Foster, Joshua James

Concerning the True Portraiture of Mary Queen of Scots. London: Dickinsons, 1904



Folio (17 1/4 x 13 1/4 in.; 438 x 338 mm). Printed in red and black, 57 fine photogravure plates and illustrations (some colored by hand).

A few tiny scratches to rear cover, front cover and spine faded to a uniform brown, glass cover to one minature lost.
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First edition, no. 32 of 45 copies of the "Edition Royale" (of a whole edition of 175).

A magnificent Cosway binding by Rivière & Son, the front cover inset with 13 very fine minature portraits on ivory of Mary Stuart and François II, almost certainly painted by Miss C. B. Currie. Dark green crushed morocco, the front cover gilt with a foliate pattern intertwined around the portraits and incorporating tools of thistles, bows, and Mary's monogram, all against a dense background of gilt dots; the spine similarly gilt and lettered in seven compartments; the rear cover with simple gilt-fillet border, board edges with double gilt fillet; turn-ins gilt-ruled with thistle-and-dot cornerpieces, signed by the binder at foot of front turn-in, red moiré silk linings, top edge gilt, others uncut. Red morocco solander box gilt.

A near twin of this binding, on another copy of the same work, was included in the sale of the library of Phoebe A. D. Boyle (Anderson Galleries, November 20, 1923, lot 112); the Boyle binding was resold at Christie's New York, December 18, 2003, lot 68.