1920ref. 3217n.d. 19th or 20th century. Two illuminations on thin India paper some vertical creasing professionally matted and framed. Ad 1 priapus: 300 x 250 mm frame size 198 x 140 mm visible 147 x 93 mm size of illumination. Ad 2 she-devil: 306 x 231 mm frame size 205 x 140 mm visible 150 x 83 mm size of illumination. Sold as a pair. TWO WEIRD EROTIC INDIAN ILLUMINATIONS THE LIKES OF WHICH WE HAVE NEVER BEFORE ENCOUNTERED AND ARE UNLIKELY TO ENCOUNTER AGAIN. Popular in Roman decorative art the winged priapus is uncommon in Indian iconography. Our illumination is of particularly high quality and depicts a beautiful Indian woman riding a reined priapus perhas twice her size. The priapus is depicted with avain feet and giant wings. The environment is like a strange dream: in the foreground a grey pool with pink flowers; behind are dark green hills with eerie trees and vegetation. In the sky at sunset are what appear to be rain clouds touched in white. We have been unable to transcribe the text but there is writing on the verso. The second illumination depicts a grotesque she-devil with fangs horns and a long tongue naked save for pearls around her wrists ankles and biceps. Above her waist her speckled skin is light purple and below dark green. The monster clutches to a strange tree on which four priapus grow and with it engages in sexual relations. She reaches toward a basket of several other priapus which are positioned on an upper branch. As with the accompanying illumination in the foreground we find a watery pool and pink flowers and dark green hills studded by surreal trees. The setting is at twilight. HIGHLY CURIOUS AND MUST BE SEEN TO BE FULLY APPRECIATED. unknown books
ref. 81481Paris: 1927. Original silver-gelatin photographic print 7" x 6". Mounted on thin board 13" x 9-3/4" signed "A. Feny" on mount below image see note. Dated in the subject's hand "17/8/27 - Paris" and inscribed: "To the Beloved couple Grover & Nettie hoping you will continue having success and making friends" signed in full. Some abrasion to the mount especially at corners; small flaw to image at upper left corner still Very Good or better. A lovely jazz-age portrait of Henry Georges Walter playing his trumpet probably in a Paris nightclub around 1927. Walter b.1902 was born in Alabama and studied music in the renowned Harlem studio of Isabel Talafierro-Spiller but seems to have spent most of his performing career in Europe. A brief notice in the Baltimore Afro-American for Oct. 19 1929 advises that Walter "will return to America in October. after being eleven years in Europe;" he was at this time performing with Opal Cooper's "International Five" a popular Paris quintet which also included Samuel Richardson Harvey White and Charlie Lewis. Little else is known of Walter; the 1930 U.S. Census finds him living as a lodger on 151st Street in Harlem with the occupation of "musician" but we find no further record of him after this. The photograph is titled "A Fény" with an address in Hungarian at left: "Váczi U Vaci Utca 11/B." The title which translates to "The Light" is possibly a reference to the influential Hungarian photographic journal of the same name published in Budapest from 1906-1912. We have been unable to satisfactorily identify the photographer. unknown books
1943ref. 4211New York: Alcoholic Foundation Inc 1943. Very good. 281pp. Original printed wrappers stapled. Moderate toning spotting and edge wear soft central vertical fold throughout. One sentence underlined otherwise clean internally. An early pamphlet issued by Alcoholics Anonymous containing important doctrine from the organization's early years. The first sentence provides the motivation behind the present pamphlet: "The purpose of this booklet is to show how thousands of us who were once hopeless alcoholics have recovered from our malady. We have found a way of life which no longer compels us to drink. Alcoholics Anonymous is the great reality which has expelled our obsession." Later in the introduction the organization dispels any notion of complicated requirements for membership: "The only requirement for A.A. membership is an honest desire to stop drinking." The pamphlet also prints passages entitled "Am I an Alcoholic" "The Doctor's Nightmare" "The European Drinker" "Women Suffer Too" "Bill's Story" "Medicine Religion and Alcoholics Anonymous" "The Twelve Steps" "Our Friends Say" and Dr. Harry Emerson Fosdick's review of the famous "Big Book" Alcoholics Anonymous which had been published just four years earlier. Scarce with just ten copies in OCLC. Alcoholic Foundation, Inc unknown books
