PORTUGAL \ PORTUGUESE

Portuguese Embroidered Binding — A Lisbon Luxury Diario, 1816

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•  A jewel of an almanac: the 1816 edition of a pocket-sized gathering of ecclesiastical and civil information, in a treasurablegoldwork embroidered binding. The volume opens with ahand-colored, folding map of Portugal; it includes, along with the calendar of feast days, a directory of European royalty and a table of sunrise and sunset times.

Binding:  Contemporary dove-colored silk, front cover with spangles and goldwork embroidery (couched and broad plate) surrounding the embroidered coat of arms of the Kingdom of Portugal, back cover with similar goldwork surroundinga needle-worked pastoral scene of a shepherd with two of his flock, with a tree and flying birds in the background, spine with stylized leaf design in gold and silver stitching; all edges gilt and gauffered, original red-dotted silk bookmark present and attached. The volume is housed in theoriginal and elegantly gilt-tooled dark red morocco–covered case, this fitted with a green and red patterned paper–lined interior.

Provenance:  Front free endpaper with attractive early inked inscription of J.A. Calderhead, calligraphed with flourishes on a blue-colored banner.

•  Binding as above, silk and some metalwork just slightly darkened with embroidery still virtually perfect; case with lightest shelfwear and unobtrusive small cracks to leather, moderate rubbing to interior paper. Small closed split to one fold of map, and a few lower corners bumped; a handful of outer edges trimmed closely, in some cases just touching outermost letters with no loss of text. Truly lovely. (38157)

English Camões in Green Morocco

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•  Sonnets and canzones by the legendary Portuguese poet and playwright, translated into English by Percy Clinton Sydney Smythe, Viscount Strangford, a notable Lusophile who served as a diplomat in Lisbon — here in an attractive fourth edition.

Binding:  Contemporary dark green straight-grain morocco, spine with gilt-stamped rules, rolls, and devices. Covers framed with a delicately curly gilt-rolled border; the center panels, within, accented by gilt-stamped corner fleurons. A bit of additional filigree in blind appears both within the rules of the gilt border and within the border on each center panel, to nice subtle effect. Gilt inner dentelles. All edges gilt.

•  NSTC C355.   Binding as above, leather rubbed at edges and joints, spine a bit dimmed. Front pastedown with armorial bookplate of John Allan Powell; front fly-leaf with inked inscription dated 1922. A few spots of foxing, pages otherwise clean. A pretty and very English production for this Portuguese poet.  A charming volume.  (23077)

Keeping the Portuguese Sort of Up to Date

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•  The Portuguese Crown publishes a Portuguese translation of a proposed exchange of prisoners that British agent Mr. Mackenzie offered to Monsieur Mousier, but which was rejected.

WorldCat locates only one library worldwide (Yale) reporting ownership.

•  Removed from a bound volume. Very good.  (41413)

Dealing Judicially withContraband Smugglers

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•  By this Alvará (13 September 1764) the king addresses matters of jurisdiction in cases against dealers in contraband sugar. (“Alvará, porque V. Magestade ha por bem ordenar que as diligencias preparatorias dos processos verbaes dos Contrabandos, apprehendidos na Alfandegado do assucar da cidade de Lisboa, se fação per ante o Juiz Conservador geral do Commercio. . . . ”)

There are two issues: in this issue on p. [1], the catchword is “hendidos,” and in the other catchword is “hendi-.”

WorldCat locates only the copy at the John Carter Brown Library.

•  Removed from a volume. Light brown stain in lower margin and an even lighter stain in top one; old foliation number neatly inked in upper outer corner of recto. A good exemplar.  (28246)

Hospital Reform forthe Benefit of Orphans

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•  The king has decided that reform and improvement aere needed at the Orphans' Hospital (Hospital dos Expostos) in Lisbon and here issues the decree specifying the changes. (“Alvará, por que Vossa Magestade he servido occorrer com as providencias necessarias para fazer em cessar os inconvenientes, que até agora se praticavam no Hospital dos Expostos: Dando nova forma para as creações, entregas, e educações delles . . . “).

