Rare books from AARDWOLF Fine Books

M. Clark for Samuel Mearne, in Little Britain, John Martyn, in St. Paul’s Church-yard, and Henry Herringman, in the New Exchange, London, 1680; 12mo; blank flyleaf, title page, A1-7, 1-222, 3 pg. index, Q1-9, blank, 1-28, blank, title page, I-X, 1-110, blank, 2 pg. index, page 111. The 1680 edition, containing three additional essays: "A Fragment Of An Essay On Fame," "A Civic Character Of Julius Cesar," and "A Civic Character Of Augustus Cesar," thus increasing the total number to sixty-one, plus the two titled works "Of The Colours Of Good & Evil," and "The Wisdom Of The Antients" (Sir Arthur Gorges translation). Attractive British armorial binding, finely rebacked by Rene Patron of Hollywood, California in brown calf with genuine raised bands, morocco label, and gilt spine titles. Quill & ink inscription on front pastedown: "The gift of Clement Watson of New Zealand, ‘81." Engraved armorial bookplate on rear pastedown (on a mount a… Read More

L’Edition D’Art H. Piazza, Paris, . Large folio containing twenty-four individual 10" x 13" color pastel portrait plates of famous French personages, by premier 18th century French portraitist Maurice Quentin de la Tour (1704-1788), each superbly reproduced in color lithograph on double-weight paper protected with its own guard tissue bearing the subject’s name in letterpress. Encased in the original marbled-board portfolio with linen tie and accompanied by the full-size six page booklet, printed on Rives paper, containing titles and biographical notes for each personage. Text in French. Includes portraits of Rousseau, Voltaire, Jean Restout, Mme. de Pompadour, Louis XV, opera singer Marie Fel, famed danseuse Mlle. de Camargo, Latour himself, and numerous other notables of 18th century French high society. No printed publication date (circa 1900). All prints sparkling and Fine. Portfolio case Very Good. A rare and beautiful item, with the only other copies on record in collections at… Read More

C. Hulmandel, London, 1832-1837; Hand colored stone lithograph by John and Elizabeth Gould of a Rufus-Backed Egret (Ardea rufsata ) from Gould’s "The Birds Of Europe," issued in parts between 1832-1837. Frame size 25 1/2" x 19 1/2", inside matte window 19 1/2" x 13 1/2". Excellent condition, clean, colors vivid, no folds or tears. Very slight peripheral mat burn. Scattered surface marring of the wood frame. Original descriptive text affixed to the back, together with shop label of prestigious Brooks Frame and Art Shop, Westwood Village, California, long extinct. A graceful and delicate ornithological subject. Ships to U.S. only.

Martinus Nijhoff, Haag, 1915; First Edition; octavo; red cloth, gilt titles and decorations; illustrated. Seven matched volumes, I thru VII, each with index at the front and containing, throughout the set, 38 full-page b&w illustration plates and over 300 reproductions of the artists’ signatures. Lacks volume VIII, the overall indexing register. Foremost reference source on 16th-18th century Dutch and Flemish artists, painstakingly compiled and published sequentially between the years 1915-1922 by prodigy Abraham Bredius (1855-1946), director of the Mauritshuis Royal Art Gallery at the Hague from 1889-1909 and world-renowned authority on 17th century Dutch/ Flemish art. Bound in the original publisher’s red cloth boards with gilt titles and seal on the front. All volumes in Very Good Plus condition, clean, crisp, bright, bindings tight, sound, and square, corners sharp. A legendary reference in exceptional condition. (See Mary W. Chamberlin’s "Guide To Art Reference Books," and… Read More

Weier near Horburg (Wihr-en-Plaine), 1751; tall quarto (8 1/2" x 13"), 418 pages. Original manuscript of the last will and testament of Maria Balzinger (Baltzinger), deceased wife of Mathias Steib, official of the local court and tenant of Pfalz-Zweibrucken ducal estate at Weier near Horburg in the Alsace region. Contains detailed inventories of all personal and real property for both spouses, complete with monetary valuations, the names of all family members and beneficiaries, and full transcriptions of the couple’s original marriage agreements recorded at the City Hall in Colmar, November 26, 1703. Text in German, repeated in its entirety in French, consisting of 209 leaves of handmade watermarked paper written both sides, for a total of 418 pages. A valuable primary resource, with genealogical and historical data for a privileged Alsace family. Dated at Weier near Horburg, September 13, 1751. Fine condition, in original sewn binding. There is a single small chip, 8mm x 5mm in size, on… Read More

