Natural Illustrations of the British Grasses

Bath: Binns and Goodwin, 1846. [5], vi-xix, [2], xvii-xx, [2], 3-130pp and sixty-two leaves of grass specimens. Original publishers morocco, bevelled boards, smooth back, spine with title and publisher in gilt within a decorative cartouche, covers with a thick and thin line border, an inner frame made up of a double fillet, a thick blind line and an inner triple fillet with volute and flower head corner pieces and an elaborate foliate and volute centre piece with the title to its centre (lower cover without the title). Quite heavily rubbed to extremities and lower cover, chipped to spine ends with small amounts of loss, bumped bumped and worn. First section of text slightly loose with sewing broken but holding well, some light browning and dust staining to edges, and occasionally to sample pages. One sample has worn through the opposite page of text leaving a series of small holes but with no loss of text, a few small closed tears to page edges. Samples are generally in good order, some off setting as usual, one or two have slight elements of loss (seed heads, leaves etc), but all are present and correct. The nature of the book means that few survive in good states of preservation, though this morocco edition tends to survive in a better state than the watered silk binding more commonly found. The publishers seemed to have specialised in these types of book, also publishing 'Wildflowers and Their Teachings' and 'Ocean Flowers and Their Teachings' "each containing dried specimens, literary extracts and poems" (Wakeman, 'Victorian Book Illustration', page 65). The book was published at two guineas, and the "publishers were proud enough of their process to display 'Natural Illustrations of the British Grasses' at the 1851 Exhibition in London" (Cave, 'Impressions of Nature', page 69). The binder's were Astle and Sons, see Ramsden page 31 and Packer, page 9. Perkins 747. First Edition. Hardback. Good. 4to.