ILLUSTRATED
BOOKS \ CUTS & ENGRAVINGS
ILLUSTRATED
BOOKS \ CUTS & ENGRAVINGS
“In Search of ” — A Brave & Sad Account
Kane, Elisha Kent. Arctic explorations: The second Grinnell expedition in search of Sir John Franklin, 1853, ’54, ’55. Philadelphia: Childs & Peterson, 1856. 8vo (23.5 cm, 9.25"). 2 vols. I: Frontis., add. engr. t.-p., 464 pp.; 1 fold. map. , 11 plts., illus. II: Frontis., add. engr. t.p., 467, [1] pp.; 1 fold. map, 1 map, 7 plts.
Click the images for enlargements. As described by the title-pages, the volumes are “Illustrated by upwards of three hundred engravings, from sketches by the author. The steel plates executed [by J. Hamilton and others] under the superintendence of J.M. Butler, the wood engravings by Van Ingen & Snyder.” The plates total 20 altogether, including frontispieces.
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Popular Mechanics Kater, Henry, & Dionysius Lardner. A treatise on mechanics. By Captain Henry Kater . . . and the Rev. Dionysius Lardner . . . Philadelphia: Carey & Lea, 1831. 8vo (18.2 cm, 7.5"). [6], [iii]–viii, 287, [1] pp., [1 (index)] f.; 21 plts.
Click the interior images for enlargements. The work is illustrated with an added engraved title-page bearing a vignette signed in type, “H. Corbould del.” and “O. Pelton sc.,” and with 
21 plates of pendulums, levers, pulleys, etc., engraved by H. Morse. Contents include a series title-page and an index.
• Checklist American Imprints 7802. Publisher's quarter cloth over paper-covered boards, spine with printed paper label; label darkened, sides rubbed and with stains; cloth splitting along joints and down center of spine (through paper label). Front pastedown with with inked ownership inscription, undated but early. Chip at lower margin of pp. 243/244, taking several words of bottom line but not affecting sense; top right corner of pp. 245/246 chipped, costing a portion of the page numbers only. Foxed throughout, including the plates; engraved title-page browned. Several instances of penciled notations in margins. Pages untrimmed. (24557)
Saving Youth from
the Devil's Blandishments Keach, Benjamin. War with the Devil: Or, the young mans conflict with the powers of darkness, in a dialogue... London: Benjamin Harris, 1683. 8vo (15 cm, 5.9"). [2], 208 pp. (pagination skips from 94 to 105); 2 plts. (of 7).
Click the interior images for enlargement. The volume opens with two copper-engraved plates, depicting the protagonist in his natural and converted states.
• ESTC R215502; Wing (rev ed.) K105. Period-style speckled calf framed in gilt single fillet, spine with gilt-stamped leather title-label, gilt-ruled raised bands, and gilt-stamped compartment decorations; binding signed by Starr Bookworks. Five plates lacking. Title-page and several others (including the reverse of the first plate) institutionally rubber-stamped, same also of the lower edges of closed book. First plate with two small ink stains and small repair in upper margin (end of now-closed tear extending into image without loss). Pages age-toned with some spotting; trimmed closely, occasionally touching initial letters or headers. Imperfect — interesting. (24771)
A
U.S. Navy Classic —
21 “Elegant”
Engravings
[Kimball,
Horace]. American naval battles: Being a complete history of the battles
fought by the Navy of the United States from its establishment in 1794, to the
present time...with twenty-one elegant engravings, representing battles, &c.
Boston: J. J. Smith, 1831. 8vo. Engr. title, 278, [1] pp., 19 illus., 2 plts.
•
Second edition; first published in 1816 under the title The Naval Temple,
and with "authorship" ascribed to Barber Badger. Why this unchanged
second edition is ascribed to Kimball is a mystery. One of the earliest, and
certainly to that time the most lavishly illustrated, histories of the Navy,
it covers Tripoli, 1812, and more, with the text being heavily composed of officers'
reports and other official, eyewitness accounts. All but two of the engravings
are full-page text illustrations, not plates. and they are chiefly wood engravings,
only one being on copper. The two plates—illustrations produced separately
and inserted into the printed gatherings, and not counted in the pagination—consist
of one of each type of engraving.
• Sabin 1165. Original sheep, worn, dry, rubbed, joints partially open; loss of spine leather top and bottom. Expectable foxing. The illustrations still please, and the text informs.
COLORADO!King, Alfred Castner. Mountain idylls and other poems. Chicago/New York/Toronto: Fleming H. Revell Co., (copyright 1901).
