1. Abu Taleb Tabrizi / Abu Taleb Isfahani / Mirza Abu Taleb Khan.

The Travels of Mirza Abu Taleb Khan in Asia, Africa, and Europe, during the years 1799, 1800, 1801, 1802, and 1803. Written by himself, in the Persian language. [With an Appendix: ‘Author’s Vindication of the Liberties of the Asiatic Women’]. Translated by Charles Stewart, Esq.

First and only Edition. Two Volumes (complete set). London, Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme, 1810. Octavo. Frontispice-Portrait with original tissue-guard, VIII, (8), 320, 418 pages. Hardcover / Beautifully restored bindings by english master binders in stunning modern half-morocco with the original spine-labels applied. Original endpapers and pastedowns with the original bookplates / Exlibris preserved. Excellent condition with some browing and ghosting to the pages, as usual with this set. Name of historical preowner Richard Meade in ink on titlepages. Rare in this very amazing restored condition.

2. Afghanistan – Tallis, John / Rapkin, John. (1817 – 1876)

Cabool (Kabul / Afghanistan), The Punjab (Pakistan) and Beloochistan (Balochistan) with Vignettes and Illustrations of Boats on the Indus / Sultan Mahmoud’s Minars and Fortress (Ghuznee / Ghazni in Afghanistan) / Beautiful scenery of Lahore.

Original steel engraving / Vintage map. Drawn and engraved by John Rapkin. Partly hand-coloured. London & New York, J & F. Tallis, 1851. Plate Size: 33.7 cm x 26 cm. Sheet Size: 37.5 cm x 27.2 cm. Vintage 19th century map in very good condition.

3. Africa / North Africa – Tallis, John / Rapkin, John. (1817 – 1876)

Egypt and Arabia Petrea – with Vignettes and illustrations of the Mosque of Sultan Hassan / Grand Cairo / Alexandria / Ruins of the Great Temple, Karnac / Great Sphinx, Ghizeh / Gulf of Akaba / Gulf of Suez / Red Sea with Boats / .

Original steel engraving / Vintage map. Drawn and engraved by John Rapkin. Partly hand-coloured. London & New York, J & F. Tallis, 1851. Plate Size: 24.5 cm x 34.4 cm. Sheet Size: 27.3 cm x 37.4 cm. Vintage 19th century map in very good condition.

4. Algosaibi, Ghazi A.

Arabian Essays [Inscribed and signed by the Saudi Arabian Author Ghazi Algosaibi to American Author Kathy Cuddihy].

London / Boston / Melbourne, Kegan Paul, 1982. Octavo. 117 pages. Original Hardcover with dustjacket. Excellent condition with some minor signs of wear only. Inscribed and signed on endpaper.

5. Ammoun, Blanche D.

Histoire du Liban. [Avec Ephemera] Avec 70 Dessins de l’Auteur.

2eme Édition. Beyrouth, Editions “Le Jour”, 1940. 19,5 cm x 15,5 cm. 196 pages. With many black-and-white illustrations throughout the book. Original Softcover. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear. Edges a little rubbed and faded. Comes with unique original bookmark.

6. [Autobiography Cities and Men] – Luke, Harry Charles.

[Manuscript / Working-copy (with Luke’s Exlibris) of:] Uncorrected Proof Copy of Cities And Men: An Autobiography. Volume I: The First Thirty Years (1884-1914) / This is the ultimately corrected version of Volume I, with several manuscript annotations and corrections by Sir Harry Luke in ballpen and ink but mainly with the positioning of the maps by Luke in the chapters of Volume One (all maps are sellotaped by Luke within the correct text-positions: Map of Cyprus, Map of Southern Alaska, Map of Mt. Athos, Map of “The Author’s Journey in Palestine and Syria in 1908” as well the tipped-in business-card of Dr.Albert Nissim). The Proof -copy also comes with the printed and correctly published Volumes Two and Three from Luke’s Autobiography and Volume III has the rare original Bookplate of Luke verso the endpaper: Motto: “Spero Meliora – E Libris Harrici Caroli Luke”. Three volumes.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Geoffrey Bles, 1953 – 1956. 22 cm x 14 cm. Volume I (Proof Working-Copy): 245 pages / Volume II: 262 pages / Volume III: (with Luke’s Exlibris / Bookplate): 254 pages plus loosely inserted an original photographic postcard of the “Tablet Placed by the Malta Government in the Bondi Palace, Gozo, to Mark Its Restoration” (this image was printed on page 97 of Volume III of Luke’s Autobiography). Original Hardcover with original dustjacket in protective Mylar. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. With annotations and markings by Harry Luke. Good condition with some minor signs of external wear.

