Many fine brush & color and black & white paintings in the text. 26; 20; 27; 17; 32 folding leaves of mica paper. Five vols. 8vo (240 x 172 mm.), orig. finely decorated wrappers, each set of endpapers finely painted with botanical landscapes, orig. title labels on upper covers in manuscript, new stitching. [Japan: mid-Edo].

A beautiful and remarkable luxury manuscript, created on mica paper and richly illustrated in fine colors and brush, describing and depicting all the elements of the costumes for the emperor, the emperor “emeritus,” the crown prince, the prince’s son, male aristocrats, retainers, and guards of the court. Many of the costumes date from the... More about Illustrated manuscript on fine mica paper, entitled “Shozoku shuyo sho” [“Costumes of the...

1 p.l., 203 pp. 8vo, orig. wrappers (some foxing throughout). Freiburg im Breisgau: Zehnder, [1794 or -95].

First edition. Censorship in Austria in the second half of the 18th century was an “on or off” matter. During the reign of the liberal Joseph II (1780-92), censorship was rather relaxed. But during the reigns of Leopold II (1790-92) and Francis II (1792-1835), censorship practices again tightened in reaction to the revolutionary events in France.

This is a list of recently published “forbidden” books, for the most part issued between 1783 to 1794. There were four major groups of forbidden titles: pornographic French “gallant”... More about Katalog. Der von 1783. bis 1794. in Oesterreich von der hochlöblichen...

Folio (295 x 205 mm.), attractive antique marbled boards. Spain: ca. 1737.

An unrecorded manuscript addition to an edict issued by Philip V in 1737, renewing a 1699 Spanish ban on foreign silk imports. At this time, Spain had a robust silk industry, centered in cities such as Sevilla and Valencia. This documents a survey of Spain’s silk production in the 1730s and predicts the benefits that will come with augmented isolationist economic policy.

Highly legible and in fine condition. Tightly trimmed margins and occasionally touching text. More about Manuscript on paper entitled “Adicion,” containing an edict by Philip V. 8 unnumbered leaves

126 pp. 8vo (195 x 130 mm.), late 19th-cent. blue sheep-backed marbled boards, spine gilt. Paris: Lebrun, 1788.

A rare auction catalogue, priced throughout in a contemporary hand, of a formidable collection of paintings. Although Lugt attributes this to Montesquiou (1739-98), it seems that most of the lots did not belong to him. Jean Baptiste Pierre Lebrun (1748-1813), this sale’s expert, was known to add his inventory and lesser consignments to prestigious sales for which he was responsible. Montesquiou, member of the Académie Française and a general, was close to many of the physiocrats.

The present catalogue describes 276 lots of paintings by artists such as Giulio Romano, Guercino, Tintoretto, Veronese, Albani, Velazquez, Panini, J. Brueghel the Elder, Bril, Rembrandt, Brauwer, Hals, Teniers, Rubens, A. van Dyck, J. Ruysdael, Potter, Jordaens, A. & I. van Ostade, Metsu, Wynants, Wouwerman, C. Netscher, Miel, N. Berghem, Lairesse, Maes, J. Steen, Lancret, Weenix, Bega, Le Nain, Vouet, G. Poussin, S. Bourdon, Watteau, Coypel, C. Vanloo, F. Boucher, Natoire, Lagrenée aîné & jeune, H. Robert, Greuze, Fragonard, Norblin, etc., etc. The remaining lots consist of ceramics, sculpture, Japanese lacquer and porcelain, ornate pieces of furniture, chandeliers, clocks, and girandoles (for a grand total of 417 lots). The Dutch and Flemish paintings sold for extremely high prices. The annotations also show which lots were bought-in. More about Catalogue d’une très-belle Collection de Tableaux, d’Italie, de Flandres, de Hollande, et de...

48 pp. 8vo (180 x 130 mm.), late 19th-cent. brown morocco-backed marbled boards, spine gilt. Paris: Delaville & Paillet, 1781.

The auction catalogue of 114 paintings belonging to the Duc de la Vallière (1708-80), the greatest bibliophile of the 18th century. This copy is fully priced, with many buyers’ names added in a contemporary hand. In addition to his fervent book collecting, La Vallière amassed an impressive collection of Italian and Northern school paintings, described here.

The present catalogue details 114 lots of paintings and a lot of two porcelain candle-stands. The paintings include the work of Raphael, Veronese, Tintoretto, Jordaens, Teniers, Rembrandt, Dou... More about Catalogue des Tableaux précieux, des plus grands Maîtres des Ecoles Flamande & Hollandoise;...

44 pp. Small 4to (185 x 130 mm.), late 19th-cent. brown half-morocco signed “Knecht,” spine gilt. Paris: Lebrun, 1782.

An important and rare sale catalogue, fully priced throughout and with nearly all buyers’ names in a contemporary hand. This was the third and final portion of Nogaret’s collection to be sold during his lifetime (1st: Lugt 2791; 2nd: 3153); his estate sale in 1807 (Lugt 7210) offered the inferior leftovers. In the avertissement, Lebrun, this auction’s expert, declares that this catalogue offers an unparalleled selection of Italian paintings.

“[Joseph Hyacinthe François de Paule de Rigaud, comte de] Vaudreuil, whom Alexandre de Tilly remembered as the most... More about Catalogue d’une belle Collection de Tableaux, des Ecoles d’Italie, de Flandre, de Hollande,...

