GARDENING

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Richly Hand-Colored Flowers

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•  1859 volume of a long-running and (one senses) proudly produced monthly periodical: The latest horticultural successes, gardening tips, reviews of shows, lists of trendy varietals with their descriptions, etc. The volume is illustrated with12 hand-colored floral plates done by notable botanical illustrator James Andrews, as well as a number of in-text wood engravings; Andrews's fuschia plate is especially vivid.

•  Contemporary half sheep and marbled paper–covered sides, spine with gilt-stamped title and gilt-stamped raised bands; binding moderately rubbed overall. All edges gilt. Trimmed during binding, in a few cases just touching edges of images. Front pastedown with private collector's rubber-stamp. Scattered faint spotting, pages and plates generally clean. You can imagine subscriberseagerly waiting for each issue of this.  (26865)

“Fundamentall to the Erecting & Building ofa True Philosophy”
Bacon in ENGLISH — As He So Often is NOT

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mouse-over, for an enlargement.

•  First edition, second issue of this compendium of scientific (and also quaintly “traditional”) knowledge, with the frontispiece dated 1626 and the engraved title-page 1627. The DNB notes that “Bacon’s miscellaneous collection of observations and experiments in natural history was published by Dr. Rawley in 1627, the year after Bacon’s death, but the preface was written by Rawley during his lifetime and the first issue has a letterpress title dated 1626 (the engraved title is 1627 in both issues).” Added (as issued) to the Sylva sylvarum is Bacon's utopianNew Atlantis, an unfinished allegorical fantasy begun shortly after his political downfall and not long before his death. Together, the two works exemplify Bacon's scientific and literary accomplishments.

The added engraved title-page, bearing the motto “Et vidit Deus lucem quod esset bona,” was done by Thomas Cecill; the frontispiece portrait of Bacon is unsigned. There are some very handsome headpieces and initials.

Provenance: Riggs family: Front pastedown with armorial bookplate of philanthropist Elisha Francis Riggs, who funded the Riggs Library at Georgetown University; volume inherited by T. Lawrason Riggs, founding chaplain of St. Thomas More Chapel, Yale University; donated to St. Thomas More Chapel Library; deaccessioned 2008.

•  ESTC S106924; STC (2nd ed.), 1169; Gibson, Bacon, 171. On Bacon, see: Dictionary of National Biography.   18th-century calf framed in gilt single fillet, spine with recent gilt-stamped leather title and author labels, board edges with gilt roll; a little rubbed and covers with portions darkened. All edges stained yellow. Front pastedown with bookplate as above. Some pages gently age-toned, with occasional minor spotting. Small hole to added engraved title-page just beneath publication information, not affecting text. Final blank leaf (only) lacking.  (24666)

Two Who“So Early & So Faithfully Explored
      the Vegetable Treasures of This Continent”

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•  First edition: Letters and biographies of two prominent early American botanists (cousins, both Quakers, and both Pennsylvania residents), accompanied by a general overview of the history of botany in America. Correspondents include Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Andre Michaux, Alexander Wilson, Michael Collinson, Dr. Solander, Dr. John Hope, Mark Catesby, Gronovius, and others. The volume is illustrated with two wood-engraved plates depicting Bartram's and Marshall's homes, and with facsimiles of two letters.

•  Sabin 18597.   Publisher's brown cloth, covers blind-stamped with strapwork and foliate frame around central medallions with publisher's monogram, spine with gilt-stamped title; a bit rubbed in expectable places with spine extremities chipped and front joint just starting at head. Ex–social club library: 19th-century bookplate, obscured call number on endpaper, title-page and two others rubber-stamped, no other markings; back free endpaper excised. Light waterstaining to upper outer portions of early leaves, the effect quickly diminishing through the rest of the volume. Agood read  in a good, solid, quite respectable copy.  (27885)

Les Jardins — Illustrated & Charmingly Bound

•  Subtitled “L’art d’embellir les paysages,” this gardening-themed poem includes praise of the virtues of the relaxed, relatively “natural” jardin anglais. Les jardins, Delille’s most successful work, was originally published in 1782 with many subsequent editions appearing both in French and English; the present example is a nicely bound copy of the expanded version, illustrated with four engraved plates by Monciau after Benoît-Louis Prevost and other artists.

