Travel, Atlases, Maps and Natural History

Property of a Lady Albert Millican AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT of 'Adventures, Travels and Experiences of an Orchid Collector in South America', c.1890 manuscript on paper, 4to (222 x 178mm.), 192 numbered leaves, mounted photograph portrait frontispiece signed by the author, 52 ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS, all mounted, 4 full-page watercolour drawings by botanical artist J.L. Macfarlane, a group of proof illustrations loosely inserted at end, contemporary calf lettered in gilt [Idem.] Travels and Adventures of an Orchid Hunter. London: Cassell & Company, 1891, FIRST EDITION, 8vo (213 x 133mm.), AUTHOR'S COPY, chromolithographed frontispiece, 21 plates, illustrations in the text, original pictorial blue cloth gilt, label removed from upper cover WITH: a collection of thirteen letters (including 3 AUTOGRAPH LETTERS SIGNED from Millican in Colombia) relating to plant hunting (“I have been 2 months seeking Mendelli & have only got 14 cases – it is almost impossible to find plants in all the old districts, they have been taken”), the publication and distribution of the book, and a receipt for 452 copies of the book “The life of the orchid-hunter is a hard and a dangerous one. He has to journey vast distances, and to endure great fatigue and tribulation,—in fact, he takes his life in his hand. Mr. Millican and his party met with dangers of a very real kind, from malaria, wild beasts, and the attacks of hostile Indians, whose poisoned arrows slew one of his comrades at his side” (The Spectator, 6 August 1892). A FASCINATING ARCHIVE OF MATERIAL DESCRIBING SOUTH AMERICAN ORCHID HUNTING AT ITS HEIGHT, including the illustrated autograph manuscript of Millican’s colourful memoir. Millican was one of the orchid hunters who fuelled orchidelirium, the extraordinary Victorian passion for these exotic plants. He scoured the jungles of Latin America for rare and new species, which were then shipped back to Europe. Millican was a sharp and lively witness to this strange trade and was conscious of its devastating environmental impact, describing the widespread destruction of local habitats as orchids were systematically rooted out of vast areas and noting how orchids did not return to the areas which had been stripped. Orchid hunting was also a notoriously dangerous business: Millican was stabbed to death on his final expedition. PROVENANCE: By family descent from the author to the present owner

View 1 of Lot 27: Albert Millican | Autograph manuscript of 'Travels and Adventures of an Orchid Hunter' with letters and first edition

albert millican | autograph manuscript of 'travels and adventures of an orchid hunter' with letters and first edition

Travel, Atlases, Maps & Natural History 

Jerrold, Walter & Ernest Haslehust. The Silvery Thames. Leeds & London: Alf Cooke, 1906, LIMITED DELUXE EDITION, NUMBER 10 OF 200 COPIES SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR AND ILLUSTRATOR, oblong folio, half-title, 60 tipped-in colour plates, uncut, original three-quarter vellum gilt, blue boardsLeyland, John. The Thames Illustrated. A Picturesque Journeying from Richmond to Oxford. London: Geo. Newnes, [c.1897], 12 volumes, folio, numerous photographic illustrations and advertisements, original green printed paper wrappers, spotting, minor wear, some covers repairedTaunt, Henry W. A New Map of the River Thames. Oxford: Taunt & Co.; London: Simpkin, Marshall & Co., [c.1887], fifth edition, 8vo, mounted photographic frontispiece, folding table of distances, folding key map, 33 double-page maps with mounted photographs and 2 similar plates, advertisements at beginning and end, original pictorial brown cloth, minor browning, binding slightly worn at extremitiesWyllie, W.L. The Tidal Thames. London, Paris & Melbourne: Cassell & Company, [1892?], folio, half-title, 20 photogravure plates on India paper mounted, original cloth-backed terracotta printed boards, minor spotting or soiling, binding slightly rubbed and sunned(15)

a collection of works about the river thames:

FIRST EDITION, 8vo (232 x 157mm.), half-title, 141 photographic illustrations on the recto and verso of 51 leaves, one coloured, original pictorial blue cloth, photo-illustrated dust-jacket, jacket with spine sunned, light soiling, minor marginal tears and loss

shackleton's last voyage: the story of the "quest". london, new york, toronto, and melbourne: cassell and company, 1923

bonvalot, gabriel. across thibet. london: cassell & co., 1891, first english edition...

Shackleton’s Last Voyage: The story of the “Quest”. London: Cassell, 1923

wild, frank.

