Views of the Seats of Noblemen and Gentlemen, in England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland. First and Second Series

London: No 32, Whitehall, Opposite the Admiralty: Published for the Proprietors, by W.H. Reid, 1818. Hardcover. Very Good. Folio - over 12 - 15" tall. NEALE John Preston 1780-1847. Complete with 722 finely engraved plates, Large Paper copy, Proof impressions on India Paper. First Series Vols 2-6: Published by Sherwood, Neely, and Jones, and Thomas Moule, 1819-1823. Second series Vol 1, London, Sherwood, Jones, & Co; and Thomas Moule, 1824. Vol 2, London, Sherwood, Jones and Co, 1825. Vols 3-5 by Sherwood, Gilbert, and Piper 1826-1829. Printer on all but 2nd series, Vols 4+5 J. M'Creery; on the last 2 Gunnell and Shearman. Pencilled bookseller's note at the end of Vol 1 "both series complete 1818-1829. With 722 finely engraved plates.Large Paper copy, Proof Impressions on India Paper". 1st series bound as 6 Vols & 2nd series bound as 5 Vols. average size 308*250 mm. Vol1: mounted frontispiece, title page, dedication page, subscribers list, 8 pp, address (dated Jan 12 1824), pp, [9]-14, Introduction, x, followed by the unnumbered pages of text with mounted engravings & tissue guards (some show transference of images to the tissue), each engraving is marked in the plate margin: proof; many engravers of the Neale images are represented. Each vol contains a list of subjects of the engravings at the end or beginning of the Vols (name & owners of the properties by counties). Make up of the individual Vols varies slightly in a few cases, with a few pencilled notes by a former owner, who has also pencilled some notes regarding the purchasers of paintings & furnishings in (William Beckfords) Fonthill abbey in the 2nd series, Vol 1; & has lightly pencilled his initials "FD2 on the back of each plate & added an 1847 newspaper clipping & pencilled notes to Vol 1, regarding the destruction of Easton Hall by fire in that year. We count 722 plates, including the frontispieces of entryways, at the beginning of each Vol (most sets have 720), 1 engraving from the 1st series, Vol 2, is bound in Vol 2 of the 2nd series, with the owner "FD" pencilled note, 7 woodcut vignettes in the 2nd series Vols. No of plates per Vol: 1-70; 2-70; 3-71; 4-71; 5-71; 6-71. 2nd series: 1-61; 2-59; 3-60; 4-59; 5-59. Bound in attractive, full, straight grain dark olive green morocco, with raised bands, decorative gilt tooling & titles, boards heavily gilt tooled in a box style, gilt tooling to edges & turn ins. The bindings are not signed but are of the highest quality probably executed in the 1830-60 period. The condition of the plates vary in these volumes, the tissue guards & the thicker paper sheets which the India paper impressions are mounted on show various degrees of brown spotting, but only occasionally affecting the actual images, this is slightly less present in the 2nd series Vols. A Very Rare set of books in the large paper format. Entries include:Abbotsford (Scott was still living there); Hatfield House; Moor Park; Knole; Althrop; Alnwick Castle; Powis Castle; Woburn Abbey; Chatsworth; Cobham Hall; Burghley House; etc. Many of the entries contain lists of paintings then hanging in the houses, some list furnishings, books, or other types of art works.