8vo. Frontis., [8], [7]-120 pp.; 1 fold. plt., 15 plts. 
16 plates of Colorado mountain scenery, including one oversized, folding panoramic view.
• Publisher's green cloth, front cover stamped in black, white, and silver, spine with title stamped in silver; binding fresh and clean save for barely noticeable rubbing to corners and spine extremities. A beautiful copy. (16666)
Chiswick Press Erotica — Limited to 125 CopiesKnight, Richard Payne. A discourse on the worship of Priapus, and its connection with the mystic theology of the ancients ... (a new edition). To which is added an essay on the worship of the generative powers during the middle ages of Western Europe. London: Privately printed [at the Chiswick Press for J.C. Hotten], 1865. 4to (21.9 cm, 8.6"). xvi, 254 pp.; 40 plts. (2 double-page).
Single-click any image where the hand appears on
The volume is illustrated with 40 engraved plates depicting various phallic and genital-oriented statues, coins, and images. There was a very close reprinting in 1894, with a preface giving that date; the present
example matches the collation and all other points of the 1865 edition, including the errata being in their uncorrected state (they were updated for the 1894 printing).
Binding: Roxburghe-style binding of contemporary quarter straight-grain morocco with dark red paper–covered sides, spine with gilt-stamped title. Upper edges gilt.
An interesting “gentleman’s book” in a variety of senses.
FromRomulus
Augustulus to Louis
PhilippeKoch, Christopher William. History of the revolutions in Europe.... Middletown [Ct.]: Edwin Hunt, 1833. 2 vols. in 1. 12mo (19.5 cm, 7.625"). I: 280 (i.e., 276) pp.; 4 plts. II: 393, [1 (blank)] pp., [1 (blank)] f.; 8 plts. 
24 wood-engraved illustrations on 12 plates, some of which are signed “JWB” and one of which is signed “B.”
• Contemporary publisher’s mottled sheep; spine gilt extra. Fine abrasions or chipping to leather, especially to head and foot of spine. Offsetting from turn-ins; lightly foxed throughout. A closed tear without loss in pp. 327–28. All edges marbled.
Dance of Death Chapbook — “Très Rare”La grande danse macabre des hommes et des femmes, historiée & renouvellée de vieux Gaulois, en langage le plus poli de notre temps. Troyes: Jean-Antoine Garnier, 1728. 4to (22 cm, 8.6"). 76 pp.
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Over60 large woodcuts illustrate the text, with some images appearing in both sections. The volume concludes with several poems on the themes of life, death, and the afterlife.
Uncommon: We trace only nine copies in the U.S., all but one in libraries east of the Mississippi.
• Fairfax-Murray, French, 108; Morin, Bibliothèque bleue de Troyes, 435; Nisard, Histoire des Livres Populaires, II, 303. Binding with minor scuffing at corners and old (good) repairs to head and foot of spine, with leather starting to crack over joints; hinges tender. Pages slightly age-toned, with signature marks shaved.
American
Gift Book
— Two
ILLUMINATED
Leaves
The
ladies' wreath. A souvenir for all seasons. Boston: Phillips,
Sampson & Co., [ca. 1855]. 8vo (19 cm, 7.5"). [2 illuminated] ff., 288 pp.;
4 plts.
Binding: Publisher's red morocco, covers and spine gilt extra in foliate designs with cherubim at play. All edges gilt.
• Faxon 457a. Binding as above, front joint just starting
at top and bottom, edges and extremities showing very slight wear, gilt slightest
bit rubbed in spots; overall bright and handsome. Light age-toning and spotting
throughout.In
remarkably good condition, unusually bright. (20886)
“Hai-Kai”Lafferty, Robert C. (Bob). Scores of cheerful epigrams in hai-kai form and with sketches. New York: The Culture Press, 1929. 8vo. [4 (blank)], v–xi, [1 (blank)], 17–123, [13 (1 blank)] pp.; illus. 
• Publisher's green cloth, with an attractive design on the front cover. Very light rubbing over joints, and soiling to front cover. Pages clean. Very good. (5895)
One of Only 20 Sets — Splendidly Bound
La Fontaine, Jean
Louis. Oeuvres complettes de J. La Fontaine.... A Paris: de l'imprimerie
de Crapelet, Chez Lefèvre, libraire, 1814. 8vo. 6 vols. 
This set carries the bookplate of French collector Louis Mercier.
Luscious.
A fine set of a scarce and beautiful edition.