7. Chomsky, Noam.

Fateful Triangle – The United States, Israel & The Palestinians – [SIGNED by Noam Chomsky]. With a Foreword by Edward W. Said.

Updated Edition. Cambridge, South End Press, 1999. 8°. (6), 481 pages. Original Softcover. Edge slightly foxed. Otherwise in excellent condition. Signed by Noam Chomsky on the front free endpaper.

8. [Commonwealth & Colonial History & Law] – Luke, Sir Harry [Lukach, Harry] – ‘the most unwasted life of any man I have known’ – (Sir Ronald Storrs on Sir Harry Luke)

Very Large Archive / Collection of British Colonial Official & Lieutenant-Governor of Malta, Sir Harry Luke. The Archive is Sir Harry Luke’s very personal and one might say, confidential collection of original autographed letters, correspondence and books he surrounded himself with at the end of his life. The Archive includes important and meaningful personal and official letters from important historical figures in the Arena of the Middle East and especially Palestine with for example interesting legal insights into the Jewish-Arab conflicts of the 1920s, as well as working-copies of books which Luke wrote himself at every location he was posted to during his career. In order to understand the vastness of the Archive you need to visit our website and see the nineteen (19) chapters of Material we synchronised chronologically with Sir Harry Luke’s life [Search for “Library & Collections” and find 19 chapters at the bottom of that page]. The Archive contains an unbelievable and impressive array of several highly interesting letters and correspondence regarding key historical events as disparate as the Mudros/Gallipoli-Campaign under Rosslyn Wemyss, the Jaffa Riots, the Western Wall Riots of Jerusalem in 1929 as well as information on diplomatic activity prior to the Suez Crisis, descriptions of locations like Guadalcanal prior to the War in the Pacific, detailed information on personell at Gardner Island / Phoenix Islands during the vanishing of Amelia Earhart, to only name a few bizarre coincidences. The books contain manuscript annotations and preparatory notes for later editions as well as many letters written to Luke regarding the many postings he served at during his long career in the Colonial Service. The Archive includes several hundred pages of correspondence between Luke and other officials within the Colonial Office, often in multi-page letters. Also included is proof of Luke’s connections to the Ecclesiastical World of the Vatican and Lambeth Palace, his diplomatic abilities are praised in letters from friends and officials alike. Luke received cordial letters from Queens (Queen Salote) as well as polarizing letters from Politicians. Included are manuscript notepads as well as confidential reports from other diplomats on locations where Luke was soon to be taking office, e.g. British Western Pacific Islands. The Archive is unique in its form because it represents not only the correspondence between Luke as an official but also allows us a view into the life of a Career Diplomat of the last days of the Colonial British Empire who develops a deep connection with everyone he served with and under. Luke did not only keep correspondence with famous friends like Ronald Storrs but also emotional letters from those who served under him and respectfully stay in touch beyond the termination of Luke’s service. Many letters to family colleagues in the Colonial Office, Politicians, Priests with political functions, are preserved with Luke’s original typescript-answer or initial letter. The official and often explosive and historically meaningful content with striking relevance for reinterpreting Mediterranean, Middle Eastern Conflicts etc. makes this archive a must for research and posterity. This is not just any diplomat’s archive. The majority of these letters are unpublished but are waiting to be discovered (see for example the long letter by Sir Kenneth Roberts-Wray on the Palestine Commission. Also included his Luke’s very valuable, handwritten manuscript-notebook of colonial postings-recipe-collections together with his working copy of the very special cookery book “The Tenth Muse”. The majority of the collection is now catalogued and visible on our website. A collection of c. 89 letters and 43 items of Ephemera has not been catalogued yet.

