Rare books from Chesil Books

No Binding. Fair. London, Printed in the Year 1704; 4to, pp [iv], 20, 160x210mm; disbound from some volume and with the first two leaves nearly separated from the remainder which is, however, complete although also loose in parts; somewhat browned and with dust and other soiling and some old marks of water staining; there are generous foredge, binding and foot margins but the top has been cut rather close in the last three leaves (pp 15 to 20). Shippen was a Tory MP and a Jacobite, acting as a link between the Scottish and English adherents. The poem is an anti-Whig polemic specifically targeting the powerful Whig bookseller Jacob Tonson. This is an interesting copy in that there are some 18 very early, perhaps contemporary, annotations in the margins identifying the various people and places mentioned pseudonymously in the poem.

Hardback. Fair. Standard of Freedom, London, 1851; 8vo, pp vii (being prelims such as information on the Association and a list of contents), [552]; original brown cloth, spine gilt, binding now shabby and worn; internally generally firm and clean although rather browned, particularly in the latter half of the book; the (blank) prelims are loose, the last sheet of the last tract is damaged at the top outer corner with some loss including to a few words on the verso and the final end paper is missing. The Association was instituted in April 1848 and was later described by W N Calkins in his essay in the "Economic History Review" as "the most persistent and single-minded free trade body England had ever known". Its first president was Robertson Gladstone, elder brother of William Ewart, a merchant and banker who became Mayor of Liverpool when he was only 37. The 35 tracts in this volume, generally of 16pp each, focus on supporting "the most rigid economy in the… Read More

Hardback. Very Good. T Fisher Unwin, London, 1903, first edition. This edition is one of twelve copies, this copy being numbered 1. 4to, pp xvi, 316; printed on thick imitation vellum paper and quarter bound with a vellum spine over brown laid paper boards and with a simple printed paper label to the spine, top edge gilt; eight full page coloured plates with tissue guards, a full page steel engraving and another in photogravure and over 100 other illustrations, mainly in the text but some also as full page plates; spine vellum somewhat speckled, corners a little rubbed or bumped, occasional light foxing, very slight cracking between signatures b and B but otherwise firm, clean and in very good condition. Neatly written dedication in ink manuscript on the front end paper to Lady Beatrice Taylor "with affectionate wishes from Pearl Mary Teresa Craigie November 26 1903". I can't identify with any certainty the dedicatee but the dedicator is most likely the US Boston-born Pearl Mary… Read More

1st Edition . Paperback. Very Good. Run of 36 issues over almost a decade from Vol. LXXIII No. 292 (October 1964) through to Vol. LXXXII No. 327 (July 1973); issues 292 to 320 (December 1971) are edited by Ryle, the rest by Hamlyn; issues 292 to 296 are published by Nelson & Sons, Edinburgh and the remaining issues by Basil Blackwell, Oxford, in both cases for the Mind Association; original grey paper wrappers, 8vo, generally around 160pp plus 14pp of book advertisements or notices in each issue. The early issues through to 302 have wrappers lapping the contents and are consequently slightly ragged on the edges in places while the remaining issues are cut flush and generally in very good condition though two or three of the volumes have small tears or fraying on the spines and in a few cases there are neat ownership initials in ink on the upper right corner. Mind began in 1876 and now concerns itself particularly with analytical philosophy, the Mind Association describing its focus as… Read More

Paperback. Very Good. Lucotte, [Jacques-Raymond] with engravings by Bénard, [Robert]. The section on woodworking in buildings from the Encyclopédie of Diderot and d'Alembert published initially in Paris between 1751 and 1772. This section, folio, 260x365mm, is well bound for protection in 20th century brown thin card covers finished on the spine in green hessian or similar cloth; tiny worm hole in the extreme lower left margins of the first three or four leaves and with the usual slight browning around the margins but a very good, complete copy with clear, crisp text on 16 numbered pages and 38 full page copper engraved plates (numbered I - XXIV but several with subnumbered plates in the particular subseries). The Encyclopédie, the magnificent Enlightenment undertaking with the grand aim of publishing all the world's knowledge and intended to "change the way people think", appeared between 1751 and 1772 in 28 folio volumes with over 70,000 articles and… Read More

