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Catalogue
72
Books
from the Past
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61.
HAWKINS, Sir JOHN, Knt. The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D.
London, Printed for J. Buckland, J. Rivington, et al, M,DCC,LXXXVII
(1787). First edition. $800
Tall thick 8vo; f, pp. 602, [16] (Index & Errata); contemporary
calf worn; rebacked some time ago, with original spine label laid
down; 1 leaf of index torn in the margin, with no affect to text;
some light sporadic foxing, but, overall, a clean copy, with the
armorial bookplate of Edward Dalton LL.D.
Vide Lowndes IV:1015n. This is the first separate edition of the
first biography of Samuel Johnson (1709-1784), predating that by
Boswell. Three editions were published in London in 1787 - this
first separate edition; that which forms vol. I of the eleven volumes
of Johnson's "Works" (with a frontis. port.); and "the
second, revised" edition.
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Two Works by Hobbes, Including Leviathan
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62. HOBBES, THOMAS. Leviathan, or The Matter, Forme, &
Power of a Common-Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civill. London, Printed
for Andrew Ckooke [sic],,, 1651 [bound with]: An Historical Narration
Concerning Heresie, And the Punishment thereof. London, Printed
in the Year 1680. $12,000
1st work: Folio in 4's; pp. [vi], 248, 247-256, 261-394 [i.e. 396]
(A-Z [4], Aa-Zz[4], Aaa-Ddd [4], extra engraved title, 1 folding
table; 2nd work: folio in 2's; pp. 18 (A-D2, E[3]), lacking final
blank; 17th-century full calf expertly restored and sympathetically
rebacked; paper restored at margin of engraved title and lower corners
of prelims; couple of tiny, insignificant wormholes at lower gutter
of leaves, not affecting the text; burn-hole on Bb[4], touching
two letters, and small hole on Ccc[4], affecting one letter; text
lightly toned; device on title-page of first work is that of a bear
clutching foliage. Of the 36 errata listed on the verso of {A3],
seven have been corrected in the text and twenty-nine remain uncorrected
- the corrections are completely unsystematic, scattered as they
are throughout the text.
Wing H2247 and H2238; Printing and the Mind of Man 138; Pforzheimer:
491 (note); vide Grolier, Wither to Prior II: 454 (no mention of
this issue); Kress 830; Macdonald & Hargreaves (1952): 42. Thomas
Hobbes (1588-1679) was an English philosopher and graduate of Magdalen
College. For many years a tutor in the Cavendish family, Hobbes
took great interest in mathematics, physics and the contemporary
rationalism. In 1640, after his political writings had brought him
into disfavour with the parliamentarians, he went to France, where
he became tutor to the exiled Prince Charles, not returning to England
until 1651/1652. In this work, Hobbes developed his political philosophy.
He argued from a mechanistic view that life is simply the motions
of the organism and that man is, by nature, a selfishly individualistic
animal at constant war with all other men. In a state of nature,
men are equal in their self-seeking and live out lives which are
"nasty, brutish and short". Fear of violent death is the
principal motive which causes men to create a state by contracting
to surrender their natual rights and to submit to the authority
of a sovereign who, in turn, is absolute and not subject to the
law. Also, temporal power supercedes ecclestiastical power. The
second work included in this volume pertains to heresies and other
offenses against religion. It was written during the early Restoration,
when Hobbes had feared being tried for heresy, but was published
only in 1680, shortly after Hobbes had died, and when heresy was
no longer a capital offence. There are generally assumed to be three
"issues" of Leviathan, based on title decorations - the
'Head', the 'Bear' and the 'Ornaments' issues, (or editions). The
'Head' is generally assumed to be the first, with the 'Bear' and
the 'Ornament' being later "pirated" editions, without
input by Hobbes. But this analysis of the printing history is called
into question in a definitive work published recently by Karl Schuhmann,
late of the University of Utrecht and G. Rogers, formerly at Keele
University. "Leviathan" was entered into the Stationers'
Registers on January 20, 1650/51 by Crooke while Hobbes was still
living in Paris. Schuhmann and Rogers seek to demonstrate, by an
analysis of the various texts, that the traditional assumptions
are incorrect, and that all three editions dated 1651 contain corrections
and changes by Hobbes himself.
