 ¼ x 20 ¼ inches) (supplied, small marginal tear just affecting the image repaired on verso), (some pale marginal dampstains, and one or two wormstracks). 19th-century red paneled morocco antique, spine in five compartments with four raised bands, an 18th-century morocco lettering piece in one (extremities, front paste-down removed, endpapers stained). Provenance: Contemporary marginal annotations to Casaubon's commentary, and a leaf of manuscript notes at the end. First edition of Isaac Casaubon's famous edition of Strabo's "Geography", one of the earliest and most important scientific treatises of historical geography, containing the FIRST APPEARANCE OF MERCATOR'S CELEBRATED AND ONLY AVAILABLE WORLD MAP "Orbis Terrae Compendiosa Descriptio" Geneva 1587. This variant without text on the verso and with Latin text in the bottom margin. "Gerard Mercator's great world map of 1569 was condensed into double hemispherical form by his son Rumold. The engraving is a model of clarity and neatness, with typical cursive flourishes to the lettering of the sea names." (Shirley). This map was later incorporated in Mercator's influential atlas of 1595. Adams S-1908; Graesse VI:505. (Map) Koeman Me12; Moreland & Bannister p. 243; Shirley 157; Wagner Northwest Coast 146. Seller Inventory # 001332

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 23.

Seller Image

About this Item: London: Reeve, Benham & Reeve, 1849; Benham & Reeve, 1851, 1851. 1st Edition. 3 parts in one volume, folio (19 3/4 x 14 1/2 in.; 50.2 x 36.8 cm). Three title-pages, the first with tinted lithographed vignette, 30 handcolored lithographic plates after J. D. Hooker by Walter H. Fitch; frontispieces a bit loose, pl. 3 creased in upper left corner with a slight nick, pl. 6-7 with lightly discolored vertical band from exhibition mylar, long scratch through 2 rhododendron leaves and small tear on bottom margin of pl. 15, and long vertical crease on pl. 30 text leaf. Half brown-black morocco over olive cloth, smooth spine lettered gilt; cloth on front cover blistering and starting to lift at corners, boards slightly splayed. HOOKER'S SUPERB WORK ON RHODODENDRONS, "an important work, both for the botanist and horticulturist since it contains descriptions and plates of many of the best garden Rhododendron species which and be grown in this country" (Great Flower Books). Joseph Dalton Hooker spent several years exploring Sikkim, as well as parts of Nepal and Tibet. His field notes were sent back to England from India to his father, Sir William Hooker, who edited this work, which contains stunning illustrations of many of the best species of rhododendron along with accounts of their discovery. J. H. Hooker's studies of the geography and meteorology of the area were fundamental, and included the explanation of the terracing of mountain valleys by the formation of glacial lakes. The species described vary from "alpines" to small shrubs, climbers, large shrubs, and trees-of the 32 species illustrated and described by Hooker, eight are described as trees. "Hooker's travels added twenty-five new rhododendrons to the fifty already known and the spectacular new species they introduced into Britain helped create a rhododendron craze among British gardeners" (Great Flower Books). The plates were lithographed by Walter Hood Fitch, the most prolific of all botanical artists. Many of the plates contain magnified views of the pistils, stamens, and sections of the ovaries. Fitch's vigorous, confident lines and bold coloring recreated the magnificence of these exotic blooms. "Fitch had the greatest competence of any botanical painter who has yet appeared in drawing the rhododendron " (Great Flower Books). REFERENCES: Desmond, The European Discovery of the Indian Flora, p. 144; Great Flower Books, p. 101; Nissen 911; An Oak Spring Flora 104; Sitwell & Blunt p. 60; Stafleu & Cowan TL2 2969 PROVENANCE: The Magnificent Library of D.F. Allen (sale, Sotheby's New York, 26 October 2017, lot 22 for $10,625); Doyle's, 12 November 2019, lot 225. Seller Inventory # 65ERM0215

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 24.

