after Phiz and others, extra-illustrated. Contents lightly toned, else a fine copy. £1,875 [155761] 73 GREEN, Thomas. The Universal Herbal; or, Botanical, Medical, and Agricultural Dictionary. London: at the Caxton Press, by Henry Fisher, and sold by all booksellers, [1823] hand-coloured botanical plates A handsome Regency herbal, “a hugely encyclopedic work, claiming to list all the known plants in the world, and also richly supplied with colour plates” (Cowie, p. 63), first issued in parts from 1816 to 1820. 2 volumes, quarto (269 × 211 mm). Contemporary half russia, rebacked with the original spines laid down, spines lettered in gilt, marbled sides. Housed in custom brown cloth slipcase. 2 stipple-engraved hand-coloured frontispieces and extra engraved title by R. Hicks after W. M. Craig, 106 hand- coloured engraved plates; modern loosely inserted tissue guards. Frontispiece to vol. II bound in I and vice versa. A little rubbed, some slight foxing and offsetting from plates, a very good copy. ¶ Great Flower Books 58; Nissen BBI, 754. £2,500 [159107] 74 GUNTER, Edmund. De Sectore & Radio; [together with] Canon triangulorum. London: by William Jones, and are to be sold by John Tomson, 1623 rare complete copy of this ground-breaking navigational treatise First edition, extremely rare complete, of Gunter’s treatise on the sector, “one of the most influential scientific works on navigation” (Waters, p. 359), the work that introduced logarithms into navigation and led to the development of the slide-rule. Only a handful of copies of any variant of the first edition have appeared at auction since 1957, none complete. A copy of the first edition of Gunter’s Canon triangulorum , a table of logarithmic sines and tangents (extended to seven decimal places) for every degree and minute of the quadrant, is bound in at the end. De Sectore was written in 1606 and circulated widely in manuscript. It became so famous that many people “not understanding the Latine yet were at the charge to buy the Instrument” (quoted by Waters, p. 358).
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72 GRANT, James. Sketches in London. London: W. S. Orr & Co., 1838 finely bound with four original phiz watercolours First edition, extra-illustrated with four original signed watercolour drawings by Phiz: a superb copy of this lively and entertaining account of early Victorian London’s low life, very handsomely bound by Rivière, with the book label of the bookseller and noted collector William Foyle. The four watercolours comprise the original drawings for the plates opposite pages 129 (“A Scene in the House”) and 133 (“O’Connell taking the Oaths”), and two other drawings, possibly unused originals. The illustrations were among Phiz’s earliest commissions. In the preface, Grant predicts of the 23-year-old that, “with regard to the Illustrations by ‘Phiz,’ which embellish the volume, the Author can speak more unreservedly than he could do of the letter-press. They are among the happiest achievements of the genius of one who, though but young in years, is unquestionably, in this particular style of engraving, the first artist of the day”. Octavo (223 × 137 mm). Early 20th-century blue morocco by Rivière and Son, spine lettered and elaborately decorated in gilt, raised bands, triple rule to sides in gilt, inner turn- ins gilt, marbled endpapers, top edge gilt. Original cloth bound at rear. Housed in a blue morocco pull-off case. With an etched frontispiece, additional title and 22 plates by and
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The printed book combines two distinct works. Three books reproduce the original manuscript of 1606; three describe “the Cross-Staffe”, incorporating the author’s “subsequent mathematical inventions and his explanation of later mathematical developments” (ibid., p. 359). Publication was a complicated affair involving several booksellers; STC remarks many copies are anomalous. This copy has the 1623 letterpress general title in one of two variant first states with John Thomson named as bookseller (others have John Tap or Edmund Weaver), the engraved title (dated 1624), leaf A in third state (“Edm. Gunter” in small caps), and the frontispiece in second state (although here bound facing the dedication). STC lists this combination fifth of seven possible variants; it is complete with the full text, the frontispiece (sometimes omitted), and the volvelle present but not assembled (base circle at p. 60 and wheel on leaf A4). A second edition followed in 1636. “The sector was sold as a navigational instrument throughout the 17th century and survived in cases of drawing instruments for nearly 300 years. The most striking feature of the cross-staff, distancing it from other forms of this instrument, was the
inclusion of logarithmic scales. This was the first version of a logarithmic rule, and it was from Gunter’s work that logarithmic slide rules were developed, instruments that remained in use until the late 20th century” (ODNB). The frontispiece in this copy gives the addresses of the instrument- makers who would supply the sector, either made in brass by the king’s instrument maker Elias Allen, or in wood by John Thompson. ESTC locates only seven institutional libraries: British Library, Cambridge (2), St Andrews, UCL, Harvard (2), US Naval Academy Nimitz, and Williams College. Provenance: a) Ownership inscription at head of title page of “John Hope, Tyninghame, 6 October, 1672”. A melancholy provenance: John Hope of Hopetoun (1650–1682) was drowned when HMS Gloucester was wrecked off the coast of Norfolk, carrying the Duke of York (the future James II) to Leith. There are several marginal index notes, apparently in Hope’s hand. b) Ownership signature of “I Skene” on blank before title; possibly a descendant of Sir John Skene of Curriehall (1549–1617) and a familial connection,
as Skene’s widow married Thomas Hope of Craighall (1573–1646). c) Imposing armorial bookplate of Sir John Hope, fourth earl of Hopetoun (1765–1823), army officer. Hope had a long and distinguished military career; in 1793 he served with the 25th Foot (later the King’s Own Scottish Borderers), one of the regiments assigned to make up the numbers of marines on board the Mediterranean and Channel fleets of lords Hood and Howe (the supporters of his bookplate are two figures with anchors). Wellington called him “the ablest man in the Peninsular army” (cited in ODNB ). 2 works bound in one, quarto (180 × 131 mm). Contemporary speckled calf, spine with four raised bands, blind ruled, 19th-century green morocco label, paired blind fillets to sides, gilt edge roll, reddish brown edges. Engraved title (imprint: William Jones for Edmund Weaver, 1624), engraved frontispiece depicting the sector bound facing dedication, book I; woodcuts, diagrams, and tables in the text. Corners just a little worn, paper flaw at foot of o2 and y3 in book III, not affecting text, Gunter’s name added in contemporary manuscript to printed title page. A very good copy. ¶ Adams & Waters 1906; ESTC S4332; STC 12521.7; Taylor, Mathematical Practitioners of Tudor & Stuart England , 106. £12,500 [157935]
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DECEMBER 2022
All items are fully described and photographed at peterharrington.co.uk
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