99 pp. 8vo, attractive antique calf-backed paste-paper boards, spine gilt, red morocco lettering-piece on spine. Paris: Joullain, 1778.

The uncommon sale catalogue, fully priced throughout and with buyers’ names, of a noteworthy collection devoted primarily to Italian art and sculpture. Bourlat de Montredon (d. 1777), was an influential amateur and collector who resided in Constantinople for forty years.

The catalogue thoroughly describes 695 lots, many of which are composed of numerous items. Lots 579-671 are Bourlat de Montredon’s impressive group of books of prints, mostly focused on the architecture and decorative arts of Italy, including a number of works by Piranesi. The descriptions... More

Four engraved plates (one folding). 4 p.l., 296 pp., 3 leaves of ads for the author’s other works; 2 p.l., 514, [8] pp. Two vols. Small 8vo, cont. orange-brown speckled boards (spines a little rubbed), orange leather lettering pieces on spines. Düsseldorf: J.H.C. Schreiner, 1811-12.

First edition of a scarce and appealing work. Benzenberg (1777-1846), professor of mathematics at the Lyceum in Düsseldorf, performed many original scientific investigations in the fields of astronomy, physics, and geodetics. He was the first to demonstrate that the earth revolves, a problem which had perplexed scientists since Copernicus (see D.S.B., I, pp. 615-16)... More

29 mounted Woodburytype photographic plates (mostly 238 x 188 mm.), each with printed captions. viii, 92 pages. Large folio, orig. green half-morocco & green pebbled cloth (extremities a bit scuffed, occasional minor foxing), upper cover with a large gilt vignette & lettered in gilt, spine gilt. Leith: “Printed for Private Circulation by Reid & Son, Timber Bush, Leith, 1879.”

A large, beautiful, and little-known photography book, privately printed, with 29 splendid images of trees made by the photographer Andrew Young of Burntisland, and printed according to the Woodbury process of Lock & Whitfield of London. “The following pages are the result of numerous wanderings through the counties of... More

Folding hand-colored lithographed frontis. & one colored plate. 1 p.l., xi, 418 pp. 8vo, 19th-cent. vellum over boards (minor foxing to first few leaves), spine lettered in gilt, dentelles gilt, t.e.g., arms in gilt of the Prince of Wales on upper cover. London: J. Ollivier, 1844.

First edition. “In August 1834, Kinglake set out on an eighteen-month odyssey through Europe and the Ottoman empire. After encountering plague in Constantinople, he travelled to Smyrna, Cyprus, Beirut, the Holy Land, and Jerusalem, before crossing the Sinai Desert to Cairo. Following three weeks in Egypt, he returned north through Damascus and Asia Minor then... More

Double-page frontis. map. 1 p.l., xxxiv, 332 pp.; xxiv, 358, [3] pp. Two vols. 8vo, cont. mottled calf, floral fillet round sides, flat spines gilt, red & green morocco lettering pieces on spines. London: G. Nicol et al., 1796.

First edition and a lovely set of the penultimate survey undertaken by Marshall of the farming practices of six different regions of England.

“Modern agricultural historians have generally held that Marshall’s works on English farming are superior to those of his rival, Arthur Young, as they are more systematically arranged and based on a more thorough knowledge of a district by personal residence there. Unlike Young... More

One double-page woodcut map. 56; 60 folding leaves. Two vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers, new stitching. [China]: Wei jing tang, Preface dated 1814.

An early, variorum edition (1st ed.: 1777) of this great classic, the Xiyu wenjianlu. “The Manchu official Qishiyi, in [the present work], offers a frontiersman’s view of the conquest quite different from that of the imperial center. Qishiyi, who earned his jinshi degree in 1754, served as a low-ranking official in charge of grain supply in Turkestan. He narrates vividly the struggle for succession to the Zunghar Khanate after Galdan Tseren’s death, describes the states bordering the Qing in Central Eurasia... More

Five head-pieces, one tail-piece, two folding maps, three folding plates (all engraved), & three folding printed tables. 4 p.l., xix, 302 pp., one leaf of errata. 8vo, cont. marbled sheep (head of lower joint a little split), flat spine richly gilt, red morocco lettering piece on spine. Paris: Bossange, 1806.

First edition of an important book on the Crimea; it also contains descriptions of previously unrecorded coins and medals from the area. Reuilly (1780-1810), man of letters and diplomat, traveled extensively in eastern Europe. In 1803, Reuilly joined the staff of the Duc de Richelieu, the recently named governor of Odessa. Befriended by... More

“Hishu” [today Saga Prefecture]: 1841-45.

A very rare Japanese manuscript sea chart of the sea routes from Saga Prefecture, a major trading area in the west, to Osaka through the Inland Sea, which is more than 400 km. long and includes in excess of 3000 islands. The Inland Sea, one of the main trade routes for the Japanese in the Edo period, has numerous areas of turbulence and navigating through the numerous islands and rocky outcroppings presented enormous problems in the era before modern navigation systems. In the early 1840s, the central government in Edo ordered each fiefdom to prepare... More

28 engraved plates (many are folding) & six folding printed tables. Four vols. 8vo, cont. polished calf (each lower joint with a slight crack, head of one spine with the slightest chip), spines finely & richly gilt, red & green morocco lettering pieces on spines. London: W. Strahan et al., 1770.

First edition, and a lovely set in attractive contemporary bindings. “On this tour Young travelled 2,500 miles from Bradfield to the northern boundary of England, across country westward, and so in a wide sweep back home, and he collected statistical data from some 250 farms of all sizes and descriptions. These data he attempted... More