Hardback. Good. Set of Byron's works in ten volumes, 8vo, based on the initial six-volume set published by John Murray in 1825, augmented by the two volumes published in 1824-1825 by John and Henry L Hunt (and thereby identified on the title pages as "The Works ... in eight volumes") and further augmented by two further volumes, these last shown as "Printed for the booksellers" and consisting of cantos I-XVI of Don Juan; the final canto, canto XVII, was a short, unfinished piece at Byron's death in 1824 and was essentially a repudiation of the views of his critics. Pagination: 8vo, pp I - xi, 303; II - [iii], 359; III - [iii], 345, [347]; IV - viii, 367; V - [iii], 404; VI - [viii], [i], 319; VII - vi, [8]-308, [309]; VIII - [i], 286; IX - [iii], 353; X - [iii], 398. Engraved frontispiece of Byron after the Phillips portrait of him in conventional Western dress. Uniformly bound in tan polished calf, the spines with raised bands and gilt labels. The spines of… Read More

Hardback. Very Good. Robert Freebairn, Edinburgh, 1715, first edition of the works; large folio, two volumes well bound in one in appropriate quarter tan pigskin with brown cloth sides, spine gilt; pp [ii], xxii, 26, [8], 466, 37, [3], 41, [1], 30, 5, [2], 13-18; [iv], 104, [6], 34, 4, 241, 36, 38, 16; engraved decorative publisher's frontispiece by Andrew Johnston engraved by M Van der Gucht and three title pages in red and black (volume 1, volume 2, and Poematum, this last dated 1714); a little browning, occasionally severe and with some old water staining and fragility of the top margins towards the end but otherwise a very good, crisp, clean copy sensitively rebound. NOTE: as this volume weighs approach 5kg there may be a need for additional carriage charges beyond the default shown, this depending on ultimate location and method of carriage. Buchanan, 1506-1582, the Scottish historian and humanist scholar was, according to historian Keith Brown "the most profound intellectual… Read More

Paperback. Near Fine. Camberwell Press in association with Royal Mail, 1999, only edition, published in an edition of 2000 copies; 150x136mm, 120pp, unnumbered and each consisting of a folded sheet uncut at the fore-edge and perforated horizontally at the midline; hand bound by Shepherds Bookbinders in charcoal paper over card and designed to mimic an envelope, all edges silvered; very small smudge on the upper corner of one of the blank pages towards the end but otherwise a near fine copy. *** *** *** The book is the intended outcome of the Royal Mail Millennium Stamps project and is a wonderful celebration of British art and design. 48 specially designed stamps, four a month, were commissioned from a range of British artists and issued during 1999. These were printed in 11 rather than the usual four colours and all 48 are included (as real stamps) in the volume, each stamp framed by imaginative and appropriate text by Michael Benson. As Jonathan Glancy writes in his review in the… Read More

Paperback. Good. Published National Labour Press Limited, Manchester & London, nd (1915); small 8vo, pp vi, 87; grey-green paper wrappers, spine somewhat frayed in parts and the front cover torn along parts of the front hinge; a little foxed in places but overall a good copy of the original printing of a scarce political booklet consisting of a collection of essays on the topic of the title.

Hardback. Very Good. R Gosling and others, Fleet Street, London, 1730, first thus; four volumes, folio, engraved frontispiece to each volume, pp [iii], [ii], [iv], [3] to 224, [viii, being the index to Book I], 394, [xxxviii, being the index to Book II]; [iv], 564, [iv, being folding tables of creditors], [xxviii, being the volume index]; [vi], 586, [xlvi, being the volume index]; [i], 707, [xxviii, being the volume index], [i, bookseller's catalogue]. Full contemporary calf gilt, labels gilt; some wear to the bindings, generally light, but including cracking of some hinges (cosmetic only, not affecting the binding overall which remains firm and tight); lacks the spine label to vol III and with that to v ol I slightly defaced; very light occasional browning but otherwise an exceptionally crisp and clean copy, firmly bound. Each volume has the armorial bookplates of Charles Bathurst of Lydney Park (MP and government minister in various roles from 1790 to 1823). Francis Bacon, Viscount St… Read More

