Rare books from Caravan Book Store

Quarto (12 by 8 1/4 inches) London: "Printed by Joseph Streater, and are to be Sold by T. Basset, at the George in Fleet-Street. J Robinson, at the Golden Lyon in St. Paul's Church-Yard. B. Ayimer, at the Three Pigeons over against the Royal-Exchange. Job. Southby at the Harrow in Cornhil. And by W. Canning, in the Temple." 1688. (16) 267 (12) & (3) 40 pages.

TWO works bound together, as published, in original full mottled calf, with raised bands and gilt ornaments on spine.
Good condition, with some chipping along outside hinges, but holding; and normal wear to corners. Title page of first part printed in red and black. Lower right corner of title page to second part torn and missing, but not affecting text; and minor old insect damage to lower portion of same; date and other particulars still very readable. Engraved bookplate of Henry Maister (of an early English mercantile family).

There are thirty-one full page engravings of animals in the first part; and five full page engravings of scientific… Read More

12 mo. (6 x 4 inches) San Francisco: Marvin & Hitchcock, 1852. First Edition. 2 [v]-viii, 258 pages, original quarter blind tooled red roan, good condition, cloth boards, with wear to lower spine (lower left hinge on front cover split, but holding), gilt title at head of spine, publishers name in gilt at foot of spine, original cloth boards showing evidence of old moisture splash or spill, minor foxing on preliminary and last leaves; contents clean, intact and unaffected. Old library label beneath old inked inscription "Placed in Library because of California history contained in the (the last word is un-readable)" on front pastedown.

A fine unsophisticated example. The Norris catalogue refers to it as "The first text-book published in San Francisco."

An observation attributed to Cowan refers to it as "... the first educational work published in California after American rule." The last 12 pages are titled "Geography, History, and Present Condition of California."

Marvin and Hitchcock were San… Read More

12 mo. (7 x 4 1/2 inches) Glasgow, 1700. First Edition. (viii) 112 pages. Good condition: early nineteenth century half calf, marbled boards, considerable wear to hinges (front hinge split, but holding), title in gilt on spine.

Walter Herries (or Harris) was a pamphleteer who participated in the first Darien "adventure." Upon his return to England, he was offered inducements by English politicians to write a book that would ruin the reputation of the members of the Darien Company. His book was "Declared by a royal proclamation to be a 'false, scandalous, and traitorous libel'."

This book, attributed to Ridpath, is an answer to Herries's book, and an attack on English politicians. Ridpath was a Scottish journalist who wrote and supported Whig interests against the Tories.

Small Quarto (10 x 7 inches) Pasadena, California, R. W. C. Farnsworth, 1883 [1]-vi, [7]-132 pages with engraved and half-tone photo illustrations, map of Pasadena in text.

"First separate directory of Pasadena; first history of the area in particular, and one of the best promotional works of its time for the Los Angeles region." - Quebedeaux: "Prime Sources of California and Nevada Local History."

Contributors include Dr. J. P. Widney, Abbot Kinney, and John Muir among other notable early Southern California personalities.

Original green cloth boards (one of several colored cloth covers known to be used for this book, blue and red being most common). Decorative gilt embossed title centered on front cover, repeated in blind on the back cover, with "Pasadena," "San Gabriel," "La Cañada," and "Sierra Madre" printed on individual decorative gilt backgrounds diagonally in the corners of the front cover.

Good condition (pages 65 and 100 have old clear tape repairs - one to the fore edge margin, and… Read More

Octavo (8 1/2 x 5 3/4 inches) Los Angeles: Times-Mirror Printing and Binding House, 1888. 278 pages listing 1700 tracts alphabetically. Rebacked quarter cloth with title in gilt on spine, contemporary original orange printed paper over boards, with old printed advertisements for local businesses framing the title and author, centered, on the upper cover; other ads on back cover, and among the text.

Very good condition (oval stamp of "Howell and Palm Publishers" on South Spring Street in upper right corner of title page, not affecting contents, penciled name of previous owner and date 1935 at top of title page).

A very rare record of real estate holdings and development in a burgeoning California town.