About this Item: Leipzig: T.O. Weigel [1885]-1887, 1887. 2 volumes bound in one, folio (18 x 12 in.; 45.7 x 30.5 cm). 50 collotype plates tipped to grey-green card, printed brown borders and captions on mounts, alternating with texts in German by H.W. Longfellow, Bret Harte, Cronau, and others; marginal foxing on title-pages, marginal toning to text and card mounts throughout, a few spots on vol. 1: pl. 1 and marginal foxing to accompanying text, occasional spotting to card mounts, plate 11 and 20 creased in upper left and right corners respectively. Publisher's polychrome red cloth, gilt-stamped foliate border with a frame of alternating stars and stripes, central panel lettered gilt with stars and stripes on a shield surmounted by an eagle on upper cover, lower cover blocked in blind, patterned and textured gilt guards, spine decoratively stamped in black ink, edges gilt; gilt titling and decoration tarnished, a little wear to spine head. Second edition. Cronau was dispatched in 1881 to America as a correspondent for the German newspaper, "Die Gartenlaube." He returned articles on New York, Baltimore and Washington, and then journeyed to Minneapolis where he traveled down the Mississippi River to Cairo, Illinois. He visited the Standing Rock Sioux reservation in Dakota territory where he met Sitting Bull and other Native American leaders. He continued to Yellowstone Park, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and San Francisco. In the winter of 1881-1882, Cronau explored Florida and Louisiana, and then in the summer went back west to Oregon and on to Texas. In all, he wrote twelve articles for "Die Gartenlaube." He intended to continue on to South America but poor health forced him to return to Germany in late 1882. The plates center mainly on the West and life therein. They include portraits of Indian chiefs-most notably Sitting Bull-scenes of Dakota and Yankton Indians in Minnesota, Idaho gold miners, a hold-up, prairies, San Francisco (a street in the Chinese quarter and the interior of a Chinese restaurant), Yellowstone, Mount Hood, the "Garden of the Gods" with Pike's Peak in the background, and an extraordinary view of a carriage traveling through a tunnel carved into a redwood tree, among many others. Also featured are views of the East and the South such as Niagara Falls, the Brooklyn Bridge, Washington's gravesite at Mount Vernon, a Louisiana swamp, and the Florida coast. Seller Inventory # 65ERM0218

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 25.

About this Item: WM. Minifie & Co., Baltimore, 1851. Two parts in one volume. 8vo., (9 x 5 4/8 inches). 12 fine folding lithographic maps (one or two spots, some light browning). Original black cloth (a bit scuffed at the head and foot of the spine). Provenance: Author's penciled presentation inscription to "Col. J. J. Abert with the compliments of Philip J. Tyson" on the recto of the first blank; signed by Abert (1788-1863), on the front paste-down. Second and best edition, one of 1000 copies for the author's own use, with added 34-page introduction ("Geology and Industrial Resources of California"), errata, index, and table of contents, otherwise the maps and sheets are the same as the first edition (31st Congress, 1st Session, Senate Executive Document 47, 1850). "Philip Tyson based this memoir on his personal observations of California during the summer and early fall of 1849. Tyson dated the report February 20, 1850. Wheat noted that this was "probably the earliest work of a true scientific research to emerge from the Gold Rush." Tyson, in his report, described his visits to the "canvass" city of Sacramento, Mormon Island, Coloma, Jackson and Sutter's Creek, and the general region of the Cosumnes and Mokelumne rivers. He was probably one of the first to realize that the Argonauts could have made more money by staying at home, and criticized newspaper reports as exaggerated" (Kurutz). The Senate ordered 5,000 copies printed, of which 1,000 were for Tyson's use. Tyson proceeded to add a new title page, an errata page, and an extensive introduction dated Baltimore, November 10, 1850. Tyson also renumbered the government-printed text portions in brackets. The purpose of this separate edition, as stated in the introduction (p. xvi), "is to call attention to some of the views expressed in the Report, to point out confirmations thereof by subsequent events, and to notice a few of the erroneous impressions that have been formed by newspaper writers and others in reference to California." Abert, an outstanding army officer, served in various capacities in the Topographical Bureau and War Department. From 1834 to 1861 as chief of the bureau he was responsible for initiating and guiding the topographical surveys of the American West, and the work of the topographical engineers. Thus Abert had an inescapable impact upon the frontier and the nation's evershifting borders, from east of the great rivers to the Pacific coast, and from border to border (Thrapp). Cowan I, p. 235; Cowan II, p. 648; Howes T455; Kurutz, The California Gold Rush 643b; Sabin 97652; Wheat, Books of the California Gold Rush 212n: "Its author was a gifted scientist whose pioneering effort was of considerable value." Purchased at Dorothy Sloan, 16th February 2006, lot 145. Seller Inventory # 25-5-20

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 26.