Binding: Contemporary treed calf. Spine with gilt-stamped red leather title label, gilt-stamped compartment lines, and floral devices within compartments.

•  Brunet, II, 576. Binding somewhat rubbed and starting to crack over joints, though very firm; some onetime water exposure visible on front cover (a not entirely unattractive effect). Pages with a bit of very minor spotting, and some offsetting from plates. An attractive copy of a pretty book.

Materia Medica — Ancient Knowledge

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•  Important classical work on herbalism and pharmacology, listing the medicinal effects of hundreds of different plants known to the ancient Greeks and Romans. The present example is one of two variants of the 1549 edition, with this Haultinum imprint being notably more uncommon than the Birkmann imprint.

The work was edited by Jacques Goupyl, and is laid out with the Latin translation by Jean Ruel in side-by-side columns with the Greek text.

Provenance: Early title-page inscription, “F.M. ex dono Eduardi Davenant.”

•  Adams D656; Durling 1135; Index aureliensis 154.341; Pritzel 2295.   18th-century speckled calf (front cover) and sheep (back cover) rebacked with lighter-colored sheep preserving original gilt-stamped leather title-label; boards scuffed and worn. Title-page with inked inscription as above (and in same hand, “Illuminat mentem Lectio.” First two leaves creased; first and last few leaves with light to moderate waterstaining. A very few marginalia in a tiny, neat, early inked hand. (20639)

From Apricots to Walnuts — 13 Plates
& William Cobbett Too

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•  William Forsyth (1737–1804) was superintendent of the royal garden of St. James and Kensington, where he was so successful in his work on trees that Parliament voted him thanks and a monetary reward. His Treatise was first published in 1802 in both Britain and America and saw a number of editions. In it he discusses a wide variety of fruit trees, how to care for them, and the various uses to which they may be put; the 13 plates illustrate the various trees under discussion. Its American publication is significant for occurring at the time that scientific agriculture and the nursery business were just beginning in this country, and it includes a preface on growing fruit trees in the United States by the Anglo-American political writer and agriculturist William Cobbett (1762–1835). This third American edition has the same text and plates as the Philadelphia 1802 edition, but new here is an 8-page letter (pp. 273–80) from Peter W. Yates, dated Albany, 1803.

•  NSTC C26475; Shaw & Shoemaker 4218; Gaines, Cobbett, 62c. On Forsyth, see: Dictionary of National Biography, XX, 35. On Cobbett, see: Dictionary of National Biography, XI, 142–45; Appleton, I, 669. Recent quarter walnut brown calf over marbled paper; spine with two red leather labels, gilt-lettered with a single fillet above and below; remainder of spine divided into compartments by blind rules, with gilt-stamped date at base. Pages and plates lightly age-toned, a little cockled, and lightly soiled throughout with some shallow chipping, light foxing, and waterstaining. Rubber-stamps from a now-defunct library, including one on title-page. Pencilled ownership inscription on title-page. A nicer book than the faults-list makes it sound like, to read or work with.

The Lady Had aLOT of PROJECTS!

•  Manuscript assessment of architectural and construction work planned or performed for “Madamme Hauchet du Charnoy” [sic] by Victor Delamarre, mason, and Pierre Gautier, carpenter, including estimated charges. Items cited include “un autre batimant . . . servant de bergerie,” “les grandes portes de bois chenies,” “un pavillion a deux étage entre la grande porte et la petite porte,” and “le mures du jardin” (all phrases given as written — [sic]). Click the image to the left
for an enlargement.

•  Sewn. Some edges ragged; worming to upper margins of last few leaves, touching two letters.

A Copy for the“Busted Bibliophile”

•  Floral-themed poetry, with two hand-colored plates. Flora’s Interpreter was first printed in 1832 and went through a large number of editions; this early issue, unlike later printings, does not give Mrs. Hale credit for the “anonymous” verses. The poems are organized by flower, with musings on the appropriate sentiment according to the language of flowers.

Provenance: Early inked ownership inscriptions reading “P.N. Spofford” on the front fly-leaf and the title-page.

•  Original printed paper–covered boards, front cover detached, with paper cracked over the spine and back joint, and some light staining to the covers. A few verses with pencilled notes; pages with occasional small, light spots. A binder's bad day: The pages from 157–68 are bound in twice in this copy, with the pagination skipped from 169–80; the text headers go from “rose, bridal” to “rose-bud, red.”

