Shop — page 14 of 34

Poems, stories and sketches kept as a personal record of his creative output by the wealthy ex-patriate Australian businessman, publisher and neighbour of Virginia Woolf and Hillaire Belloc in the Sussex village of Rodmell. James Murray Allison (1877-1929) was born in Melbourne, left Australia in 1908, managed advertising for The Times (he wrote a… Read more…

Two volumes - I and VI from what must have been a beautiful set of Samuel Johnson’s 1765 edition of Shakespeare’s plays. Contemporary full speckled calf with black and red spine labels. Wear to extremities. Hinge with lower cover of Vol I very tender; first flyleaf of Vol VI beginning to detach. The frontispiece image of Shakespeare appears correct… Read more…

Super-plush and most uncommon private edition of these letters written between two members of one of Britain’s great Whig dynasties, found here in a presentation binding of crushed red morocco by Zaehnsdorff. Near fine binding, fractional rubbing to extremities; red silk doublures, signed ‘Zaehsdorff 1913’; half title precedes the window-framed, ha… Read more…

Carlos Coello’s pioneering Spanish rewrite of Shakespeare’s tragedy, inscribed in the year of publication to a friend: ‘Al Sr D Martin Venera, recuerdo d[] son amigo afectisimo/ Carlos/ Madrid... 1872’ Modern red buckram, bookplate of Libreria Miguel Miranda to the front pastedown. Old vertical fold to title page which is browned and marked close t… Read more…

Spiffy-looking collection of Lee family history papers, a mix of original and copied documents, gathered by Richard Lee of Yarner House on the eastern edge of Dartmoor and relating to the family’s history in north Yorkshire, in Kent and finally in Devon. Attractive folio-size volume bound by Truslove and Hanson, Sloane Street in half crushed blue m… Read more…

Two bound extracts from a first edition of the occultist periodical The Equinox, bound up separately and containing The Herb Dangerous Part II, pp31-90 and Part III The Poem of Hashish, pp55-112. Grey, plain card wrappers with 3 pentagrams scribbled on the upper cover and the initials ‘FJ’ (?). Ownership inscription of M H Miffen to half title. The… Read more…

Beautiful presentation volume by an infatuated Oxford undergraduate (shortly afterwards President of the Union) following his cousin’s winter wedding at the British Ambassador’s Residence in Paris. Small oblong volume with matching slipcase (13.5x11.5cm) The manuscript book has olive green printed paper overlay, the upper cover with a hand-coloured… Read more…

Unrecorded broadside by the Quaker poet, abolitionist and defender of women’s liberties. Single sheet (32x16cm) printed on one side only, old folds and a few short tears and tiny chips to edges. The address to Lavinia and Lavinia’s answer are printed in two columns, preceded by an introduction which mostly misprepresents the genesis of the text: ‘F… Read more…

An unrecorded edition of Charles Jackson’s Narrative of his role in the Wexford Rebellion is the star item in this fascinating collection of Dublin imprints from the 1790s. Small octavo-sized volume bound in contemporary half calf over marbled boards with red morocco spine label: ‘Tracts’. Endpapers with 1794 dated watermark. The imprints appear as… Read more…

Fascinating document written by the soon-to-be Prime Minister setting out the alternatives for what would be known as the Balfour Education Act. Writing on a three sides of a small bifolium, blind-embossed with the House of Commons crest on the first leaf, scarred to the final page where it has been removed from an album page, the Conservative lead… Read more…

Three separately published English histories dating from the Civil War and Commonwealth period which offer contrasted interpretations of Tudor and Stuart history, and each bound without their engraved portraits. Small folio (26x18cm) in 19th century half calf with marbled endpapers and on the front pastedown the bookplate of Edward Fenwick Boyd de… Read more…

500 engravings from the late 17th century made by Louis XIV’s chief engraver which include celebrated depictions of the fountains of ‘le labryrinthe de Versailles’, costume at the court of the Sun King and the Fauxbourgs of Paris. Three large quarto volumes (21x26cm) bound in worn calf; marbled endpapers with the bookplate of ‘Abercairny’ (Scottish… Read more…