About this Item: Madrid: widow of Manuel Fernandez, 1757., 1757. 3 volumes. 4to., (8 x 6 inches). 4 folding engraved maps of North America, the Pacific and adjacent land masses, California, and the Gulf of California; the California map with ten pictorial border vignettes; woodcut head- and tail-piece ornaments and decorative initials (the first 2 maps each with a short tear or repair at gutter, tear in second map repaired; small hole to Xx2 in volume II, volume 3 washed and with a few small marginal paper repairs). Contemporary vellum over thin pasteboard, original manuscript title and pen-and-ink ornamentation on spines (endpapers renewed). FIRST EDITION OF THE FIRST PRINTED HISTORY OF CALIFORNIA. Miguel Venegas, a brilliant Mexican-born Jesuit, transferred a longing to serve in the new California missions, thwarted by ill-health, to intense study of the territory's history. In researching what would become a detailed 709-page history of the territories of present-day California, Baja California, southern Arizona and the northern Sonora, "Venegas employed the highest level of historical methodology, collecting original manuscripts, annual reports, and letters of numerous other missionaries in California and Sonora In 1735, Father Provincial Juan Antonio de Oviedo ordered that all archival material relative to California be provided to Father Venegas who also employed a novel form of acquiring information: detailed questionnaires covering the left half of the sheet, leaving the right half of the same sheet for answers, that were sent to persons who had participated in or were currently active in the California mission field" (W. Michael Mathes, art. in Dorothy Sloan, The Daniel Volkmann Collection of the Zamorano 80, 5 Feb. 2003, p. 280). Completed in August 1739, Venegas' manuscript was filed, unpublished, because of the revelations it provided of the weaknesses of Spanish defenses in California, until it was sent to Madrid a decade later for revision and publication, a task assigned to the Jesuit scholar Andrés Marcos Burriel at Toledo. Burriel combined Venegas' work with other data from Jesuit archival sources and the Council of the Indies, and expanded the account to include events which had transpired since 1739. He imposed a new structure on the work, dividing it into three parts, the first covering the geography of California and its native inhabitants, the second, attempts to occupy the region prior to the Jesuits; and the third, the Jesuits' accomplishments up to 1757. Burriel's fourth section, occupying all of volume III, contains extensive documentary appendices. Three of the four maps were composed under his direction. The maps comprise 1) a large general map of Lower California with vignette border incorporating depictions of California natives and fauna and the martyrdom of Fathers Carranco and Tamaral (Wagner, Northwest Coast, 587; Wheat, Mapping the Transmississippi West, p. 85 & no. 138); 2) a general chart of the north Pacific showing Asia and the northwest coast of America, engraved by Manuel Rodriguez (Wagner 585); 3) a map of the lands adjacent to the upper part of the Gulf of California, 1747, after the Jesuit missionary Konsag (Wagner 586); and 4) a map of the Pacific and California between the Equator and 39 30' north latitude, by Joseph González after Anson (Wagner 584) The Noticia, which reached a wide audience both through this edition and translations intoe English (1759), Dutch (1762), French (1767) and German (1769), is important on numerous counts. Burriel's compilation is the principal source of information about Father Konsag's explorations in 1746, during which the question of California's insularity were conclusively laid to rest. The map of the Gulf of California, handsomely engraved by Joseph Gonzales to illustrate Konsag's account, is a landmark of California cartography, the first accurate depiction of the Baja peninsula and the regions of the Colorado and Gila rivers. The frontispiece map of California is without a doubt one of the most beautiful. Seller Inventory # 000007

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 27.

