[Offered with:] II. BERNOULLI, Daniel, Praeses; PREISWERK, Alexander. Q.D.B.V. Theses Tumultuariae, quas favente divino numine, ex decreto amplissimi senatus Academici, Cavante Logices et Metaphysices Cathedra ad D. XIII. Sept. MDCCLXXI. Basel, J.H. Decker, [1771]. Folio broadside printed on one side [50 x 39.5 cm] in two columns with decorative woodcut..... More

The first attempt at a comprehensive bibliography of D’Anville’s production of maps and books.  Many of the citations are annotated.  D’Anville was one of the great French cartographers of the eighteenth century.  He was the author of 211 maps and plans.  “His maps of China, drawn at the request of..... More

Exceedingly rare undated edition (see below) of this report on central Luzón by Ustariz, provincial of the Dominican Order in the Philippines, focusing especially on the Paniqui Indians. A summary of the contents is included in the Blair/Robertson anthology of the most important primary documents of Philippine history: “In Paniqui..... More

Extensive sammelband of 17 early 19th-century Italian agricultural treatises relating to exotic crops, pest control, farm storage, seed scattering, etc. Cotton, peanuts, potatoes, wheat, swedes (a root vegetable popular in England), clover, apples, and other crops are discussed, as is an American decorative annual, Madia sativa, which appears to have... More

Very rare first edition, with all engravings in their first state, of this highly influential suite of 23 portraits of Netherlandish artists produced under the direction of the humanist-poet Dominicus Lampsonius (1532-99) and the Antwerp publisher-printmaker Hieronymus Cock (1518-70). The series, which was already in progress in the 1560s, was... More

Extensively illustrated, visually appealing unpublished French navigational manuscript dating from the early 1670s, making it an important early witness to the maritime pedagogical reforms instituted by Jean-Baptiste Colbert (1619-1683) during his effort to strengthen the French navy, create a favorable balance of trade for the nation, increase France’s colonial holdings..... More

Extremely rare first edition of the first Italian translation of Charles Dickens’ iconic novella A Christmas Carol. We have located just 3 institutional copies worldwide of this important witness to the early reception of Dickens on the Italian peninsula, none of which is today housed outside of Italy (see below)... More

Very rare first and only edition (just 2 examples in U.S. libraries) of an illustrated work describing the erection in 1731 of an ephemeral triumphal arch in Livorno designed by the Florentine architect Ferdinando Ruggieri (1687-1741) at the request of the English merchant community stationed there. The monumental arch, over... More

Extremely rare first edition of a medical case study on a severe case of osteomalacia, or bone softening, in the skull, thorax and pelvis of a young woman.  The report briefly outlines the history of the case and the acquisition of the cadaver before launching into a highly detailed, technical..... More

Rare 1720 Spanish-language relacion of an eyewitness account by the Bishop of Marseille, Henri François Xavier de Belsunce de Castelmoron (1671-1766), concerning the Great Plague then sweeping Marseille. Belsunce de Castelmoron, who would become famous for his extreme bravery in staying in the city to attend to the sick and..... More

Extraordinary folio album of 28 fine full-page and double-page drawings executed by the student Charles-Gilbert Gilberton (b. 1788- d. after 1853) at the Paris École impériale polytechnique during the academic years 1809-10. The portfolio provides a valuable visual record of how young engineers and architects were trained in the graphic..... More