1924ref. 0289701924. Manuscript. Good. octavo 51 pages written on letterhead of the Department of the Interior United States Geological Survey rectos only neatly inscribed in pencil and ink very good. This account appears to have been a draft and may have been intended for publication there are numerous corrections changes and emendations throughout the work. The unidentified author traveled by rail from Yellowstone to Seattle and from there to Alaska by steamer. The author visited Ketchikan Seward Anchorage Fairbanks where time was spent with the Mayor Valdez Juneau Prince William Sound Cordova Columbia Glacier etc. The author comments upon the events of the trip and gives interesting information on accommodations for tourists describes the scenery and topography a twelve page description of Columbia Glacier and also describes the towns and cities visited. "Valdez represents the tragedy of mining towns. It is really a dead mining town & it is a real tragedy to walk through and see the great number of vacant houses. Really it is hard to understand the lure of such a place." "Anchorage was created as an operating base for the construction of the railroad and has large permanent railroad yards & shops. It is the youngest and most up to date town in Alaska. For the tourist however it has little of interest." "Fairbanks a town almost exclusively of log cabins. the city is isolated because of its great distance from anywhere and people of the States do not care to spend so much time in traveling to reach the place." books
1920ref. 140949212California c. late 19th-early 20th century. Very Good. A lovely sea moss souvenir album with six pressed and mounted specimens from the coast of California. 6 pp. Bound in a commercially produced gilt lettered die-cut booklet with poetical onlay and yellow silk picot ribbon tie. Very Good. Lacking a ribbon fastener extant ribbon is slightly stained and creased covers soiled and lightly worn with tarnishing to gilt lettering. First specimen is crumbling but mostly intact. The other specimens are remarkably bright and sound unusual given the delicate nature of these objects. Souvenir albums of pressed sea mosses or "sea flowers" were sought after keepsakes vended along beach towns and coasts the globe over in the late 19th-century. Though commercially produced this would have likely been made in small quantities and sold to a fashionable Victorian lady. A delightful token from a bygone era in decent condition. unknown books
1827ref. 333239London: T. Clerc Smith St. James Street 1827. First edition. pp. ii 261; ii 259; ii 266. Printed by S. & R. Bentley. 3 vols. 12mo. Bound in modern brown quarter polished calf ruled in blind in six compartments gilt morocco spine label original marbled paper-covered boards .Front pastedown of each volume has owner's contemporary engraved armorial bookplate "Augustus Murphy" and contemporary ink name "Emily Beaumont". All three volumes have been professionally rebacked with matching polished calf extremities of covers are a bit rubbed else a very good triple-decker with text in each volume fresh and clean. First edition. pp. ii 261; ii 259; ii 266. Printed by S. & R. Bentley. 3 vols. 12mo. Garside Raven and Schowerling 1827:4; Not in Halkett and Laing T. Clerc Smith, St. James Street unknown books
ref. 45729Np:nd Sarajevo ca 1940s. Original machine-lithographed poster in colors 38" x 27". Horizontal fold at center. On thin paper toned and slightly weak a centerfold and margins; B. A dramatic and handsome post-war Bosnian poster promoting the health-resorts of the newly-formed state along with the treatments associated with each. Among the place-names listed are some that would become infamous during the Bosnian conflict of the 1990s such as Srebenice and Sarajevo. unknown books
