ALKEN, HENRY ⁠— [PRINCE HENRY, DUKE OF GLOUCESTER] | A Group of Four Titles from the Collection of Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester

Property from the Sporting and Travel Library of Arnold "Jake" Johnson

ALKEN, HENRY ⁠— [PRINCE HENRY, DUKE OF GLOUCESTER]

 A Group of Four Titles from the Collection of Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester

Sporting Discoveries or the Miseries of Hunting in a Series of Seven Plates, Being Hints to Young Sportsmen by Ben Tally-Ho. London: S. and J. Fuller, 1816 [watermarked 1815]. Oblong folio (11 1/4 x 14 3/4 in.; 286 x 376 mm). 7 hand-colored aquatint plates, advert leaf sewn-in; minor marginal soiling. Original printed grey wrappers, letterpress title on upper wrapper; restitched, plates disbound. Brown cloth over board folding portfolio, upper board gilt-lettered. First issue in original wrappers. Mellon/Snelgrove 20; Schwerdt I:23 (lacking the wrappers); Siltzer 69; Tooley 53. Provenance: J. Mott (contemporary signature on wrapper); Fitz Eugene Dixon (bookplate on portfolio; his sale, Anderson Galleries, New York, 6 January 1937, lot 7); Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (his sale, Christie's London, 26-27 January 2006, lot 608); Christie's 30 Oct 2012, lot 6 — Henry Alken's New Scrap Book. London: Thomas Mclean, 1824. Small 4to (6 7/8 x 10 3/8 in.; 175 x 265 mm). 20 hand-colored lithographic plates; a few stray spots, generally not affecting images, minor fingersoiling to margins. Contemporary cloth-backed boards, original black label printed in gilt on upper cover; corners bumped, extremities rubbed. First edition. Schwerdt I:15. Provenance: Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (bookplate to front pastedown; his sale, Christie's London, 27 January 2006, lot 613) — [Ackermann's Sporting Scraps]. London: R. Ackermann, [c. 1861]. Oblong 4to, (9 9/16 x 10 1/4 in.; 218 x 273 mm). 36 hand-colored aquatint plates, by J. Harris after H. Alken, W.J. Shayer, and W.A. Knell; some spotting, occasionally affecting plates. Near contemporary red morocco gilt, covers decoratively gilt-ruled with floral cornerpieces, spine with raised bands in six compartments, second and third gilt-lettered, others with repeat overall decoration in gilt, all edges gilt, inner dentelles gilt, plum coated endpapers, morocco label retained from earlier binding; minor rubbing to corners. A finely colored set of this rare series. Lane 80 & 82; Siltzer 67. Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (bookplate to front free endpaper; his sale, Christie's London, 26-27 January 2006, lot 620); Christie's London, the LeVivier Library sale, 30 October 2012, lot 104 — Ideas, Accidental and Incidental to Hunting, and Other Sports; Caught in Leicestershire, &C. London: Thomas Mclean, [1826-1830, but watermarked 1829]. 7 parts in one volume, folio (13 7/8 x 10 in.; 352 x 252 mm). Letterpress title, 42 hand-colored etched plates, interleaved, with 3 original pencil drawings by Alken (from 8 3/8 x 7 1/8 in.; 214 x 181 mm, to 9 1/4 x 6 1/4 in.; 235 x 160 mm) for the plates "Thrown ... Off", "Fording the Lea", and "I have no Idea what could induce me to follow you", each mounted onto a blank leaf; minor foxing to drawings, minor fingersoiling and foxing to margins. Contemporary half roan over cloth, gilt lettering-piece on upper cover, spine with raised bands in five compartments, second and fourth gilt lettered, others with repeat gilt filigree motif, all edges gilt; extremities rubbed, covers scuffed, some loss of cloth on upper cover. The rare first issue, with three of Alken's original pencil drawings. Mellon 104; Schwerdt I:17; Siltzer 72; Tooley 36. Provenance: Stansfeld Manor House (bookplate to front pastedown); Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (bookplate to front free endpaper; his sale, Christie's London, 26-27 January 2006, lot 619); Christie's London, 30 October 2012, lot 86

Group lots not subject to return.