RELATIVITY. The special and the General Theory. A popular exposition. Translated by Robert W. Lawson. D.Sc by EINSTEIN. ALBERT - 1920

City Lights. San Francisco. 1977. FOLIO in Tabloid format. Folded, as issued. 11 issues, complete. (17.7 x 11.4 inches). Very good condition throughout with some very minor rubbing and toning to the edges but still all clean and sound. The set has been very well looked after. Started by Vale with $100 from Lawrence Ferlinghetti and the same amount from Allen Ginsberg, Search & Destroy was a hugely influential recorder of the early Punk scene in America, while also reporting on and interviewing the bands making a name for themselves on the British scene, including Iggy Pop, Blondie, Dead Kennedys, X, Devo, The Ramones, Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Damned, Sham 69, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Buzzcocks and an article on Vivienne Westwood. Complete sets of the original publications are uncommon.

Chapman & Hall. London. 1886 - 87. NEW EDITIONS. The first three volumes are the first printing of these reprints using the original stereotype plates from the original First editions which were published between 1843 and 1848. The last two volumes are reprints from one year later, dated 1887.---- Five volumes. 8vo. (6.9 x 4.5 inches). The volumes are illustrated throughout by many different artists including, Leech, Doyle, Tenniel and Maclise. ---- Publishers red cloth with gilt lettering and decoration to all five front boards and spines. Blind single ruled border on boards. Endpapers featuring printed adverts. Minor bumping to the corners but overall a very near fine set . The cloth is bright and clean and the gilt fresh and gleaming on all five books. A beautiful set in superior condition and scarce thus.

Hodder & Stoughton. London. 1906. FIRST EDITION. 4to. (10.2 x 7.7 inches). Illustrated with a colour frontis and forty nine full colour plates, all mounted onto thick art paper pages at back of book, each one with a printed tissue guard. Decorative endpapers with map of Kensington Gardens. A near fine, bright and clean copy throughout in original russet cloth binding with gilt stamped decoration and lettering to front board and spine. Very minor rubbing to hinges and a small bump to the lower front board at the outer corner, but overall a beautiful clean copy of this classic. Among the very best of Rackham's work.

R. Ackermann. London. 1813 (Circa 1870?). PORTFOLIO OF 13 PLATES. No text, as issued. (Paper size 14.9 x 11.3 inches. The portfolio is 15.5 x 12 inches). Portrait of Blake, by T. Phillips, RA; Engraved title page (dated 1808) and 11 plates, all stating Ackermann as publisher, dated 1813 and engraved by Louis Schiavonetti, after Blake's designs. The pages have a little bumping to the edges but well away form the engraved area. Plates a little dusty and toned but the impressions are good. The original portfolio is brown Morocco grained cloth with elaborate blind tooled designs to both boards. Gilt lettering to the front board. Only one small piece of one silk tie remaining. Yellow coated endpapers. 3 small clippings from bookseller catalogues, each listing copies of the Blair/Blake book, tipped in to the front pastedown endpaper. Some minor rubbing and bumping to the cloth but the gilt is still very bright and the cloth clean. Overall a very good example of this rare edition. ----- "When Gilchrist's… Read More

Macmillan and Co. London. 1891. FIRST THOMSON EDITION, Large paper issue. One of only 300 copies issued. Large 8vo. (10.5 x 7.4 inches). Illustrated throughout with 101 fine line drawings by Thomson. Finely bound by Cedric Chivers of bath in early twentieth century binding of full plum morocco. Spine with raised bands, the compartments ruled, decorated and lettered in gilt. Decorative line and floral design to both boards. Board edges double ruled in gilt. Mottled coloured endpapers. Turn ins with double ruled lines and floral design. Top edge gilt, others untrimmed. Two previous owner bookplates on the front paste down endpaper. A little fading to the spine but overall a very near fine copy.

Henry and Co. London. 1893. FIRST EDITION. Octavo. Original blue buckram, lettered in gilt. Housed in a custom green cloth slipcase and chemise. Small bookplate to front pastedown, related bibiliographic material pasted to endpapers. Shaw's very scarce first play, published in an edition, according to Laurence, of "not more than 500" copies. It was not an overwhelming bestseller. Shaw wrote to John Lane (quoted in Laurence) that the publisher "never advertised it even once; and the sale, which was only effected by great perseverance & determination on the part of the purchasers, was 150 copies." When the publisher retired in December 1897, they ceded to Shaw 194 sets of unbound sheets, which Shaw claimed to have commissioned Sotheran & Co. to bind for him. "So few of these [in purple cloth] in the Sotheran binding have turned up, however, that it is unlikely Shaw had all of the copies bound; a considerable number must eventually have been pulped â¦" Copies in green cloth have been noted as well,… Read More

William Heinemann Ltd. London. 1961. THREE VOLUMES. Reprint of the 1951 Edition. 8vo. (8.1 x 5.7 inches). Fine and clean set in attractive leather bindings by Bayntun of Bath. Contemporary full blue polished calf. Spines with five raised bands, each with gilt decorative roll. The compartments are ruled, lettered and fully decorated in gilt. Red and green labels, gilt. Double gilt ruled border on boards. Board edges with decorative floral gilt roll. Inner gilt dentelles. Marbled endpapers. All edges gilt. Housed in a blue paper coveredslip case which has some minor wear but has done its job of keeping the books protected. The slip case is felt lined and has a beige silk tie pull. The spines are just a touch faded and there are a couple of small scratches but overall this is an attractive and finely bound set of this important collection.

John Lane at the sign of the Bodley Head in Vigo Street. London. 1894. FIRST EDITION, First Impression; one of just 500 copies. Square 8vo. (8.4 X 6.3 inches). Pages a bit toned but overall a very good copy bound in recent full tan morocco leather binding. Spine with raised bands, two red morocco labels, gilt. Single gilt ruled border on boards. Top edge gilt. Adverts dated March 1894 at the end. Original publishers decorative pale purple cloth boards and spine, designed by Charles Shannon, bound in at the rear.

J. Johnson. London. 1796. FIRST EDITION. 8vo. (8.6 x 5.4 inches). [4], 262, [4], [2] pp. Complete as issued, with the listing of Wollstonecraft's book in the back (her first bibliography). A little spotting to some pages but generally a very good copy in contemporary full brown calf, re-backed with the original calf spine, ruled in gilt, laid down and a new red title label, gilt. A very good copy of Wollstonecraft's eloquent observations on Scandinavian people and places in the late eighteenth century. Published in London in 1796, just six years after her seminal work A Vindication of the rights of Women. Covering a mixture of subjects, approached from a personal, sociological and philosophical viewpoint, the book was a commercial and critical success, with Godwin praising it; "if ever there was a book calculated to make a man fall in love with its author, this appears to me to be the book".

George Newnes, Limited. London. 1905. FIRST EDITION. 8vo. (7.4 x 5.1 inches). viii, 404, 4pp of publishers adverts at rear. Illustrated with sixteen mono plates by Sidney Paget. Some light spotting to a few pages but overall a very good copy in recent leather binding by Sangorski and Sutcliffe for Asprey. Half dark blue morocco, five raised bands to spine, each with gilt dotting. Compartments ruled, decorated and lettered in gilt. Blue cloth on boards with single gilt ruled border on leather edges. Top edge gilt. Marbled endpapers. Housed in a felt lined slip case with blue cloth covering. Fading to the spine but still overall a very good copy in an attractive leather binding. --- Gibson & Green A29a. .