ref. 295250London: Cadell and Davies. hardcover. very good. 2 volumes in 1. Two hand-colored aquatint frontispieces and four black & white etched plates. Short slim 8vo; x 117 2 ii 114 pages. Handsomely bound in 3/4 polished brown calf marbled boards ornately gilt spine. Large tear to title page now mended. London: Cadell and Davies N.d. 1795. Very good. Cadell and Davies unknown books
1720ref. 308785Amsterdam 1720. unbound. Print. Copper-plate engraving. Amsterdam: 1720. Image measures 6 1/8" x 9" with text 11 1/2" x 9". Sheet measures 15" x 11 1/2" This satirical persuasive map depicts the island of "Geks-Kop" rendered as a 'fools head' or man in a 'fool's cap.' The map is an allegorical reference to the economic crash caused by the French Compagnie d'Occident often referred to as the Mississippi Company following the burst of the Mississippi Bubble. Surrounding the head are islands labeled Poverty Despair and Sorrow. Rivers serve to outline facial features and place names include 'Leugenburg' Town of Lies 'Bedriegers Stadt' City of Cheaters Gekkendam Crazy-dam etc. In 1719 John Law a Scottish financier created a bubble in the shares of the Mississippi Company by touting the economic potential of the French colony of Louisiana. Also there was great demand for the bank notes of the Banque General Privee the French bank that sponsored the Mississippi Company. In 1720 the bubble burst on the stock of the Mississippi Company and the bank notes when investors became doubtful of their value. This sheet was published in 'Het Groote Tafereel Der Dwaasheid' or 'The Great Mirror of Folly' - A renowned monument for the speculative mania of 1720: The great mirror of folly showing the rise progress and downfall of the bubble in stocks and windy speculation in France England and the Netherlands. It constitutes a collection of mostly satirical plates on the operations of John Law in France and the South Sea Bubble in England together with the text of the charters of speculative companies in Holland and a number of satirical plays and comedies published during the bubble. P. J. Mode 1019.01 unknown books
1813ref. 1285581813. ANONYMOUS. Tableau ou Description de la Russie. Avec les Moeurs Usages Coutumes Religion de ses Divers Peuples. Orne de Jolies Figures. 4 139 1 pp. with 7 plates. 12mo 130 x 80 mm. bound in half reddish calf over red marbled paper covered boards. Paris: Chez H. Nicole Rue de Seine 1813. A charming little book on various aspects of Russia which is very rare and would appear to be unrecorded since we can find no record of it in any data base or any of the standard bibliographies. Although the format is the same as the work by Breton de la Martiniere published in the same year the illustrations are far less sophisticated and of course the book is a fraction of the length. Hinges head and tale worn but sound internally fine. hardcover books
1825ref. 002351Philadelphia: Published and sold Wholesale by Morgan and Sons and may be had of all the Booksellers Front wrap: Published by Morgan & Yeager At the Juvenile Bookstore No. 114 Chesnut Street first door below the Post-Office 1825. Early 19th-century Edition. Very good. Early 19th-century edition n. d. ca 1825; 5 x 4 1/4; pp. 22; brown paper over card stock wraps printed and ruled in black; chipping to paper on spine; a thin split to back wrap along spine; small nicks to corners; illustrated with eight hand-colored copper-engraved plates including frontispiece; overall in very good- condition. A delightful early American children's book it it was presumably illustrated by William Charles 1776 - 1820 - a Scotish-American cartoonist engraver and publisher best known for his political cartoons. Based on his illustrations - plain or hand-colored - the book could be had for 18 3/4 cents and 25 cents respectively. OCLC lists 1 copy of this edition at the University of Rochester; none in the trade as of July 2020. Rosenbach 668 Published and sold Wholesale, by Morgan and Sons, and may be had of all the Booksellers (Front wrap: Published by Morgan & Y paperback books
1824ref. 216793London: T. Hughes 1824. First. hardcover. very good. Large folding colored map of the River Thames from London Bridge to Richmond engraved express for the Richmond Steamboat Company. 197 pages untrimmed 12mo original printed boards spine chipped and worn. London: T. Hughes 1824. First Edition. Scarce. Very Good T. Hughes unknown books
