Antiquarian and Collectors’ Books

LARKIN, Philip. All What Jazz, A Record Diary 1961-1971. London: Faber and Faber, 1985. 8vo (197 x 125mm.) (Mild toning.) Original brown cloth, dust-jacket. – And a further fourteen volumes (including Patrick Leigh Fermor’s ‘The Traveller’s Tree’, 1951, 8vo) (15).

EAST ASIA. – R.L. JARMAN (editor). Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports. 1841-1941. [London:] Archive Editions, 1996. 6 vols., 8vo (246 x 151mm.) (Mild toning.) Original blue leatherette, silver lettering (6).

WISDEN, John (publisher). Cricketers’ Almanack. London: Sporting Handbooks Ltd., 1970-2017. 11 vols., 8vo (158 x 101mm.) Advertisements, numerous illustrations. (Mild toning.) Original brown cloth, dust-jackets (lacking dust-jackets for 1980-81). Note: comprises the almanacks for 1970-1974, 1978, 1980-1982, 2008, 2017. – And a related volume. Provenance: from the estate of Trevor Hives, thence by descent (12).

WISDEN, John (publisher). Cricketers’ Almanack. London: John Wisden and Co., 1922-1934. 4 vols., 8vo (158 x 93mm.) Advertisements, numerous illustrations, 4 photographic plates. (Toning, occasional spotting.) Original wrappers for 1922, rebound in green cloth for 1927  and 1934, original brown cloth for 1933 (some loss to spine panel of 1922, light rubbing to cloth extremities). Note: comprises almanacks for the years 1922, 1927, 1933 and 1934 (4).

WISDEN, John (publisher). Cricketers’ Almanack. London: John Wisden and Co. and Sporting Handbooks, 1945-2007. 41 vols., 8vo (158 x 93mm.) Advertisements, numerous illustrations. (Toning, occasional spotting and corner creasing.) Original card covers for 1945-47, 1949, 1951-52, 1956-59, 1963-66, others brown cloth (creasing to spines, many dust-soiled), dust-jackets (some tears, dust-soiled). Note: comprises the volumes for 1945-69, 1972-73, 1975-76, 1982, 1985-86, 1988-89, 1992-94, 1996, 1998 and 2007, including a duplicate for the year 1989 (41).

FOLIO SOCIETY (publisher). – Richard DAWKINS. The Selfish Gene. London: Folio Society, 2019. Third edition, 8vo (234 x 152mm.) Colour illustrations. (Mild toning.) Original decorative cloth, slipcase. – And a quantity of approximately seventy-five further volumes also published by The Folio Society (including a further volume by Richard Dawkins, ‘The Blind Watchmaker’, 2009, 8vo, and also ‘The Arabian Nights’ illustrated by E.J. Detmold, 2001, 8vo) (a quantity).

FOLIO SOCIETY (publisher). – Andrew WHEATCROFT. The Habsburgs. London: Folio Society, 2001. 8vo (222 x 165mm.) (Mild toning.) Original decorative cloth, slipcase. – And a quantity of approximately seventy further volumes also published by The Folio Society (including Alexander Thayer’s ‘Life of Beethoven’, 2004, 8vo) (a quantity).

FOLIO SOCIETY. – Anthony TROLLOPE. The Novels of Anthony Trollope. London: Folio Society, circa 1981-1999. 48 vols., 8vo (224 x 221mm.) Illustrations. (Mild toning.) Original cloth, slipcases. – And a further thirteen volumes published by The Folio Society (including Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’, 2004, 8vo) (61).

SIGNED BOOKS. – Clare and Michael MORPURGO. Where My Wellies Take Me… Surrey, Dorking: Templar Publishing, 2012. Limited edition, this being number 161 of 250 copies signed by Clare and Michael Morpurgo and Olivia Lomenech Gill, 4to (218 x 243mm.) Numerous colour illustrations, some folding, tipped-in overlays, 4 colour prints in a mounted envelope. (Mild toning.) Original cloth-backed pictorial boards (faint rub to spine), original blue cloth slipcase with an opening section, mounted paper illustrations to upper cover, tie. – And a further twenty-three volumes for children, all signed (including Axel Scheffler’s ‘How To Keep a Pet Squirrel’, 2010, 8vo) (24).

SIGNED BOOKS. – Antonia S. BYATT. Possession, a Romance. London: Chatto & Windus, 1990. Sixth impression, inscribed by the author, 8vo (233 x 147mm.) (Toning, spotting to fore-edge.) Original blue cloth, dust-jacket (minor creasing to top edge of upper panel). – And a quantity of approximately fifty further volumes of contemporary fiction, all signed (including a first edition, first impression of Jonathan Safran Foer’s ‘Everything is Illuminated’, 2002, 8vo, and Rose Tremain’s ‘Sacred Country’, London Limited Editions, 1992, 8vo) (a quantity).

