Search Results: Titles starting with B from Christian White Rare Books Ltd.

Providence: Unpublished, 1890. Oblong sketchbook bound in black roan (26x17cm) with 'C H Springer' in gilt lettering to the upper cover; rubbing to extremities. All edges gilt; marbled endpapers. An unfinished pencil sketch precedes a sequence of 32 drawings, mostly in pen and ink wash, many with hand-drawn frames and clearly taken from a variety of sources, a few drawn from life. The finished ink drawings include Stratford-upon-Avon Church and Westminster Abbey in England, followed by 'Scene on the Delaware' set in an arched frame, Mount Vernon, 'A Sugar Plantation', 'Scene on the Hudson', three scenes from the Holy Land and 'Glen Mountain House', Lake Mohonk, Fingal's Cave, a silhouette of Robinson Crusoe with Man Friday's footprint and an escaping dog; 'Dr Franklin's Experiments with Electricity' and 'The Races of Men' - five interlocking roundels showing white Americans, black Africans, a Chinese scene, American Indians and a scene on a boat, possibly showing enslaved Africans - perhaps… Read More

London: Unpublished, 1772. A letter sent on behalf of Thomas Chippendale that fills in a gap in the known sequence of correspondence between the master cabinet maker and one of his most important clients, Sir Rowland Winn, of Nostell Priory. Bifolium on 'L V Gerrevink' watermarked paper. Conjugate address leaf 'To Sir Rowland Winn Bar[one]t at Nostell near Pontefract Yorkshire'; stamped '23 Dec[cembe]r'. Seal present. The letter written by Chippendale's London business partner, Henry Ferguson addresses Winn in a form recognisable to every business owner as the pre-Christmas reminder: 'Sir, Another Bill given by you to Thomas Chippendale for £200, being in my hands, I take the liberty of acquainting you that it falls due on the 4th January next' - Winn's normal method of payment was to forward promissory notes to Chippendale which could be presented to a bank. Ferguson continued in tetchy vein: 'in order that you may give timely directions for its being paid on the Day it becomes due - you will be… Read More

Brighton, 1898. The archive of the inventor of Waldram's Day and Night Pier Signals, including his unrecorded pamphlet and a part set of hand-painted miniature tin signalling flags - and compass. Edward Waldram's proposal for a new set of Brighton maritime signals is housed within a custom-made wooden box (35x17x9cm) with a brass label on top: 'International Code of Signals. Edward Waldram'. Waldram sets out his plans in what seems to be an unrecorded pamphlet: Brighton West Pier, Notice to Masters of Steam Vessels using this Pier, Approved by the Elder Brethren of the Trinity House, 25th March, 1898 - Octavo, stitched cover, pp12, at various times folded vertically and horizontally; front cover browned and detached, inscribed by Edward Waldram, with coloured illustrations of the signals and their use; annotations re the Brighton Queen to the last page; internal 5pp Description of Berths and Signals, illustrated; final page list of 'Depths of water alongside the respective berths'. With newspaper… Read More

London and Manchester: G W Bacon and Co Ltd, 1905. Hardcover. Near Fine. [map] Very good in burgundy boards with gilt titles, a little rubbed and faded to spine where there is a short tear in the cloth; marbled end papers. Contains a large coloured map of Yorkshire consisting of 24 panels on linen based on Bartholomew of Edinburgh and revised according to the latest Ordnance Survey. The map is undated but it includes an index and gazetteer with population figures taken from the last census of 1901. In near fine condition with no loss at the folds, small crease to one corner. A splendid item which cost 21 shillings when new. Near Fine 1905

London: W and AK Johnston & GW Bacon, 1920. 220 x 143 mm. Very Good. [map] pp 32 Very good in orange card wrappers, a little rubbed and creased but showing few signs of use. Contains a 32 page pamphlet with an index of streets, stations, districts, public buildings and parks; and a linen-backed coloured map based on the Ordnance Survey, ranging from Wood Green to Thornton Heath, and Surbiton to Barking. In very fresh condition with no loss at the folds. Very Good 1920