8vo, cont. half-sheep, flat spine gilt, papier dominoté endpapers. Dresden: Walther, 1783-99.

First edition of an important military bibliography, complete with the rare supplement published 16 years later. It was “at that time the most comprehensive and best classified work ever published.”–Sloos, ed., Warfare and the Age of Printing: A Catalogue of Early Printed Books from before 1801 in Dutch Military Collections, p. 30.

The present work lists about 5000 items, arranged by subject, including tactics, artillery, engineering (in its widest sense), cavalry, the law of war, military history, etc., etc. The author has furnished, at the end of both works, most... More about Versuch einer vollständigen Militair-Bibliothek [bound with]: …Zweiter Theil. Finely engraved...

Numerous text illus. 2 p.l., xlvi, [2], 459, [1] pp.; 2 p.l., 274 pp., one leaf; 2 p.l., 309, [3] pp. Three vols. in two. Large 8vo, orig. printed wrappers bound in cont. blue morocco-backed marbled boards, signed “Petitot Rel.,” t.e.g. Paris: Techener, 1897-98-98. [with]: (—). Catalogue de la Collection de Dessins et Estampes de l’Ecole française du XVIIe et du XVIIIe Siècle de feu M. le Baron Jérôme Pichon. 2 p.l., 124 pp. Large 8vo, binding as above. Paris: A. Danlos, 1897.

The posthumous sale of Baron Pichon’s second library (more than 6000 lots) of illuminated manuscripts, illustrated books, and... More about Catalogue de la Bibliothèque de feu M. le Baron Jérôme Pichon

vi, 328 pp. 8vo, cont. half-sheep & marbled boards, flat spine gilt, green leather lettering piece on spine. Zerbst: G.A. Kummer, 1837.

First edition of this valuable, detailed, and surprisingly scarce history of Church, public, and private collections of art, books, manuscripts, and natural history specimens (wunderkammern) in Germany from the medieval period to the present date. Klemm (1802-67), anthropologist and librarian of the Royal Library of Saxony, was also inspector of the royal collections of porcelain, and a member of many cultural organizations throughout Germany. According to the Encycl. Britannica, Klemm developed the concept of “culture.” Following his death, the British... More about Zur Geschichte der Sammlungen für Wissenschaft und Kunst in Deutschland

2 p.l., 400 pp. Small thick 8vo, cont. marbled boards, manuscript title label on upper cover. Vienna: Briffaut, 1736.

A very rare publisher and bookseller’s catalogue. Briffaut, bookseller to the University of Vienna, was active in that city from about 1730 until 1758 (his last recorded catalogue). He specialized in current and second-hand scholarly books and published many books of French literature, which was very fashionable in the Austrian capital. He also had an active business publishing maps which are listed on pages 349-80.

We also learn on pages 338-48 that he had a sideline of selling an elixir — “peaux divines” —... More about Catalogue de Livres François, Latins, Italiens, et Allemands, sur toutes sortes de Matieres,...

24 color-printed woodcut illus., of which six are double-page & 18 are full-page. 20 folding leaves. Large 8vo, orig. wrappers (wrappers somewhat soiled), orig. block-printed title label on upper cover, new stitching. [Osaka or Kyoto: very likely issued privately, Preface dated 1808].

First edition, posthumously published, of this extremely rare work by Buzen Sumie (1734-1806), edited by his son, Aizan. WorldCat locates no copy of our edition; there was a later edition issued in 1826 with rather different images and color palette. The Union Catalogue of Early Japanese Books does not record a copy.

Small tray or pot landscapes — known in the Edo period as senkeiban — have their origins in 10th century China. The “trays” (in Chinese zhan jing pan or penjing) were made out of copper or pottery. They were filled with soil, rocks, pebbles, sand, plants, and miniature trees, forming elaborately conceived miniature garden landscapes. The landscapes are clearly Chinese in style, with mountains and pagodas surrounded by the sea or rivers (represented by pebbles or sand). Many of the created landscapes include miniature houses, temples, gates, stairways, etc. The descriptive text for many of the images discusses the unity and philosophy involved in the creation and depiction of these miniature landscapes. More about Senkeiban [Illustrations of “Tray” Garden Landscapes

Woodcut title-page, 30 double-page & 24 full-page woodcuts. 45 folding leaves. Three vols. in one. 8vo, orig. wrappers, block-printed title label on upper cover (printing of label very faded), new stitching. Kyoto: Chojiya, [1751].

First edition of this illustrated selection of poems from the Tale of Genji, the first novel ever written. The fine woodcuts are by Mitsunobu (or Nagaharu) Hasegawa (active 1710-55), “the leading Ukiyo-e artist of the Kamigata area and, in fact, [he] had few rivals as a book illustrator even in Edo, apart from Toyonobu.”–Hillier, The Art of the Japanese Book, p. 181.

With the increased availability of woodblock-printed books in the 17th century, The Tale of Genji was an obvious text to reprint and illustrate. Many artists put their skills to work on illustrated editions. This edition, which contains 54 poems from the 54 chapters of Lady Murasaki’s novel, was illustrated by Hasegawa. Hoshushi has provided a Preface and text next to each poem explaining the background. At the head of each illustration is the name of the chapter from which it comes. More about Ehon fuji no yukari [Illustrated Poems from the Tale of Genji: A Selection]. Preface & text...