England / Palestine / Israel / Malta / Cyprus, Fiji / Sierra Leone etc., 1898 – 1968. Octavo / Quarto / Folio. c.15000 pages (books) / Collection of hundreds of Letters (see images) / Photographs and ephemera etc. Original Hardcover / Softover – Bindings (also private interim-bindings), often with the rare dustjackets in protective collector’s Mylar, some without dustjackets. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear. Please check our website under “Libraries & Collections” and see detailed listings of books and letters, all categorized.

9. [Cyprus Content] – Luke, Harry Charles.

[Manuscript Annotations in:] H.C. [Harry Luke’s] Personal Working Copy of “Cypriote Shrines” with extensive annotations in pencil by Luke on at least eight (8) of the 47 pages in this wonderful volume. Illustrated with the Author’s Photographs.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, The Faith Press, 1920. 19 cm x 13 cm. 47 pages with nine photographs. Private Hardcover with the original, illustrated publisher’s wrapper bound in. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Some fading to boards and some minor wormhole-damage. Otherwise in very good condition.

10. [Cyprus Content] – Luke, Harry Charles.

Sammelband / Compilation-Volume titled: “VARIA – H.C.Luke” – with Pamphlets, Offprints and articles authored by Sir Harry Luke and others on Cyprus, Malta and the general Middle East.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. [1932]. 24,5 cm x 17 cm. c. 240 pages. Original Hardcover. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. With annotations and markings by Harry Luke. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear.

11. [Cyprus Content] – Luke, Harry Charles.

The City Of Dancing Dervishes And Other Sketches And Studies From The Near East. [Author’s Own Copy]. Illustrated With Photographs Taken By The Author.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Macmillan and Co., Ltd., 1914. 20,5 cm x 14 cm. XI, 257 pages, 13 illustrations. Original Hardcover. The author Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Very good condition with some rougher signs of external wear.

12. [Cyprus Content] – Luke, Harry Charles.

The City Of Dancing Dervishes.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Macmillan and Co., Ltd., 1914. 19,5 cm x 13,5 cm. XI, 257 pages. Original blue cloth Hardcover. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. With annotations and markings by Harry Luke. Good condition with some rougher signs of external wear.

13. [Cyprus Content] – Luke, Harry Charles.

The Fringe Of The East: A Journey Through Past And Present Provinces Of Turkey.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Macmillan and Co., Ltd., 1913. 22,5 cm x 15 cm. XIII, 273 pages with 77 illustrations. Original Hardcover. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Bumped corners, spine edges. Some foxing. Otherwise in very good condition.

14. [Cyprus Content] – Luke, Harry Charles / [Wilkins, Fraser – First Ambassador to Cyprus from the United States of America (USA) / Kennedy, John F. / JFK Assassination].

Manuscript (MLS) / Autographed letter (ALS) signed by Fraser Wilkins to Sir Harry Luke. The two-page-letter on mourning stationery of the “Embassy of the United States of America by Fraser Wilkins is a thank-you note to former british colonial officer, Sir Harry Luke, who had obviously sent condolences to the US-Embassy on Cyprus regarding the Assassination of JFK. Fraser Wilkins writes: “Dear Sir Harry – It was very thoughtful of you to write at this sad time. We had not realized that you were both in Kyrenia [Cyprus]. It is sad – not only for Mrs Kennedy & his family but also for our Country. There was so much more – as you indicate, which he might have done if he had not been cut down. Its maybe, as the ancient Greeks …said, that those whome the Gods love die young….Sincerely Fraser Wilkins”. Wilkins closes: “We hope to see you before too long!”