Goupil, Paris, 1880; Large woodburytype photograph by Nadar (Gaspard Felix Tournachon), of French playwright and operatic librettist Edmond Gondinet (1828-1888), whose work includes the text for the Leo Delibes opera "Lakme." Photo measures 7 1/2" x 9 1/4", mounted on 11" x 14" card. Complete with the original two 11" x 14" leaves of background and analytical text by Gustave Goetschy. From the eminent French 19th century "Galerie Contemporaine" photographic collection of leading figures from the arts and sciences, published by Goupil and issued in parts from 1876 to 1884. Fine condition. There is a miniscule (1/16") corner chip of the mounting card in the blank area at lower right. Light to moderate foxing of the text sheets. Text in French.

Samuel Harding, London, 1737; Hand colored folio copper engraving of Granata punica mala, plate #97 from A Curious Herbal by Elizabeth Blackwell, legendary wife of star-crossed botanist Alexander Blackwell, who undertook the production of a medicinal herbal in order to raise money to free her husband from debtor’s prison. Elizabeth rented rooms at London’s Chelsea Physic Garden, painted watercolors of the plants growing there, and took them to Fleet prison where Alexander added the taxonomic and foreign names plus short descriptions and notations on medicinal uses for each plant. She then single-handedly engraved the copper plates and colored the prints. While her efforts on behalf of her husband were successful in the short run, in 1747 Alexander Blackwell was executed in Sweden for his involvement in efforts to overthrow the Swedish crown. Fine condition. Printed on handmade laid paper. Matted and encased in gilt wood frame. Matte window 8 1/2" x 12 1/2", frame size 16" x… Read More

Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, 1940; First Edition; 8vo, 471 pages; publisher’s beige cloth; black spine titles over a red field. Hemingway’s dramatic semi-autobiographical tale of fate, courage, and death in the Spanish Civil War, released to considerable critical acclaim and recommended for the 1941 Pulitzer prize, though none was awarded that year. Source of the 1943 Oscar nominated film directed by Sam Wood starring Gary Cooper and Ingrid Bergman. Hemingway dedicated the book to comrade, paramour, and energetic war correspondent Martha Gellhorn, whom he married the following year. Very Good, pastedown margins lightly tanned, clean, crisp, corners sharp, binding tight, sound, and square, no ownership signatures or any other markings of any kind. Second issue dust jacket with photographer Lloyd Arnold’s credit beneath the rear panel photo, publisher’s price of $2.75, and Henry Seidel Canby blurb on front flap. Arnold was chief photographer for the Sun Valley Company and its Idaho… Read More

Country Life Ltd./ Charles Scribner’s Sons, London and New York, 1924; First Edition; folio (16 1/8 x 11 1/2"); green cloth; gilt titles and rules; top page edges gilt; marbled end papers; photo illustrated. Percy Macquoid and Ralph Edwards’ monumental work on English furniture, the enduring authority on the subject. Profusely illustrated with photographs in black and white plus 52 full-page color plates. All volumes Fine. Extraordinarily clean, crisp, bright, glossy, corners sharp, bindings tight, sound, and square, titles brilliant. Volume II and III have a single minuscule (1/8") cloth fray at the outermost tip of the lower right corner of the front board. No ownership signatures or any other markings of any kind. Small engraved bookplate at front of each volume. A sparkling set in first edition, complete with original dust jackets which bear some edge chipping and aged tape ghosts. Learned twenty-four page introduction by Henry Avray Tipping, notable designer and longtime… Read More

Viking Press, New York, 1935; First Edition; tall 8vo, 154 pages; red cloth; illustrated. Charles G. Finney’s first novel, a fantasy about a bizarre traveling circus that suddenly appears in the remote desert town of Abalone, Arizona carrying a load of extraordinary creatures overseen by a mysterious Chinaman. Winner of Best Book Of The Year at the first National Book Awards in 1935 and later adapted to the screen by Charles Beaumont and Ben Hecht for the 1964 MGM film "The Seven Faces Of Dr. Lao." It has been cited as a creative influence by numerous fantasy writers including Ray Bradbury, who expressed his greatest admiration for it. In his memoirs, Finney revealed that the idea for "Dr.Lao" was conceived while he was stationed with the U.S. infantry in China from 1927-1929, and that the fictional town of Abalone was modeled after Tucson, Arizona, where he had moved after discharge, taking a job as journalist for the Arizona Daily Star. Fine condition, clean, crisp, bright,… Read More