1820ref. 330917London: Longman Hurst 1820. First. hardcover. 228 pages full brown morocco decorated in gilt dentelles all edges gilt marbled end-papers. London: Longman Hurst et al 1820. First Edition. Pardoe's anonymous first book. Presentation copy "With the Author's most affectionate regards Longman, Hurst unknown books
1780ref. 001457S. l.Pennsylvania: s. n. 1780. Softcover. Broadside n. d. ca 1780 ; date obtained from a himmelsbrief at Yale closely resembling identical dimensions similar border similar typography; 7 3/4 x 12; single sheet recto only; several crease lines with small punctures at intersections; age-toning to margins; a few small nicks to edges; illustrated with a geometrical border; double columns; good to very good. Himmelsbrief in Pennsylvania Dutch or Himmelsbriefe in German was a religious document which according to the text had been invented by a gypsy in Prussia in 1714 and had been first printed in Koeningsberg in 1715. It gave a prayer which was supposed to protect the family owning the broadside from fire pestilence and lightning. It also assured pregnant women that carrying it on their body would repel witchcraft and sorcery. Though extremely popular with the Pennsylvania Dutch and wildly published in German in the late 18th and all through the 19th centuries the "heavenly letters" were also printed in English and various Scandinavian languages. Most of them were sold at fairs and markets and even peddled throughout rural communities. S. l.[Pennsylvania]: s. n. paperback books
1900ref. 002774S. l.: s. n. 1900. Very good. Three sepia-toned photographs ca 1900 - 1915 one of them dated 1915 in manuscript on verso; the first a black-and-white collage of two separate images of the same person superimposed at an angle; various sizes though approx. 3 3/4 x 5; one affixed to a thick card stock frame; two in very good condition with minor wear to edges; the last one with a vertical crease to top margin and a few small closed cuts to top edge. A lovely group of images it featured male and female baseball players at the turn of the 20th century in the Shenandoah Region of Virginia most probably a regional minor league team with one of the players jerseys reading "Shenandoah across the front not to be confused with the Shenandoah Huns of Shenandoah Pennsylvania who were active in 1895 - 1897. The uniforms in all three photographs also displayed a monogram perhaps a stylized DT or TD which research shows could have represented players from neighboring towns playing as a unified club such as Timberville / Dayton League pairings. Arguably the most interesting of the three photographs subtitled in manuscript on verso: "Summer 1915" depicted a collage of two images of a female player in full uniform holding a bat and alternately sitting and standing in a grassy area under a tree a garden or an improvised playing field wearing a pair of voluminous bloomers and a wide infectious smile. The second one showed three young men in various catchers' positions while the third one featured ten players who appeared to belong to different teams in various full and partial- uniforms. s. n. unknown books
1942ref. 423853Zurich 1942. Softcover. Near Fine. Seven leaves folded to make 14pp. 13 illustrations. Stitched with cord. Some spotting on the handwritten wrappers and final leaf slight splitting at the spine ends else very good or better. Handwritten and illustrated on rectos only with cryptic dedication on first leaf. From an unidentified hand a tender work of reassurance dedicated to Frau Anzia Weilenmann the wife of a Swiss psychoanalyst and member of the literary circle that formed around Adrien Turel in 1940s Zurich. Apparently composed to alleviate Mrs. Weilenmann's anxiety over the crisis in Swiss culture precisely at the time of its dark flirtation with Nazism the illustrated poem mobilizes wordplay jocular images and botanical metaphors to playfully insist upon the inevitable resistance of the Swiss people. unknown books