Exeter: Stride Publications, 1998. pp 86 First edition, fine in glossy card wrappers, illustrated on the cover and within the text by the author; very lightly scuffed to the wrappers, otherwise in unread condition. Provenance: from the recent Glasgow dispersal sale of Alasdair Gray's library. Gray (1934-2019) is acknowledged as one of the most innovative figures in Scottish literature and culture. Painter, novelist, playwright, poet and editor, Gray frequently combined his diverse artistic talents within single works to challenge existing forms. He has been described as 'Blending satire and tragedy, realism and fantasy, his work has been credited with spurring a renaissance in Scottish literature.' Please contact Christian White at Modernfirsteditions if you would like more information about this item. 1998

London: Linden Press, Simon Schuster, 1983. Hardcover. Very Good. pp 192 The first edition of Balanchine's Ballerinas, inscribed on the first blank: 'To Tom Curtiss With my Best Wishes Robert Tracy Jan 21, 1984 Paris.' The book is very good in a near very good jacket with a closed tear to the front panel. Very Good 1983

London: The Unicorn Press, 1945. Hardcover. Fine. pp 32 The second printing of The Unicorn Press edition of Wilde's Ballad of Reading Gaol. A fine copy, the book is in the publisher's tan cloth in a buckram spine with bright gilt lettering. Internally the book is crisp and fresh, the only blemish being some scuffs to the title page. In a very good dust wrapper, lightly spotted and soiled with nick to head of spine and one short closed tear to lower panel. A very pleasing copy. Fine 1945

Oxfo: Balliol College Music Society, 1986. Soft cover. Near Fine. pp35 A history of 100 years of classical concerts at Balliol College, Oxford with a foreword by the Rt Hon Edward Heath and a preface by Arthur Burns and Robin Wilson. Near fine in bright yellow card wrappers, slight soiling to the covers. This book comes from the private collection of British Prime Minister Harold Wilson and his wife Mary which was recently dispersed at auction following the death of Mary Wilson aged 102 in 2016. Their son Robin James Wilson is a distinguished mathematician. Near Fine 1986

London: Jonathan Cape, 1993. Hardcover. Fine. 1953 Everest mountaineer George Band's own copy of this beautifully photographed account of the 1990 balloon expedition over Everest by Leo Dickinson "the world's leading adventure film maker". A fine copy in a fine dust jacket. Several annotated post-it notes laid in. From the collection of English mountaineer George Band, the youngest member of the team which successfully conquered Mount Everest in 1953. Band was President of the mountaineering Club at Queen's College, Cambridge and his exceptional Alpine record caught the eye of John Hunt, who put him in charge of radio equipment on the expedition. Band's finest achievement was the first ascent of Kangchenjunga in 1955. He pursued a professional career in oil exploration but continued to climb and published several books on mountaineering. He was made an OBE in 2009. Fine 1993

London: Rockliff Publishing Corporation Limited, 1950. Hardcover. Very Good. pp202 A portrait of well known Dance Band Leaders, inscribed to front end paper by the author "For Victor Silvester first maestro ever to put the "dance" in "dance music". Julien Vedey 1950". A chapter within the book is dedicated to this British dancer, author, musician and band leader. Well illustrated with 28 portraits of musicians such as Joe Loss, Major Glen Miller and Billy Cotton. Very good in bright red cloth, mould stains to the covers, internally fresh; in a very good illustrated dust jacket, lightly soiled, small chips and creased to the edges. A fascinating volume with interesting associations. Very Good 1950

London: Grabowski Gallery, 1960. 220 x 143 mm. Near Fine. Catalogue of the work of Polish artist Janina Baranowska. Near fine, with black and white photographic plates. With invitation laid in to the Private View at the Grabowski Gallery of paintings by Viotto, Baranowski and sculptures by Debska, June 1960. We have recently acquired the library of Harry Horlock Stringer who was a leading British potter at the old Fulham Pottery in the 1950's where he concentrated on earthenware. Later he moved to Taggs Yard in Barnes, south west London, where he built and ran his own school, welcoming pupils and making friends such as Ginger Rogers from across the world at a time when studio pottery was enjoying newfound popularity. Stringer experimented with his own glazes and firing techniques, and wrote a book on Raku, becoming a Fellow of the Craft Potters Association, editing the association's journal for a time and exhibiting widely as well as lecturing at home and abroad. Additional postage may be payable… Read More