Durham, England, 1681; Final concord Latin indenture in a highly mannered Gothic hand, recorded at the court of Durham during the reign of Charles II on the 26th day of May in the year 1681 before three identified justices and the Mayor of the City Of Durham. Plaintiff is John Garstell, deforciants are Mary Hopper and Anthony Craggs and wife Amice. At issue is a tenement comprised of messuage, orchard, twenty acres of land, twenty acres of meadow, and twenty acres of pasture, together with all goods and appurtenances, at Wiserley, Weardale township, in the parish of Wolsingham, County Durham. A sum of 160 silver marks was paid, suggesting the property was almost certainly a freehold. Indeed the names of John Gastell, Anthony Craggs and John Hopper appear as Wolsingham freeholders for 1685 in H. Conyers Surtees’ "History Of The Parish Of Wolsingham." Freeholds in Wolsingham were scarce, as the vast majority of lands were retained by the See of the Bishop of Durham. Manuscript dimensions… Read More

Printed by E. Guyer, Harrisburg, PA, 1839; First Edition. 8vo, 16 pgs. Special message to Pennsylvanians from Governor Joseph Ritner (1780-1869) criticizing the rejection of his petition to the state legislature to provide payment to Pennsylvania militiamen for their service in putting down the recent insurrection at Harrisburg, commonly known as the "Buckshot War," giving a detailed chronology of the events leading up to the incident and explaining his reasoning in taking the actions he did, together with complete copies of the correspondence between state and federal officials involved in the matter -- William B. Reed, Martin Van Buren, George Douglas Ramsay, A.J. Pleasonton, and J. B. Pointsett. The conflict began over a question of the legitimacy of the electoral vote count subsequent to the election of 1838. Both political parties in the State Legislature refused to seat certain members from the other side, resulting in a bitter fight and riot as onlookers stormed the chamber… Read More

, circa 1850; 8" x 12 1/2" original 19th c. holographic manuscript of the first act of an unnamed stage play set a,among the inhabitants of Gordon Mansion, a prosperous Virginia Plantation. The curtain opens on a group of slaves lying about resting and singing when two, Sambo and Dulcimer, become engaged in name-calling, which quickly turns into a fight. A field boss arrives to break it up, driving them back to work with the crack of a whip. The story revolves about an educated black slave by the name of Harry who is appointed overseer of the estate by Col. Gordon upon his deathbed. The Colonel entrusts Harry with the safekeeping of his (the Colonel’s) daughter Nina, and reveals that he, Harry, is his eldest son, thereby making Nina Harry’s half sister. Harry gives his word he will carry out the Master’s wishes. Harry and Nina had always been unexplainably close, and with his newfound knowledge Harry is torn between his desire to divulge to Nina the truth of their relationship, or… Read More

Oneida Association, Oneida Reserve, NY, 1849; Unique archive of five original Oneida Association publications: (1.) "Confessions Of John Noyes," autobiography of controversial Oneida founder John Humphrey Noyes, (1849; 96 pages), who after experiencing a religious conversion in 1834 at a revival meeting conducted by fiery preacher Charles Grandison Finney, was moved to dedicate his life to the theology of Perfectionism and by 1836 had established a commune of "Free Church," or "Bible Socialists," at Putney, Vermont where they remained for twelve years before moving to New York’s Oneida Indian Reserve to avoid prosecution for adultery, owing to their practice of universal marriage. "Confessions," published the first year at Oneida, is Noyes’ personal account of his life and religious evolution, plus a history of the philosophy of Perfectionism; (2.) Faith Facts, Or A Confession Of The Kingdom Of God And The Age Of Miracles, (1850; 40 pages), the first Free… Read More

Instant Analysis Records, U.S.A., 1988; Numbered limited edition boxed set (#009) containing five 12" vinyl LP’s of bootleg Beatle recordings, complete with both of the original 14" x 11" Beatles posters. Instant Analysis Records #BBR B0001. Contrary to the description on the box front, Disc 5 is actually a recording of the Beatles’ 1964 appearance on Alan Freeman’s BBC Pick Of The Pops radio show, containing live on-air repartee with Freeman interspersed with fifteen song performances. Side 1: I Saw Her Standing There, Goin’ To Kansas City, I Forgot To Remember To Forget, You Can’t Do That, Sure To Fall, Can’t Buy Me Love, Matchbox, and Honey Don’t. Side 2: Everybody’s Trying To Be My Baby, I Call Your Name, I Got A Woman, You Can’t Do That, Can’t Buy Me Love, Sure To Fall, and Long Tall Sally. All discs in Fine, unscratched condition. Light corner wear of the box lid plus a short corner split at upper left. Quite scarce.