About this Item: Taylor and Francis for the Author [1849]-1861;, London, 1861. 5 volumes plus supplement. List of subscribers, list of plates in each volume; title-page of volume 1 with gutter repair and strengthening. Folio (21 1/2 x 14 1/2 in.; 54.6 x 36.8 cm.). 418 hand-colored lithographs after John Gould, H.C. Richter and W. Hart. Full contemporary green morocco, elaborate gilt border of acanthus and Greek key roll tools and 1 roll of shells in blind. Spine in 6 compartments, richily gilt with gilt dentelles, raised bands with 2 letterering pieces, yellow-coated endpapers, edges gilt; expertly rebacked. PROVENANCE: Red-ink stamp "Property of William and Flora Richardson Library" stamped on the front and rear paste-downs of each volume. First edition. "THE TROCHILIDAE OF GOULD IS HIS MASTERPIECE, AND MUST EVER REMAIN A FEAST OF BEAUTY AND A SOURCE OF WONDER.AN INCOMPARABLE CATALOGUE AND COMPENDIUM OF BEAUTIES" (Fine Bird Books). Gould maintained an obsessive fascination for Hummingbirds: "These wonderful works of creation my thoughts are often directed to them in the day, and my night dreams have not infrequently carried me to their native forests in the distant country of America" (Gould "Preface"). During his lifetime he identified more than 400 species of Hummingbird, Linneaus, by comparison, having only identified 22. Gould famously exhibited his personal collection (from which the plates in this monograph are drawn) at the Great Exhibition of 1851 in the Zoological Gardens in Regents Park, and one of his revolving displays of these tiny birds with their "jewel-like glittering hues" (Gould "Preface") can be seen currently at the Yale Center for British Art as part of their exhibition "Endless Forms": Charles Darwin and the Natural Sciences. As a result Gould's "masterpiece [is] an incomparable catalogue and compendium of beauties" ("Fine Bird Books"). Initially employed as a taxidermist [he was known as the 'bird-stuffer'] by the Zoological Society, Gould's fascination with birds from the east began in the "late 1820s [when] a collection of birds from the Himalayan mountains arrived at the Society's museum and Gould conceived the idea of publishing a volume of imperial folio sized hand-coloured lithographs of the eighty species, with figures of a hundred birds (A Century of Birds Hitherto Unfigured from the Himalaya Mountains, 1830-32). Gould's friend and mentor N. A. Vigors supplied the text. Elizabeth Gould made the drawings and transferred them to the large lithographic stones. Having failed to find a publisher, Gould undertook to publish the work himself; it appeared in twenty monthly parts, four plates to a part, and was completed ahead of schedule. "With this volume Gould initiated a format of publishing that he was to continue for the next fifty years, although for future works he was to write his own text. Eventually fifty imperial folio volumes were published on the birds of the world, except Africa, and on the mammals of Australia-he always had a number of works in progress at the same time. Several smaller volumes, the majority not illustrated, were published, and he also presented more than 300 scientific papers. "His hand-coloured lithographic plates, more than 3300 in total, are called 'Gould plates'. Although he did not paint the final illustrations, this description is largely correct: he was the collector (especially in Australia) or purchaser of the specimens, the taxonomist, the publisher, the agent, and the distributor of the parts or volumes. He never claimed he was the artist for these plates, but repeatedly wrote of the 'rough sketches' he made from which, with reference to the specimens, his artists painted the finished drawings. The design and natural arrangement of the birds on the plates was due to the genius of John Gould, and a Gould plate has a distinctive beauty and quality. His wife was his first artist. She was followed by Edward Lear, Henry Constantine Richter, William Matthew Hart, and Joseph Wolf" (Gordon C. Sauer for DNB). Anker 177, 182; Diane Donaldson "Pict. Seller Inventory # 6BBB82

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 28.

About this Item: Washington: Jno. T. Towers, 1852., 1852. 4to., (11 x 7 4/8 inches). Frontispiece and 10 lithographed plates on 7 sheets with tinted grounds, 6 folded lithographed maps. Original green pictorial cloth, gilt (rear cover stained). First published in 1851 without plates or maps, and so popular that five editions were published by the following year in 1852. "During the years 1849 and 1850, when the tide of emigration was beyond all example, and when the magnificent expanse of waters groaned under the weight of commerce, the anchorage of San Francisco crowed with richly laden ships, all eager to transport their valuable cargoes to the mining region through the unexplored mazes of extensive bays and rivers, and while thousands of human beings were anxiously flocking thither, often in open boats, ill suited to the exposed navigation leading to the interior, the enterprising citizens of San Francisco, in the face of these embarrassments, and in the absence of any authentic charts, saw the necessity of careful and immediate surveys" (Ringgold "Preface"). The fine views include: "View of San Francisco from Yerba Buena Island. Entrance to San Francisco"; "View of Sacramento City from the west bank"; "View of Benicia from the Anchorage East of Seal Island"; "View of Monte Diablo from Garnet Island"; "View from the Forks of the Sacramento"; "Mark for Invincible Buoy Point Smith, east of Angel I. on with Signal Hill"; "Mark for Invincible Buoy North extreme of Marin Is. on with clump of trees north of San Rafael"; "Mark for Tongue Shoal"; "Entrance to the Sacramento River"; "Mark for entering the Sacramento and its Forks at their confluence"; "Mark for entering the second section of the Middle Fork of the Sacramento River". The maps include: "General Chart Embracing Surveys of the Farallones Entrance to the Bay of San Francisco Bays of San Francisco and San Pablo Straits of Carquines and Suisun Bay and the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers to the Cities of Sacramento and San Joaquin California"; "Chart of the Farallones and Entrance to the Bay of San Francisco California"; "Chart of the Bay of San Pablo Straits of Carquines and part of the Bay of San Francisco California"; "Chart of Suisun & Vallejo Bays with the Confluence of the Rivers Sacramento and San Joaquin California"; "Chart of the Sacramento River from Suisun City to the American River California"; six charts on one sheet: Straits of Carquines and Vallejo Bay by Cadwalader Ringgold, U. S. N. 1850.; Depot of the Pacific Mail Steam Company Benicia; Anchorage off Sacramento City; Anchorage off New York of the Pacific; Anchorage off San Francisco; Vallejo and Mare Island Strait from the U.S. Coast Survey. 1850. Seller Inventory # 72lib605

More information about this seller | Contact this seller 29.