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            BIBLIOPHILE,  click here.

AMERICAN Grapes AMERICAN Wine AMERICAN Author

•  Reissue of the fourth, corrected edition, following the original 1866 publication under the title, Cultivation of the Native Grape and Manufacture of American Wine. Written by a professor of agriculture at the University of Missouri known as “Father of the Missouri Grape Industry,” this work covers viticulture on both the East and West Coasts, presenting detailed information on grape varietals, growing techniques, and the steps of wine production. The volume is illustrated with small in-text wood engravings; it closes with a short gathering of “Wine Songs.”

Provenance: Ownership stamp of “C. Witter . . . St. Louis, Mo.”

•  Amerine & Borg, Bibliography on Grapes, Wines, Other Alcoholic Beverages, & Temperance, 1851.   Publisher's dark green cloth, covers with blind-stamped grapevine borders, spine with gilt-stamped decorative title; spine extremities slightly rubbed, front cover with a few tiny spots of faint discoloration, otherwise a clean, fresh copy. Title-page with private owner's rubber-stamp in lower margin. Pages clean. A nice book. (20691)

Beauties ofthe Thames Illustrated

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•  First edition of Ireland’s guidebook to the architectural, botanical, artistic, and historical pleasures to be found along the Thames, featuring assorted poetical digressions as well as descriptions of the splendor of Blenheim Castle and other castles and manors, the disrepair of London Bridge, and paintings by Rubens and Holbein. The two volumes are copiously illustrated with52 aquatint plates engraved by C. Apostool after drawings by Ireland, 2 maps, and a number of in-text cuts.

•  ESTC T2691; Abbey, Scenery, 430. Period-style quarter calf over marbled paper–covered sides, spines with gilt-stamped leather title and author labels, gilt-ruled raised bands, and gilt-stamped decorations in compartments. Versos only of half-titles, title-pages, and a few other leaves stamped by a now-defunct institution. Plates lightly to moderately spotted, with some instances of light offsetting to pages around plates. Pages faintly age-toned, with edges untrimmed; one leaf with lower outer corner torn away, not touching text. This supplies both handsome, interesting pictures and good, now quaint reading.

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Herbs for Hobbyists & Beginners

•  Second printing of the revised and expanded second edition, “supplemented to include over 100 herbs.” In addition to planting and growing tips, numerous culinary and cosmetic recipes are provided. Click the image for an enlargement.

•  Publisher's green pebbled cloth, front cover stamped in yellow; spine reinforced with cloth tape, tape now rubbed and splitting. Title-page with updated contact information on affixed label covering original printed publisher's information. A number of leaves with grey discoloration in upper margins; otherwise, a clean copy of a somewhat unusual item.  (26240)

GARDENER'S Guidebook of 1844 — 12 Plates

•  Delicate and lovely hand-coloring enhances the floral illustrations of this scarce gardener's guidebook, presented in a decorative gift binding. As proof that pretty though the plates are, they were conceived in a seriously scientific rather than a merely fanciful spirit, a small portion of each image has been left uncolored so that the viewer may examine leaf and flower structures in non-distracting black and white.

This is actually vol. 6 of Maund's eight-volume Book of Hardy Flowers; Or, Gardener's Edition of the Botanic Garden, although the title-page gives no such indication; the flowering plants described are numbered 145 through 192. The plants tend to be familiar specimens in English gardens (anemones, primroses, violets), although more uncommon flowers are offered.

A considerable and interesting array of ads for other Griffin publications is appended.

•  Publisher's green textured cloth, extremely neatly rebacked, back cover blind-stamped, front cover gilt-stamped with abstract plant-recalling border and central title amidst flowers; each cover pressure-stamped by now-defunct library, with slight discolorations to upper edges. All edges gilt. Title-page and four others lightly stamped (plates untouched); library pocket on back free endpaper. Small bookseller's ticket on back pastedown; endpaper edges chipped. Plates clean and very pleasing; in fact, it's a pleasing little volume overall.

“Marble is Never Commonplace”

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•  Sole edition: Promoting the usage of marble in banks, bathrooms, churches, gardens, libraries, railroad stations, stores, and just about anywhere else it could be employed architecturally or decoratively. The volume is illustrated withphotographs of a wide variety of interiors and exteriors.