The Holy Land, after lithographs by Louis Haghe... with historical descriptions by the Rev. George Croly. London, Paris & New York: Cassell, [1879-1884], 3 parts in one, 4to, half-titles, 120 lithographed plates, later crimson morocco-backed boards, gilt edges, a few leaves slightly foxed, rubbed--Wilson, Sir C.W. Picturesque Palestine. [1880-84]. 5 vol. bound in 3, including supplement (Social Life in Egypt, by Stanley Lane-Poole), 4to, plates and illustrations, original cloth gilt handsomely rebacked in brown morocco gilt, the supplement in red half morocco, spine gilt--Dubeux, L. La Perse [from the series ``L'Univers pittoresque'']. Paris, 1841, 86 engraved plates, contemporary calf-backed boards, original wrappers bound in, head of spine chipped--[Verderevsky, E.A.] Captivity of Two Russian Princesses in the Caucasus. 1857, portrait, folding map, nineteenth-century red half roan, ex-library copy, slightly rubbed--Bell, Gertrude. Persian Pictures. 1928, original cloth--Philby, H.StJ.B. Harun al Rashid. 1933, original cloth, somewhat marked; and 4 others, 8vo (12)

roberts, david.

Bibliophile III

The Amateur Poacher. London: Smith, Elder, & Co., 1879, 8vo (189 x 124mm.), original dark brown pebble-grain cloth, blocked in black and gold, black endpapers, [Sadleir 1304; Wolff 3614], some slight wear to spine; Amaryllis at the Fair. A Novel. London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, 1887, 8vo (196 x 133mm.), original pictorial dark green cloth, blocked in black, yellow and gold (daffodil design on spine and upper cover), slipcase, [Sadleir 1303; Wolff 3613], slipcase, minor foxing and offsetting; World's End. A Story in Three Books. London: Tinsley Brothers, 1877, 8vo (196 x 140 mm.), three volumes, first edition, with 2pp. publisher's advertisements at end of volume one, original dove grey cloth blocked in black, spine lettered in gilt, [Sadleir 1318], presentation copy inscribed by the author to his aunt on half-title to volume one ("Ellen Harrild With the Author's Love July 10th 1877"), recased with new endpapers, slightly bumped; The Scarlet Shawl. A Novel. London: Tinsley Brothers, 1874, 8vo (190 x 135 mm.), first edition, half-title, with cancel dedication leaf, red half calf, [Sadleir 1314, Wolff 3624], lacking advertisement leaves; The Gamekeeper at Home: Sketches of Natural History and Rural Life. London: Smith, Elder, & Co., 1878, 8vo (192 x 137 mm.), first edition, half-title, original green cloth blocked in black and gilt, [Sadleir 1307, Wolff 3618], cuttings on the author's death tipped in on front endpapers, slightly bumped; Wild Life in a Southern County. London: Smith, Elder, & Co., 1879, 8vo (195 x 135 mm.), first edition, half-title, original green cloth blocked in gilt, black, and blind, slipcase, [Wolff 3626]; Hodge and His Masters. London: Smith, Elder, & Co., 1880, 8vo (192 x 135 mm.), two volumes, first edition, half-titles, 4pp. publisher's advertisements at end of volume two, original dark brown cloth, blocked in gilt with pictorial devices on upper covers and in blind, [Sadleir 1309, Wolff 3620], recased with new endpapers, slightly bumped; Wood Magic; A Fable. London: Cassell, Petter, Galpin & Co., 1881, 8vo (202 x 137 mm.), two volumes, first edition, half-titles, 8 pp. publisher's catalogue at end of both volumes, original dark green cloth blocked in black, slipcase, [Sadleir 1317, Wolff 3627], hinges weak, slightly rubbed, early ownership inscription erased on title-pages; Bevis: The Story of a Boy. London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1882, 8vo (181 x 130 mm.), three volumes, first edition, half-title to volume one only (as called for), 32 pp. publisher's catalogue dated December 1881 at end, original brown cloth blocked in blind and lettered in gilt on covers and spines [Sadleir 1305, Wolff 3615, Carter, Binding Variants, pp.121-22, binding A] (13 volumes)

a collection of nine works, comprising:

The Tomb of Tut-Ankh-Amen discovered by the late Earl of Carnarvon and Howard Carter. London: Cassell and Company, 1923-1933

The Tomb of Tut-Ankh-Amen discovered by the late Earl of Carnarvon and Howard Carter. London: Cassell and Company, 1923-1933Condition Note: first edition, signed by carter on volume one title, 3 volumes, 8vo, numerous illustrations, original decorative cloth giltWe are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described in our catalogue. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSION CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Results for "Cassell's Natural History"