Two volumes by William Fulbecke, sold together, at one price:

First Volume: "A PARALLELE OR CONFERENCE OF THE Civil Law, the Canon Law, and the Common Law of this Realme of England." "Wherein the agreement and disagreement of these three Lawes, and the causes and reasons of the said agreement and disagreement, are opened and discussed. Digested in sundry Dialogues by William Fulbecke. At the end of these Dialogues is annexed a Table of the Sections or Di(sc)uitions of the principall points, matters, and questions which are handled in every Dialogue." "At London, "Printed for the Company of Stationeers," 1618 (Second Edition - First was 1601)



Second Volume: "THE SECOND PART OF THE Parallele, Or CONFERENCE OF the Civill Law, and the Common Law of this Realme of England," "WHEREIN THE AGREEment and disagreement of these three Lawes touching divers matters not before conferred, is at large debated and discussed. Whereunto is annexed a Table contayning the princpall Questions, matters, and pointes of… Read More

16 mo. (6 7/8 X 4 1/4 inches) Mobile: S. H. Goetzel, 1865. Fifth Edition - Fortieth Thousand. 48 pages, bound in original stiff sewn wrappers which are formed from inverted wallpaper, woodcut illustrations on the cover, and title page, including one showing a man and woman operating a large printing press. Very good condition (minor age toning to covers, not affecting contents). Crandall 4040

An early juvenile, in remarkably good condition, published in the Confederacy; where resources were scarce. "Under the present circumstances, the scarcity of materials is in itself a safeguard against a fruitless competition in the publishing business; but it is not the publisher's mission to depend upon physical incidents...."

Octavo (8 1/2 X 5 5/8 inches) London: Taylor and Francis, Red Lion Court, Fleet Street, 1893. Original First Edition. 160 pages, illustrated with drawings of early ideas for achieving manned flight prior to the Wright Brothers. original blue cloth hardcover beveled boards, with title and authors names in gilt, framing a, centered, gilded image of a man descending in a parachute (shown also in the text in black and white as "patent No. 10937 A.D.1888").

Very good condition, minor scuffing to front cover and spine, not affecting contents. Small rubber stamp of a previous owner in upper right corner of title page, over an inked notation ("1.1. 95"), and another unobtrusive notation at bottom right corner of same page - neither affecting text or contents. Minor crimping of upper right corner thru page 13, also not affecting text or contents that are both very clean.

There are more than 275 patent entries: from Balloons (" ... captive, combined with aeroplanes, photography from ....") to Flying Machines,… Read More

Quarto in oblong format (11 by 14 1/2 inches) Oakland, California: Thompson & West [Printed by Pacific Press Printing and Publishing House], 1880. First, Original Edition. [3] iv-vi [2], [1] 12-192 pages; eighty-seven full page lithographic views, including a double page bird's-eye-view of the Wolfskill Ranch; full page colored map showing the Western States of Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California dated 1878.

Good condition: stamped-embossed original cloth over boards, with title in gilt centered on the front cover; professionally re-backed, with new corners, new endpapers to match the period; title in gilt on spine. Loss to lower right margin of one view, not affecting that image, archival repair to tear in margin of another plate, not affecting that image; another view, and pages 19-22, 37-38, 129-130 provided in facsimile, and are compatible to the contents - the book is in otherwise original condition, with binding and contents intact.

The fine plates are of local businesses, residences, farms,… Read More

Quarto (12 by 9 1/2 inches) San Francisco: John H. Carmany and Company, 1874. Original First Edition. 319 + v pages, hardcover, bound in original green pebble cloth, with title in gilt on spine, and gilt vignette of a seal on upper front cover; 27 lithographic plates drawn by the author, and printed by Britton and Rey, plus many other fine lithographs (a few drawn by another hand) of whaling equipment, seals, dolphins and porpoises. Neat nineteenth century inked gift inscription on front fly leaf; minor normal shelf wear (not affecting the overall content, or binding that are both in very good condition); index.