New York: Bulletin of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, 1916. Soft cover. Very Good. pp 347-390 An article signed by its author J Sharshall Grasty of the University of Virginia on the users and producers of Barite in the Appalachian States. This offprint is signed in the top right hand corner of the front cover - 'Compliments of J Sharshall Grasty' which is underlined and Wm Bullock Clark's name is printed below. This offprint is in VERY GOOD condition and in the original green printed wrappers. This forms part of a large quantity of natural historical pamphlets recently acquired by Modernfirsteditions. Very Good 1916

Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1962. 220 x 143 mm. Near Fine. Offprint from Political Studies, vol X, No.1, February 1962, pp 46-64. In near fine condition in yellow wrappers, signed and inscribed "With the author's compliments 19.3.62". From the collection of Kenneth Robinson (1914-2005), a distinguished civil servant who became an expert on colonial government and administration. He was closely involved in international aspects of postwar planning, including former colonies, in south-West Africa (now Namibia), and became the Commonwealth Office expert on French West Africa. He became assistant secretary in the CO in 1946 (and head of the West African department), but resigned in 1948 to become reader in Commonwealth government at Oxford and subsequently director and professor of commonwealth affairs at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies in London. He was vice-chancellor of the University of Hong Kong from 1965 to 1972. Near Fine 1962

Batley: J S Newsome & Son, 1961. 220 x 143 mm. Very Good. pp 24 Very good in blue card wrappers, some marks to upper cover. Internally the paper is fresh, a liitle foxing to the central pages. Published to commemorate the school centenary, the book contains several pre-1900 and early 20th century class photographs. From the collection of a former costume designer at Yorkshire Television, who studied at Leeds College of Art. Very Good 1961

London: Edwin Ashdown Ltd, 1870. Soft cover. Very Good. pp9 Sheet music, large folio in illustrated paper wrappers. A military march by British composer John Pridham (1818-1896) describing the British assault under General Wilson on the besieged city of Delhi in 1857. This copy is complete, very good, covers nicked and lightly soiled, tape repair along the spine, pages detached but crisp and clean. Originally published in 1857, this copy is undated. Very Good 1870

Unpublished, 1859. No Binding. Very Good. A contemporary ink drawing of the Battle of Solferino. The drawing is labelled on the image as 'Battle of Solferino, June 1859. Attack of the French on the Austrian army on the heights of Casa-Nova'. The dramatic image which has been accomplished by a skilful amateur shows four fallen soldiers - apparently French - in the foreground with a single Austrian soldier taking aim at the oncoming French troops, and behind him the massed ranks of the Austrian infantry and artillery. Behind them is a tower with a standard raised. The massed French infantry are advancing up hill from the left of the picture with an explosion in the centre masking the point at which the two armies are meeting. A single French soldier appears about the fall as he reaches the Austrian lines. The image is drawn in a mixture of brown and black ink with brown for the inscription and background and black for the soldiers. The drawing does not appear to be a book illustration but has… Read More

London: Herbert Jenkins, 1949. Hardcover. Very Good. First British edition in a striking dustjacket which features a crystal ball. Orange cloth, very good; the jacket is chipped twice along the bottom edge but not price-clipped and shows good colour. An uncommon title. Very Good 1949

Paris: J-P Migne, 1855. Hardcover. Near Fine. pp 1295 The complete works of Saint Aelred, Abbot of Rievaulx, (1110 - 1167). Large folio, in modern binding of fresh blue cloth with leather spine label, text browned, extensive annotations esp to Speculum Charitatis, De Spirituali Amicitia and some of the sermons. No ownership inscription. Additional postage charges may apply as this is a substantial volume. Near Fine 1855

Boston: Joel Smith, 1826. Good. [4] pp5-214 The Beauties of Henry Kirke White of Nottingham, late of St John's College, Cambridge, a book of poetry and prose with an American provenance; ownership inscription of John Smith of New York, booksellers ticket of Mahlon Day, 376 Pearl-street, NY. Good in half leather over marbled boards, gilt tooling to spine, title page features an attractive coloured engraving of a tomb in a church yard, frontispiece portrait of Henry Kirke White aged 21 years. Good 1826