Somer Books - Previously Sold

 

A History Of British Birds (2 Volumes)

and

A General History Of Quadrupeds

by Thomas Bewick

(Birds Volume 1 - Sol Hodgson for Beilby and Bewick, First Edition, First Printing 1797)

(Birds Volume 2 - Edward Walker for T. Bewick, First Edition 1805)

(Quadrupeds - Edward Walker for T. Bewick, Seventh Edition 1820)

Thank you for your interest but these books have now been sold

Asking Price: £695.00 (excl. post, packing & insurance)

A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, First Edition 1797 & 1805 - Boards

A near-Very Good large format 8vo (boards 9.5 x 6 inches; 240 x 150mm) full leather bound set of Thomas Bewick's classic animal histories. Rebound in matching leather bindings this collection includes a very rare First Edition first printing copy of A History Of British Birds Volume 1. The descriptions in British Birds Volume 1 (Land Birds) were mostly written by Bewick's partner (Ralph Beilby - his former master) but with the end of the partnership the descriptions in Volume 2 (Water Birds) were written by Bewick himself but proof read and revised by the Rev. Henry Cotes, Vicar of Bedlington.

Book Condition (all volumes) - Moderate to significant general wear and rubbing to the blind tooled and gilt edged full leather boards and spine, four raised spine bands with recently replaced gilt title labels, all paper edges marbled, securely bound, armorial bookplates to marbled endpapers, no other ownership inscriptions. All volumes internally very clean and clear with very light to occasionally moderate foxing (most notably to plain free endpapers, Title Pages and front / rear prelims).

Specific Details:

British Birds - Volume One: Land Birds - Good+: First Edition, first printing with the uncensored "Pigstye Netty" vignette on page 285; "Wycliffe 1791" missing from the drawing of the sea eagle on page 11; two branches coming out of the foreground rock in the drawing of the magpie on page 75 and the advert on the verso of last page being for the Third Edition of Quadrupeds. Hardback, xxx + 335 pages. A few small printer's ink splashes to the bottom of pages 66-67, moderate top edge foxing to pages 330-335, some very faint offsetting.

British Birds - Volume Two: Water Birds - Very Good-: Believed to be First Edition, first printing 1805 - Bewick's Preface is dated "December 1805". Hardback, xxii + 400 pages. Notable chipping to extreme top of leather spine, lovely antique annotation in very neat, tiny script to the bottom of page 280 (dated 1840 and signed J. L. Phillips).

Quadrupeds - Good+: Seventh Edition 1820. Hardback, x + 528 pages. Notable foxing to pages 176-177 and 352-353, fore-edges to pages 101-104 unevenly trimmed.

Overall a beautiful three volume set in an unusually good state of preservation.

Total weight with packaging just over 3.5Kg.

Previous Owners:

The armorial bookplates of John Ledyard Phillips (d. January 1856, a woollen mill owner and patentee from Melksham, Wiltshire) and John Curtis Wernher Eustace are on the front endpapers of each volume.

For full size, high resolution photographs (or additional photographs of specific features you would like to inspect more closely) please contact us using the email link in the left hand panel.

A History Of British Birds - Volume 1:
A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, First Edition 1797 - Boards
A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, First Edition 1797 - Title Page
A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, First Edition 1797 - Inside
A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, First Edition 1797 - Inside 2
 
A History Of British Birds - Volume2:
A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, Volume 2, First Edition 1805 - Boards
A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, Volume 2, First Edition 1805 - Title
A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, Volume 2, First Edition 1805 - Inside
A History Of British Birds by Thomas Bewick, Volume 2, First Edition 1805 - Inside 2
 
A General History Of Quadrupeds:
A General History Of Quadrupeds by Thomas Bewick, Seventh Edition 1820 - Boards
A General History Of Quadrupeds by Thomas Bewick, Seventh Edition 1820 - Title Page
A General History Of Quadrupeds by Thomas Bewick, Seventh Edition 1820 - Inside
A General History Of Quadrupeds by Thomas Bewick, Seventh Edition 1820 - Inside 2

A History Of British Birds (2 Volumes) and A General History Of Quadrupeds by Thomas Bewick

Somer Books, Midsomer Norton, Bath, England

email: enquiries@somerbooks.com