"This book is the classic work on whales and seals along the Pacific coast. Captain Scammon began his whaling career soon after his arrival in California in 1852. His carefully prepared work is the most comprehensive book on the subject, and he investigated all the then known species of Cetacea as well as the Pinnipedia. His text on the whale fishery takes up the last hundred plus pages of… Read More

Small octavo (7 5/8 by 5 1/2 inches) London: Printed for the Company of Stationers, 1607. sixth edition. 85 leaves (leaf 46 is misnumbered), text printed in black letter; nineteenth century marbled boards, half leather, raised bands, leather corners, title in gilt on red label on spine, author and date in gilt on brown label on spine, good condition (mild shelf wear not affecting contents) a few leaves with marginalia in a neat hand; ESTC S117811 (manuscript references in pencil on front fly leaf: "S.T.C. 23218; COPIES REPORTED ONLY AT Oxford, Huntington, and HARVARD.") Dedicated to "... his singular friend Nicholas Bacon, the Kings Attorney of his Court of Wards , and Keeper of the Great Seale of England." Bacon was the father of the philosopher and statesman Sir Francis Bacon.

(This book is) "Concerned with the property rights of the crown rather than with constitutional principles. Fulbeck justly said of Stanford's books in 1600 that they were of: 'force and weight, and no common kind of stile; in… Read More

16 mo. (6 3/4 by 4 1/2 inches) London: R. Baldwin in Warwick-lane, 1697. Original First Edition. 7 preliminary leaves, two volumes in one: 80, 392 pages; good condition: rebound in late eighteenth, or early nineteenth century brown mottled calf, with gilt decorated spine laid down, raised bands, (missing label), minor wear to covers at front hinge (not affecting contents), lacking frontis.

There are thiry-one letters are that supposedly give insight into secret diplomatic transactions between the English and French courts. "History of the Stuarts," is a perceptive contemporaneous account.

Small quarto (10 5/8 by 8 3/4 inches) London: Printed For Robert Baldwin, . . . and Black Parry, And Co. Booksellers To The Hon. East India Company, 1814. First Edition. xi [1] 462 pages, + 1 leaf of publisher's advertisements.

Engraved frontispiece and four engraved plates (the one of diamonds is hand colored), 2 large folding maps hand colored in outline (one of Mysore and the other of The Circars).

Statistical tables: "different soils with their productions," "List of . . . Produce . . . of the different Kinds of Grain, and of its Time of Sowing and Reaping," "Fruits and Seeds of Trees and Plants used in Curries," "Coins, Weights, and Measures."

There is also an "Account of the Diamond Mines in India," and "On the Propagation of the Christian Religion in India, and on the Moral Character of the Hindoos."

Four appendices: Appendix A. "Analysis of a New Species of Copper" by Thomas Tomson, M.D.; Appendix B. "Tables of the Thermometer and Barometer, as Observed in Different Parts of the Peninsula… Read More

16 mo. (6 3/4 by 4 1/2 inches) London: Whittaker & Co. , 1877. New Edition. 519 pages, the frontis is an original tipped-in photographic portrait of the author, illustrated title page with views of Chateau Margaux and Chateau Lafitte, 15 unnumbered lithographic plates of wineries, and scenes associated with wine production, 4 maps, a facsimile foldout of a signed wine contract, plus 7 pages of the publisher's advertisement for another title by the same author.

Original green cloth decorated binding with title framed by a surround of grape vines on the upper cover; title and author in gilt on spine. Very good condition (mild shelf wear to upper and lower spine, not affecting contents; previous owner's neat old inked inscription on front fly leaf).

A blending of notable sources (Barry, Henderson, Busby, and others), and the author's own knowledge of the subject."The blend makes for interesting reading, with discussions ranging from early English vineyards to the vines and vineyards of the world."… Read More

Original hardcover folio in very good condition (17 1/2 by 12 inches) John Murray, J. and A. Arch, J. Booth, and Colnaghi and Co. London, 1819
Four leaves, (including half title), 67 pages, ten full page engraved plates by W. B. Cooke, George Cooke, Henry Moses, and Cosmo Armstrong on separate leaves (including the frontis, "Drawn by J. M. W. Turner R. A."), 4 engraved vignette illustrations in the text, quarter leather binding, with matching leather corners, marbled boards, title in gilt on spine (insignificant shelf wear to edges of binding, and mild foxing in margins of the plates; none of these affecting contents).
In a second section of the book are "Remarks On the Ancient and Modern History of Istria and Dalmatia, Elucidatory of the Origin, Manners, and Customs of the Present Inhabitants."
Pola is a city on the Adriatic, on the Istria Peninsula. At one time it was part of Italy, but now is in Croatia.
The author writes in the introduction, "The Views which compose this volume were originally… Read More