BOTANY. – Miss [Sarah] SMITH. Studies of Flowers from Nature. Doncaster: Aldwick Hall for the author, [circa 1818.] First edition, folio (380 x 266mm.) Engraved title with hand-coloured vignette, 19 aquatint plates in two states, hand-coloured and uncoloured, letterpress text leaf to each, tissue-guards, 3pp. ‘Subscriber’s List’ and tipped-in errata slip to rear. (Lacking 1 plate, ‘Dahlias’, toning, spotting to tissue-guards only, occasional finger-mark.) Early 20th century half calf over marbled paper-covered boards, two green morocco labels to spine (minor abrasions to boards), near-matching slipcase (extremities rubbed). Note: rare. In his ‘Dictionary’ (vol. 1, p. 35), Burbidge lists a ‘Miss Smith’ who exhibited paintings of fruit at the Royal Academy. He also lists another Miss Smith with a Sheffield address who exhibited fruit pictures at the British Institution around 1842. The book is dedicated to Princess Elizabeth who was herself a keen amateur artist. Provenance: John Grant (pencil name to front pastedown).

LENORMANT, François. Chaldean Magic: Its Origin and Development. London: Samuel Bagster and Sons, [1877]. First edition, 8vo (213 x 132mm.) 2pp. publisher’s advertisements to rear, 18pp. index. (Toning, occasional minor spotting.) Original pictorial green cloth (minor stain to upper cover).

[WILDE, Oscar.] The Ballad of Reading Gaol... by C.3.3. London: Leonard Smithers, 1898. Fifth edition, 8vo (224 x 134mm.) (Toning, browning to pastedowns.) Original white cloth-backed boards (lightly bumped). Provenance: Maurice Jenks, Lord Mayor of London (ink name to front-free endpaper).

ACCOUNT BOOK. [A hand-written account book containing the personal expenses of an English gentleman. N.p.:] 1789-1831.8vo (183 x 115mm.) Approximately 78pp. of manuscript notes relating to personal expenditure under the headings of ‘Presents Made’, ‘Presents Received’, ‘Articles Purchased’ and ‘Clothes’, several blank leaves. (Marginal damp-stain to several leaves, toning.) Contemporary black full straight-grain morocco with brass hasp and lock, t.e.g. (light rubbing to extremities, lacking key). Note: clearly more giving than given to, the ‘Presents Made’ section is quite full and contains the price paid for items. We learn that the gentleman paid ‘£1, 1 shilling’ for Adam Smith’s ‘Wealth of Nations’ in 1796, a gift for Mr. Brown. A Miss Clarke is the recipient of many gowns, shawls and much jewellery, including a silver egg that cost 10 shilling, 6 pence. A Rev. J. Blakeway received a plate of Saxon coins that cost £9, 9 shillings.

[THOMS, William J.] ‘Ambrose Merton’. The Old Story Books of England, Illustrated with Twelve Pictures by Eminent Artists. City of Westminster: for Joseph Cundall, [1845.] 12 wood-engraved plates printed in colour. (Toning, light spotting to plate margins.) Original red blind-stamped cloth, gilt lettering to spine, g.e. (rebacked, extremities bumped). – And a further twenty-three volumes, mainly decorative cloth (including ‘The Coronation Prayer Book’ published by Oxford University Press, 1911, 8vo, and Dudley Costello’s ‘A Tour Through the Valley of the Meuse’, 1846, 8vo) (24).

CAMPBELL, Marie. Folks Do Get Born. New York and Toronto: Rinehart and Company Inc., 1946. First edition, 8vo (204 x 136mm.) Illustrations by Clare Leighton. (Mild toning.) Original grey cloth, dust-jacket (small closed tear to upper panel, minor chipping to extremities). Note: tales of mid-wifery from rural Georgia.

CHILDREN’S BOOKS. – Mabel DEARMER. The Cockyolly Bird. The Book of the Play. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1914. First edition, 4to (214 x 163mm.) 10 tipped-in colour plates. (Mild toning, minor staining to preliminaries and first leaves.) Original red pictorial cloth (inner hinge weakened). Provenance: Elizabeth Brown (pencil name to front-free endpaper). – And a further seven volumes (including Eleanor Vere Boyle’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’, [1875], 4to, and her ‘Child’s Play’, 1859, 4to, and ‘Moorland Mousie’, illustrated by Lionel Edwards, 1929, 4to, and Anna Sewell’s ‘Black Beauty’, 1936, 8vo) (8).

BOND, Michael. A Bear Called Paddington. London: Collins, 1959. First edition, second impression, 8vo (198 x 134mm.) Illustrations by Peggy Fortnum. (Toning, pencil name erased and light spotting to front-free endpaper.) Original red cloth (scuffing to upper cover, lightly bumped), dust-jacket (price-clipped, some loss to extremities, ‘Book 1’ in pencil on inner flap).

BOND, Michael. More About Paddington. London: Collins, 1959. First edition, 8vo (198 x 130mm.) Illustrations by Peggy Fortnum. (Light spotting to front-free endpaper.) Original green cloth (lightly bumped), dust-jacket (price-clipped, fading and some loss to extremities, ‘Book 2’ in pencil on inner flap). – And a further first edition by Michael Bond (‘Paddington Helps Out’, 1960, 8vo) (2).