No copies found via WorldCat or COPAC.

•  Removed from a bound volume; now in modern wrappers. Old foliation neatly inked in upper outer corners; clean, with wide margins.  (28222)

REFORMING the Queen'sHydrotheraphy Hospital at Caldas

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•  The Portuguese king decides to reform and reorganize the Hospital Real das Caldas (a thermal springs treatment center) that Queen Leonor established in 1484. The details of the innovations are detailed here. (“Alvará de Regimento, por que Vossa Magestade, annullando, cassando, e abolindo o antigo Regimento, chamado Compromisso do Hospital Real das Caldas . . . que depois delle se expediram; fazendo cessar a Inspecção, que sobre elle até agora teve a Meza da Consciencia, e Ordens; e separando-o da Adminstração dos Conegos Seculares de S. João Evangelista”).

No copy traced via WorldCat or COPAC.

•  Removed from a volume and laid into modern wrappers. Light stain in outer margin of last leaf with a trace of same showing on a few more inward; old foliation neatly inked in upper outer corners; generally clean, with good margins. One inked, contemporary marginal note.  (28234)

Santarem, Manuel Francisco de Barros, 2. visconde de. Inéditos (Miscellanea). Comp. & ed. by Jordáo de Freitas. Lisboa: Impr. Libanio da Silva, 1914. Small folio. 582 pp.
$150.00

•  Tan sheep, tooled in blind on spine and covers. Some worming, exclusively in margins.  (3606)

How WouldExpulsion “Go” in Portugal?

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•  Seabra da Silva (1732–1813) was a fidalgo and close ally of Pombal in his war on the Jesuits. The present work is a translation of his 1768 work in Portuguese of Petiçaö de recurso apresentada em audiencia publica a Sua Magestade, sobre o ultimo e critico estado desta monarchia, depois que a Sociedade chamada de Jesus, foi desnaturalisada e proscripta dos dominios des França e Hispana.

It is a study of the Society of Jesus and its expulsion from Spain and France and the consequences thereof, and it was presented to Joseph of Portugal so that he might anticipate similar consequences following his order of expulsion.

•  DeBacker-Sommervogel, XI, 1205.   Contemporary vellum over paste boards. Blackened area on spine; bookplate. A clean copy. (20462)

Can’t TrustThose Spaniards

•  During the Seven Years War, Portugal gave support to her traditional ally Great Britain, especially the use of her ports, and with the entry of Spain into the war, the Spanish tried to put a stop to it. First they tried diplomacy, and when that failed they invaded their neighbor, as is here documented. They were beaten off by the Portuguese with British assistance, thus reinforcing Portuguese distrust of their Castilian neighbors and their close ties with Great Britain.

•  Palau 307020. Wrappers stencilled in green with manuscript title on paper label affixed to front wrapper; all edges speckled red. Wrappers with a few tears and a little tattering. Small wormhole in front fly-leaf. A few pencil marks. Inked number on verso of front fly-leaf.  (9044)

UncommonSpanish-Language Edition

Vertot, René Aubert de.

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•  First Spanish edition of this important Portuguese history by the Abbé de Vertot, focusing on the 1640 revolution in which the "Spanish captivity" was ended and the house of Braganza brought to power. Jefferson's library contained a copy in the original French, and, following its first printing in that language in 1689, the work was translated into a number of other tongues, with the present Spanish rendition being now significantly less common than most others.

Provenance: With the armorial bookplate of D. Feliciano Ramirez de Arellano, Marqués de la Fuensanta del Valle, and bookseller's ticket from a Lisboa dealer.

•  Palau 361040. Contemporary treed calf, spine gilt extra with gilt-stamped leather title label, covers showing only light wear; joints and board edges rubbed, leather lost over spine head and cracking over foot, spine also with small traces of paper label. Hinges slightly tender. (4260)

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