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63. HOBHOUSE, J[OHN] C[AM], (1ST BARON BROUGHTON). A Journey
through Albania and other provinces of Turkey in Europe and Asia,
to Constantinople, during the years 1809 and 1810. London, Printed
for James Cawthorn..., 1813. First edition. $5,275
Large, thick 4to; engraved frontispiece, pp. xix (Errata), 1152,
[8] (including 1 facsimile letter, 2 engraved plates of Greek music,
directions to the binder, publisher's adverts), 2 folding maps,
1 plan, 17 hand-coloured aquatint plates (7 double-page), 1 engraved
facsimile letter in appendix; contemporary full calf, worn and rebacked;
small pencilled reference to Byron on p. 1; small tear to corner
of p. 873 (no loss); small burn hole in margin of one leaf; some
foxing throughout.
Atabey 584; Blackmer 821; vide Abbey Travel 202 (2nd ed.); Wiseman,
James, Archaeology, v. 52, no. 4, 1999 (review of Brondsted's Interviews
with Ali Pasha). Hobhouse (1786-1869) was a statesman and life-long
friend of Lord Byron, who travelled with him on this famous journey
to Albania, Greece and Turkey. These letters include detailed descriptions
of the sites en route, as well as the travellers' encounters with
various characters, including the notorious Ali Pasha. Hobhouse
relates how he and Byron immersed themselves in the culture and
language of the countries they visited, and the appendix to this
work includes notes on Romaic (Modern Greek) pronunciation and grammar,
and some examples from Romaic poetry and prose, as well as sheets
of Greek music. According to Atabey, the striking hand-coloured
plates were done from drawings by the British architect Charles
Cockerell (commissioned by Byron) and the German landscape painter,
Jacob Linckh. Cockerell and Linckh were in a party of British and
German architects who travelled to various parts of Greece excavating
ruins and recovering sculptures from ancient sites, thanks to a
large "permission fee" paid to Ali Pasha's son. Ironically,
Cockerell and Linckh were involved in competing negotiations to
secure for their respective countries the marble frieze they had
discovered at the Temple of Aphaia on Aegina. A fascinating look
at many historical aspects of the period, and a very scarce, complete
copy of this first edition.
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64.
[HOFER, ANDREAS]. Memoirs of the Life of Andrew Hofer; Containing
an Account of the Transactions in the Tyrol during the Year 1809.
London, John Murray, 1820. First edition in English. $200
8vo; pp. xxiii, [1], 198; hand-coloured aquatint frontispiece portrait
and 1 engraved folding map; recent half-calf and marbled boards;
little light foxing and browning throughout.
Andreas Hofer (1767-1810) was a Tyrolese patriot who captured the
imagination of several of his contemporaries. "It is an anonymous
publication, but it has been conjectured, and not without reason,
that it is the work of either Baron Hormayr, one of the most active
leaders of the Tyrolese patriots, or of some person in his confidence,
whom he supplied with materials for the work." - (Preface)
The Memoirs recount an interesting episode of the Napoleonic Wars.
The work was first published in Leipzig in 1817, and translated
into English by Charles Henry Hall.
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65.
JUVENALIS, DECIMUS JUNIUS; AULUS PERSIUS FLACCUS. Giuvenale
e Persio Spiegati Con la dovuta Modestia, in versi volgari, ed illustrati
Con Varie Annotazioni Dal Conte Cammillo Silvestri Da Rovigo. In
Padova, Nella Stamperia del Seminario, M.DCC.XI (1711). $500
4to; pp. 910, [1]; signatures: A-3L8; five copper engravings, some
folded; additional illustrations in text; elaborate tail-pieces.
Full vellum; title vignette; gilt morocco label on spine; marbled
paste-downs; abrasion on lower compartment. Light water stain in
gutter of few leaves; paper flaw on edge of one leaf; small tear
in margin of one leaf. Latin and Italian on opposite pages; notes
in Italian; engravings have Greek titles. A very nice copy of a
classical work.
BL; Beinecke; ICCU. Juvenal's observations on Roman life includes
attacks on hypocrites of every order: fellow poets, patrons, the
military, as well as the general lack of morals in everyday life.
The Satires were written in the traditional dactylic hexametre Latin
verse, in the late 1st to early 2nd centuries, as a series of 16
poems in five books. Persius was inspired by other Roman satirists,
particularly Horace, and was highly respected by his peers. His
poetry became popular among intellectuals of the Middle Ages. The
Stamperia del Seminario was active in Padua from 1684 to 1767.
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