Scarce dustjacketed edition of this biography of Lincoln. Third impression of 1925 bound in blue boards; old damp staining to edges of cloth. Jacket is in good condition with some loss at the head and tail of the spine and several closed tears. The jacket reproduces the oval image of Lincoln that appears on the frontispiece opposite the title page.… Read more…

First edition in attractive patterned boards, no ownership inscriptions, a little spotting. Very good plus in a very good jacket. An uncommon posthumous publication containing some wonderful poems. Read more…

Beautifully Riviere-bound and extra-illustrated with 26 amateur photographs of turn-of-the-century Spain including 3 images of a bull fight. Crushed red morocco, all edges gilt; marbled endpapers with gilt turn-ins. The 26 additional silver gelatin photographs are mounted on inserted leaves and include images of Gibraltar, Toledo, Madrid and three… Read more…

First edition, fifth impression of this landmark novel, signed on the title page by Mantel a few days after she won the Booker Prize in October 2009 at her appearance at the Ilkley Literature Festival. A very sharp copy, fine in a fine jacket, unread and inscribed to two of the volunteer helpers at the Festival in Mantel’s characteristic italic han… Read more…

Eccentrically inscribed by its eccentric, nay decadent, author. Quarto sized book bound in blue cloth with gilt lettering, a little rubbed. Tennant has decorated the front flyleaf with his effusive inscription ‘for Rupert Lord’ adding verses from the Persian and ‘A very ancient saying Oriental I think. I love it.’ The book is otherwise unmarked apa… Read more…

First edition of the final Bond novel bound in black boards with gilt spine lettering, no gun on the upper board; the scarcer issue with blank endpapers with no ownership inscriptions, a very good plus book. The jacket is complete with the '18s. net' price present; very good colour to the jacket, a little rubbing to extremities and a few spots to t… Read more…

Attractive, squarely bound second edition with Oxford provenance to ‘Thornton and Son, Booksellers’ on The Broad, Oxford. Publisher’s red cloth; black coated endpapers. Internally clean and fresh, with the bookplate of Edward Alfred Cockayne (1880-1956), an English physician specialising in children’s medicine, a keen entomologist in his spare time… Read more…

True first edition of this early poem, inscribed to a close friend on the northern poetry scene numbered 4 out of 26 signed copies. Printed brown paper wrappers which are browned and faded and separated along the spine. Harrison has inscribed the poem above the title with a double-edged quotation: ‘Nor need we to the distant Indies rome; The curst… Read more…

Maritime memoir inscribed to the First World War correspondent and British government spin-doctor, Basil Clarke. Blue cloth, fading to spine. Bradford has inscribed the front flyleaf: ‘To Sir Basil Clarke with the author’s best wishes S. Bradford Feb 1934.’ Internally very clean, a very good plus copy. Bradford was Chaplain to the RNR Officers’ Clu… Read more…

High quality photo-album by an Anglo-Canadian artist who became a leading figure in the depiction of indigenous peoples in British Columbia and Alaska. The collection is housed in a commercially produced photo album bound in red buckram, slightly stained and scuffed, ‘Reminiscences’ in gilt on the upper cover; 12 card leaves with 8 window-mounted s… Read more…

Family photo-album recording the Arts and Crafts Hampshire home and garden built for himself by the Scottish-born architect Robert Weir Schultz who lived there for 50 years. 116 photographs mounted in a commercially produced oblong photo album, 33x25cm, ‘The Beaumont Album’, Johnson London. Bound in deep reddish/black shiny cloth with silk ties thr… Read more…

Presentation volume inscribed by a distinguished roster of 1000 scientists and officials of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research as a retirement present for its founder. Expensively bound with Frank Heath’s initials on the upper cover, all edges gilt, manuscript title page and 50 card leaves. Vellum-bound list of signers in rear poc… Read more…

Hamlet post-production screenplay for the 1969 British film adaptation starring Nicol Williamson - seemingly not found in any institutional collection. Foolscap sized paper held together by corroded staples. Rust marks to front cover which is partially detached from the text block. Typescript of c100 pages, mimeograph-printed on the rectos only. Oc… Read more…