Finden's Illustrations for the Life and Works of Lord Byron; With Original and Selected Information on the Subjects of the Engravings

London: John Murray, 1834. First Edition. Very good. 3 volumes; 4to 8 1/2 x 6 1/4 in. (220 x 160 mm); pp. vi + 250 + 41 engravings; vol. 2: vi + 154 + 41 engravings; vol. 3: iv + 182 + 42 engravings. Maroon crushed Morocco, with elaborate gilt decorations and a Grecian urn on the front and back covers, 5 raised bands, gilt titling and compartments with decorative compartments and titling on spine; all edges gilt, lilac moiré endpapers, turn-ins with gilt double fillets and corner rosettes; spines and edges somewhat rubbed, spine sunned, front 2 sheets of vol. 1 loose, pages are slightly tanned but otherwise clean, with occasional foxing and offset on pages facing some engravings. The three volumes of this lovely set present a plethora of views and portraits associated to the life, travels, and writings of Lord Byron, from Costantinople to the Parthenon, from the Pantheon to Venice and Gibraltar, and figures ranging from Sir Walter Scott, to Coleridge and Mme de Staël, from Ali Pacha to Byron's own wife Lady Noel Byron and his little daughter Ada. A list of plates at the beginning of each volume lists the subject, artist and sketcher associated to each image, and they include notable names like J.M.W. Turner, David Roberts, Thomas Philips, James Duffield Harding and François Gérard. This great collection was the first of a series of galleries undertaken by William Finden (1778-1852) in collaboration with his brother and aided by a large staff. It was a great success and was followed by several others, including a 15 volume set "Gallery of British Art" (1838-40). His largest plate was an engraved portrait of King George IV after a painting by Sir Thomas Lawrence.