The king orders the bishops of the New World to see that the practice is ended.

This copy sent to the bishop of Guadalajara, Mexico.

•  Light waterstaining; one short fold tear and a small hole piercing the top line of text without loss of sense. Written in a small and legible hand.  (25890)

Available AT THIS WRITING, subject to prior sale: C (the Israelites gathering manna), D (man kneeling in prayer, before a radiance), I (Sts. Peter and Paul), M (woman giving alms), S (the Savior[?] with an orb), and V (the Ascension).

This book bears an ornate, emblematic engraved title-page, with portraits of St. Brendan and Boyl and more, and no fewer than 18 leaf-filling plates by Wolfgang Kilian. These plates, which mixfancy and realism in entirely engaging ways, include a portrait of Columbus, a scene of St. Brendan celebrating mass on the back of a whale, botanical images of the marvelous Peruvian potato, and numerous views of the missionaries’interaction with the natives, some friendly, and some not—the unfriendliest being notably violent and gory. Also, on p. 35–36 is given an example of purportednative American music, with both words and notation. This copy is one (probably the first) of two states of this sole edition (with only three leaves in the preliminaries), without the additional foldout plate found in some copies.

•  Alden & Landis, European Americana, 621/100; Sabin 63367; Palau 224762. Binding as above and shown at left (distortion noted), chipped on corners and at head and foot of spine. Small wormholes visible on inside of covers, running into margins of pages and plates, and a few closed tears, neither affecting print or plates. Engraved title remounted. Small stains, light spots of waterstaining, and light soiling. A very covetable illustrated Americanum of the early 17th century, in an enjoyable copy.

This contemporary file copy was retained in Rome and signed “S. Card. S. Susannae” (i.e., Cardinal Scipione Cobelluzzi, who was also at this time the Librarian of the Vatican Library).

•  Written in a very handsome italic on very good quality vellum. Light discoloration along lower edge, below the writing.  (26978)

Click the images for enlargements.

This volume, occasionally but not definitively attributed to Jean-Louis Barbeau de La Bruyère, is commonly known as the “Recueil d'Utrecht”; it appears here with a title-page printed in red and black.

•  Period-style deep brown calf, covers framed and panelled in gilt rolls with gilt-stamped corner fleurons, spine with gilt-stamped burgundy leather title-labels, gilt-ruled raised bands, and gilt-stamped compartment decorations. Light offsetting to first and last few leaves and scattered spotting, pages otherwise clean.  (27084)

The work was printed in Northumberland, Pennsylvania, where Priestley settled in 1782, when his liberal political opinions and defense of the French Revolution (in addition to his status as a nonconforming minister of questionable orthodoxy) obliged him to emigrate from England to the United States.

Provenance: Both title-pages inscribed by N. Irwin.

•  Shaw & Shoemaker 4912 & 7121. Recent quarter calf over marbled paper–covered sides, spines with gilt-stamped leather title and volume labels. Title-pages with faint impression of a once-pencilled shelf number; some leaves lightly foxed.

Click the image to the left for an enlargement.

This work was printed in Northumberland, Pennsylvania, where Priestley settled in 1782, his liberal political opinions and defense of the French Revolution (in addition to his status as a nonconforming minister of questionable orthodoxy) having obliged him to emigrate from England to the United States.

Provenance: Each title-page inscribed by N. Irwin.

•  Shaw & Shoemaker 2933 & 4913. Recent quarter calf over marbled paper–covered sides, paper darkened at edges and/or turn-ins on some volumes, most notably vol. IV; spines with gilt-stamped leather title and volume labels. Title-pages with faint impression of a once-pencilled shelf number; a few page edges slightly ragged; some instances of small spots of foxing, mostly in margins, and varying degrees of offsetting. Please note these are octavo values — they're substantial, but we think the photo may make them look a bit taller than they actually are.

Binding: Publisher's red cloth, front cover and spine stamped in black and gilt, boards with beveled edges.

•  A lovely bright copy with spine gilt a bit less bright than cover gilding; small smudges to edges, joints, and back cover. Front pastedown with small owner's ticket and inked notation dated [19]72.  (22042)