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STRIKINGLY Illustrated La Motte-Fouque, F. de la. Undine. New York: The Limited Editions Club, 1930. 4to. vii, [1], 141, [5] pp.; illus.
• Limited Editions Club, Bibliography of the Fine Books Published by the Limited Editions Club, 10. Binding as above; a clean, fresh copy showing next to no wear, in a rubbed slipcase with the spine reinforced some time ago with tape. (11241)
A “Learned & Curious” Work — IllustratedLanzi, Luigi. Saggio di lingua Etrusca e di altre antiche d’Italia per servire alla storia de’popoli, delle lingue e delle belle arti ... edizione seconda. Firenze: Tipografia di Attilio Tofani, 1824. 8vo (21.5 cm, 8.5"). 3 vols. I: Frontis., xxviii, [2], 357, [1] pp.; 4 plts. II: xv, [1], 496 pp.; 10 plts. III: xi, [497]–772, xliv, [4], 94, [2] pp.; 4 plts.
Click the interior image for an enlargement.
The three volumes are illustrated with18 copper-etched plates, some signed by Tommaso Nasi, depicting inscriptions, coins and medallions, and other antiquities.
Binding: Contemporary vellum, spines gilt extra with gilt-stamped leather title and volume labels.
• Brunet, III, 827; Cicognara 2595; DeBacker-Sommervogel, IV, 1501. Bindings show only very minor signs of wear overall, some light speckling to spines and small spots of discoloration to two front covers, two volumes with lower corners bumped, two spine labels with small scuffs. Front pastedowns each with private collector’s bookplate and institutional rubber-stamp (no other markings), vol. I with small early inked name on front pastedown. One leaf with small hole affecting five letters. A few leaves very lightly age-toned, some plates in vol. II and first and last few leaves of each volume faintly foxed, otherwise clean. An attractive set.
Exploring One of those “Lesser Paths” of History“One Hundred Illustrations”Larwood, Jacob, & John Camden Hotten. The history of signboards, from the earliest times to the present day... sixth edition. London: John Camden Hotten, 1867. 8vo (18.8 cm, 7.4"). Col. frontis., x, 536 pp.; 19 plts.
Click the interior images for enlargement.
Provenance: Title-page stamped by a private collector: “Thomas Witherell Palmer, Log Cabin Park” (Detroit).
• Contemporary half calf with marbled paper–covered sides, spine with gilt-stamped leather title-label and ornate gilt-stamped decorations within compartments; binding with light to moderate rubbing overall, with spine leather starting to show some cracking. All edges stained red. 
Delightful reading and looking, and a delightful copy.
“L’homme fossile en Europe”Le Hon, Henri Sébastien. L’homme fossile en Europe son industrie, ses moeurs, ses oeuvres d’art ... cinquième édition avec une notice biographique .... Paris: J. Baudry, 1878. 8vo (22.5 cm, 8.9"). Frontis., viii, 487, [1] pp.; 3 plts.
a chromolithographic frontispiece, three tinted lithographic plates, and numerous in-text wood engravings.
• Contemporary quarter green sheep in imitation of morocco over paper-covered sides, spine with gilt-stamped title; joints and edges slightly rubbed, spine showing very faint traces of a now-absent label. Front pastedown with private collector’s 19th-century bookplate and with institutional rubber-stamp (no other markings). Half-title with chip to outer margin; pages and plates clean and fresh.
In Original Boards Lebrun, Henri. Aventures et conquetes de Fernand Cortez au Mexique. Tours: Chez Ad. Mame, 1839. 12mo. xxiii, 288 pp., 3 plts., engr. title.
Click the interior image for an enlargement. Provenance: Old signatures of Eustace Barron and Louis Despres, fils.
• Publisher's blue diced paper–covered boards, worn and partly discolored; foxing. Signatures as above. Housed in a cloth clamshell case. (20508)
Ancient Dress. 51 Copper-Engraved Plates.Lens, André Corneille. Le costume ou essai sur les habillements et les usages de plusieurs peuples de l’antiquité, prouvé par les monuments. Liege: Aux dépens de l’auteur, chez J.F. Bassompierre, 1776. 4to (24.9 cm, 9.8"). xxxi, [1], 411, [1] pp.; 51 plts
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Heritage ClubTwo-Volume Edition Lewis, Meriwether, & William Clark. The journals of the expedition under the command of Capts. Lewis and Clark... New York: Heritage Press, (copyright 1962). 8vo. 2 vols. I: xlv, [1], 231, [1] pp.; 1 map, illus. II: xviii, 233–547, [1] pp.; illus.
Click the interior images for enlargements. 
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