•  Publisher's brown marbled, textured paper–covered boards, front cover with gilt-stamped title. Clean and unworn. Not a commonplace copy!  (26833)

Lovely Christian Gift Book — BEAUTIFUL Hand Coloring

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•  Third annual volume: The year's issues of the Christian Family Magazine, gathered into a collection of improving essays, short stories, poems, songs (with music), and meditations, edited and published by the Rev. Daniel Newell. The volume is illustrated with an engraved title-page and24 steel-engraved plates, including 11 hand-colored images of flowers and birds.

•  Faxon 126.   Contemporary half navy morocco and marbled paper–covered sides, spine gilt extra; lightly/moderately rubbed. Front free endpaper with early pencilled ownership inscription. Early leaves and plates with waterstaining along inner/lower portions and later leaves with scattered light spotting, regrettable but not devastating.  (27103)

Schleiden on BOTANY Illustrated inTHREE Different Modes

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•  “Improved” fifth edition, following the first of 1848, of these popular botanical lectures written by an early evolutionist and co-developer of the cell theory. The volume is illustrated with a richly colored, mounted chromolithographed fruit and vegetable still-life frontispiece, as well as with 14 very fine wood-engraved plates done by Johann Gottfried Flegel after W. Georgy, and five hand-colored steel-engraved plates depicting plant anatomy.

•  Publisher's half red sheep in imitation of morocco and green textured cloth, spine with gilt-stamped title, gilt-ruled bands, and gilt-stamped floral decoration; edges worn and nicked, corners rubbed, spine sunned, paper across front hinge (inside) cracked. All edges marbled. Intermittent mild foxing only; the plates quite wonderful.  (27209)

“Take 500 Protestations . . . ”

•  Spofford's third almanac. Predictions for 1818; alsohow to compose a “modern” love letter plus a (truly) humorous description of marriage.  Two states of gathering C noted. In the second, a note has been added at foot of p. [34], correcting information given in the calendar pages about a solar eclipse on April 24th. This is a copy in the state without the correction.

•  Drake 3819; Shaw & Shoemaker 43108.   Uncut copy; old stitching. A very good copy.  (9622)

For ALMANACS,  click here.
. . . or HERE.

TheLatest Agricultural Innovations, with COLOR-PRINTED Plates

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•  First edition: “Agricultural mechanics, agricultural chemistry, agricultural and horticultural botany, agricultural and economic geology, agricultural zoology, meteorology, &c.” The volume opens with a portrait and biography ofAndrew J. Downing, “the most eminent of American horticulturists and professors of Rural Architecture” (p. 5). Much interesting material is present here on the cultivation of various fruits and vegetables, the introduction of exotic domesticated animals (Chinese yaks, cashmere goats, camels) into the United States and Europe, statistics of American production, and various mechanical and technical innovations.

Illustrated with four color plates done by Max and Louis N. Rosenthal of the famed Philadelphia firm Rosenthal's,  producers of some of the earliest chromolithographs in the U.S.  The frontispiece here, after a drawing by B.L.C. Wailes, depicts a blossoming cotton plant, while the three other chromolithographed plates show a more mature example, the cotton caterpillar, and rot in cotton. The volume is additionally illustrated with a number of in-text steel and wood engravings.

•  Allibone 2641. Not in Reese, Stamped with a National Character.   Publisher's blind-stamped green cloth, spine with gilt-stamped title; spine sunned, chipped at head, and with small darkened area. Ex–social club library: Call number on front pastedown, front free endpaper lacking, title-page and several others (not plates) with old, round, light rubber-stamp. Pages age-toned, otherwise clean.  (26420)

ENGLISH GARDENS(Great Britain). Pearson, Robert, ed. The ordnance survey guide to gardens in Britain. New York/London: W. W. Norton & Company, 1986.
$15.00

•  First American edition. Color photos and maps. Paperback.

Faust, Joan Lee. The New York Times book of house plants. Illustrated by Allianora Rosse. New York: Quadrangle, 1973. 8vo. Illus.
$12.50

•  Undetermined edition. With black-and-white photographs and color drawings.

•  Publisher's cloth. Very good condition, in a very good dust jacket.

See also, perhaps, AGRICULTURE — click here.

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