Hardback. Fair. This, the first edition of Smalridge's sermons, was published by William and John Innes in London in 1726 but this copy lacks both the title page and the engraved portrait frontispiece although it does have the 4pp publisher's catalogue at the end, dated 1725. Folio, pp [6, remaining prelims], [xx, subscribers to the work], [xix, Contents], 616, [iv, publisher's catalogue]. Contemporary panelled calf, spine gilt and with six raised bands, the covers rubbed and torn and with both boards detached; some older water staining on the inner corners of the last few leaves but otherwise internally in good, clean condition, albeit with a little browning here and there, and tightly bound. This is essentially a reference or binding copy which, were it repaired in the binding would become a very acceptable copy of the work. Smalridge, 1662-1719, was Bishop of Bristol from 1714-1719 and was esteemed on account of the quality of his sermons, Samuel Johnson considering them to be of… Read More

Hardback. Fair. Appleton and Company, New York, 1857, first US edition; 2 vols, 12mo, pp viii, 285 and viii, 269; pp 12 (but paginated 14) catalogue of Appleton publications divided between the two volumes at the end; original brown cloth gilt, lilac end papers, recased with later blue free end paper at the front on vol I; engraved frontispiece of Bronte to volume I and of Haworth church and parsonage to volume II; spines dulled and frayed at the edges and ends, internally slightly browned at the extreme edges of the pages but otherwise clean; back hinge of volume 1 a little weak but binding generally tight and firm; ownership inscription dated 1858 in each volume; despite the flaws described this is a still a reasonable copy of the first US edition, published shortly after the book appeared in the UK.

Hardback. Good. Printed for T Longman in Pater-Noster-Row, [London], 1762, first edition (but see later); 8vo, pp xx, 371 plus page of list of books printed for Thomas Longman; contemporary calf, both boards detached and the one mismatched in design with the other, spine good but with some small loss head and foot so a copy in need of binding repair; bottom corner of front free end paper missing but the book block complete, firm and with good margins although with a little light dust soiling here and there, particularly on the title page where exposed at the foot. Although this is indeed a first edition under this particular title the work was earlier printed 1750 as "The Reflector Representing Human Affairs As They Are and May Be Improved ... " Other than for the title and, hence, title page, this Longman reprint appears to be identical to the earlier edition right down to the list of books at the end. Shaw, 1694-1763 was an English physician, translator and writer on a wide range… Read More

Hardback. Good. For J Tonson, London, 1717, first edition of this collection; 8vo, pp [xx, being the publisher's introductory essay], 536; contemporary panelled calf, a little rubbed in places and with the front board weak; internally clean and firm; contemporary ownership inscriptions on the title, the older of "Eli. Stannard" with a date that may be 1722 or 1733 and a later "Mary Stannard her Book given her by Mrs Elinor Stannard Nov 15th 1767". Dillon's Essay on Translated Verse, included here, was first published in 1684 and led, together with his earlier blank verse translation of the Ars Poetica, to his reputation as a didactic writer and critic, a poet concerned with the importance of a good moral approach in his poetry and the necessity of being fastidious in his writing. He was the first critic to write admiringly of Milton's Paradise Lost. He was much admired by Pope.

Hardcover. Near Fine. Interlibrum, Buchantiquariat, Vaduz, Liechtenstein, March 1979; 8vo, pp [126]; tipped in frontispiece being a coloured reproduction of a painting of Einstein by Hans Erni, the image reproduced on the front cover; 356 separate items are listed and there are numerous illustrations throughout, many of title pages but also of other material; the catalogue is a supplement to the Interlibrum series, Printing and the Progress of Man; price list loosely inserted; boards covered with very light cream simulated laid paper and the item in exceptionally good condition.