1969ref. 46442New York: Situationist International 1969. First Edition. Broadside 44cm x 57cm. Printed offset in black on white uncoated lithograhic paper; text in two columns beneath headline in Gothic type. Minor wrinkling at margins else Fine. Issued January 10 1969 as a "supplement" to the first issue of the American journal Situationist International the imminent publication of which it announces. Possibly the first official pronouncement of the American Situationists following their admission to the SI in December 1968. The broadside actually pre-dates publication of the first journal issue by some six months; and though earlier materials by the same core group of authors primarily Robert Chasse were published in 1967-8 these were issued prior to the admission of the American Section all under the imprint of "The Council for the Liberation of Daily Life." Not in RASPAUD. Situationist International unknown books
1790ref. 202804London: Nichols 1790. First. hardcover. very good. Thick 4to xxii 476 pages. Title page soiled and chipped and first few pages are creased. Attractively rebound in simple 3/4 calf. London: Printed for the Society of Antiquaries by John Nichols 1790. First Edition. A very good copy. Oxford 119; Bitting 532. Nichols unknown books
1930ref. 280705New York: Horace Liveright 1930. Hardcover. Near Fine/Near Fine. First edition. Introduction by W.E. Woodward. A tiny owner's stamp on the front fly else fine in a modestly rubbed near fine dustwrapper with tiny nicks and tears and jacket art by Sugar. Epistolary and practical advice on the stock market delivered in a series of letters between an uncle and nephew. Very scarce in jacket. Horace Liveright hardcover books
1815ref. 291677London: Patrick Martin 1815. First. hardcover. fine. Thomas Rowlandson. 15 color plates by Rowlandson. Thin 8vo full red crushed morocco decoratively stamped in giltall edges gilt by Morrell. London: Patrick Martin 1815. First Edition. Elegant copy. Tooley 417. Patrick Martin unknown books
ref. 88729Np.n.d. Original oil portrait of Soviet revolutionary leader Vladimir Lenin aka Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov 1870-1924. Unsigned; placed into carved glazed convex frame to mimic a reverse-painting on glass. Not examined out of frame; sight condition excellent. Frame shows some damage to gesso at borders Very Good. A well-executed folk-art portrait of Lenin standing before a background of industrial plants a hydroelectric dam possibly the Dnieper and a railway locomotive. Undated but if the dam pictured is indeed intended to be the Dnieper then presumably after 1930 - which tracks as the style is highly evocative of the decade of the Thirties and popular Five Year Plan propaganda. unknown books
1848ref. 1171848. Hand-colored lithograph. Fine example of an early lithographed broadside. Image: 8¼ x 9. Margins: 18 x 14¼. books
1895ref. 00252ST. NICHOLAS AND HIS SERVANT The Alexandra Publishing Company ca. 1895 first edition some wear and soiling to the covers else a good to very good copy with the front cover bearing a full color pictorial lithograph as does 6 of the 10 pages within. A very rare book of which we could not locate a single copy held anywhere on the globe. Perhaps a bit controversial as servant Peter as depicted in this volume no less than 8 times is a young black boy. The notion of a "Black Peter" is possibly of Germanic origin. The Alexandra Publishing Company unknown books
1784ref. 9032329London: W. Strahan T. Payne and Son et al. 1784. Hardcover. Very Good. Ex-library. Set of seven books; twelve volumes in six plus stand-alone supplement. Bound in half leather with marbled boards spines stamped in black and gilt. Marbled endpapers. Text blocks are in extraordinary condition fine except for library stamp and number to each title page bookplates on front paste-down endpapers. Wear to corners and extremities. A gorgeous set. 5 1/4 x 8 1/4 inches. W. Strahan, T. Payne and Son et al. hardcover books
1835ref. 20091835. First Edition. Softcover. Very good. Small 4to. Manuscript on paper. 2 53 pp. Complete. Stitched plain paper wrappers torn and frayed along spine with loss edges untrimmed. Minor blemishes to the text but unsophisticated. Preserved in a protective cloth case. Highly curious and apparently unpublished German Romantic play concerning the "Death of Lottchus" in Part 1 and his ghost in Part 2 "The Happiness of Marriage." The action takes place in Rubeland Saxony-Anhalt. Other performers include Flanko Wolf Fritzus and his wife Perdestalla Liebling and Maloss. Despite extensive searching we have been unable to find any reference to a play such as this. unknown books