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Cyprus, December 2, 1963. Octavo. 2 pages. Very good condition with minor annoation on the letter in red ink by Sir Harry Luke, identifying Fraser Wilkins as “Ist US Ambassador to Cyprus”.

15. [Cyprus Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry / Lukach, Harry] / Storrs, Sir Ronald Henry Amherst.

Typed Letter Signed / Monogrammed (TLS with manuscript corrections) from Sir Harry Luke to Sir Ronald Storrs. The two – page letter plus addenda was written by Luke in September 1927, during his posting as Colonial Secretary in Sierra Leone, and reached Storrs during his Governorship in Cyprus. Luke writes about [Mr.] St.Barbe Baker and two pamphlets [by Baker] he sent Storrs of which one is “full of a passionate idealism canalized into the planting of trees in dry countries”. Luke continues: “He is now in the Forestry Service in Nigeria….I imagine he would be the very man for countries such as Ubr and Palestine, which wage a constant and unequal campaign against drought and inadequate rainfall. If you were to think it worth while to place him in touch with yourself, he might conceivably be of value in the direction of organizing voluntary tree-planting in the Regno di Cipro. In the matter of the Handbook [of Cyprus] I enclose on a separate sheet a very few corrigenda and suggestions…..” [The Corrigenda on page three of the letter (Addenda) deals with corrections of Date of publications of e.g.: “Cyprus under the Turks” etc.].

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. [Sierra Leone], 13th September, 1927. Folio. 3 sheets. From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.

16. [Cyprus Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry / Lukach, Harry] Storrs, Sir Ronald Henry Amherst.

Typed Letter Signed (TLS) from Sir Ronald Henry Amherst Storrs to Sir Harry Luke. The two – page letter was written by Storrs during the finalization of his posting in Jerusalem as Governor of Jerusalem and Judea and reached Sir Harry while he was still Colonial Secretary in Sierra Leone. The Letter touches on the uprooting Storrs and his family feel after 9 years of ‘anchors and tentacles’ [in Jerusalem]. In the letter, which is marked ‘Private – Pl[ease] destroy’, Storrs reports somehow cryptic on a project to get Luke somehow to Cyprus so they can work together again. Storrs reminisces how he looks back with gratitude, pleasure and regret to his collaboration with Luke. Storrs also reflects on a journey: ‘We came out by Paris (where I saw the finest collection of Rhodian plates in the world), Assisi (having named the street here after St. Francis in the spring), Rome (heard Mussolini and saw Gasparri), Athens (warned one or two prominent Cypriots against any political back-chat), Alexandria (to pack my collection of icons and alabaster) and finally Jerusalem whence, on the 29th, H.M.S. Cornflower will remove my wife, self, A.D.C. and about 70 packing cases to Famagusta which we hope to reach on the Feast of St.Andrew, he being, I believe, the Patron Saint of the Island”. In a Post Scriptum Storrs reports.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Jerusalem, 11th November 1926. Folio. 2 pages with original envelope. From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.

17. [Cyprus Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry / Lukach, Harry] Storrs, Sir Ronald Henry Amherst.

Typed Letter Signed (TLS with manuscript additions) on Stationery of Government House, Cyprus, from Sir Ronald Henry Amherst Storrs to Sir Harry Luke. The two – page letter was written by Storrs in August 1927, during his posting as Governor of Cyprus and reached Sir Harry while he was still Colonial Secretary in Sierra Leone. Storrs writes: “My dear Harry, Yours of the 18th received with lively satisfaction and the enclosure from the Thegn [Code for “Thane”] shewn to the highly gratified Daisy, who says it is nothing of the documents that emanate daily from the new office within the wall in Jerusalem. …..I am duly exploring the possibilities …..and indeed comic rumour that I am bored with Ubr. On the contrary the charm and interest of the place grow upon me every day and I am encouraged to believe that the Ergs and foot-poundals expended by myself in a variety of directions are already beginning to generate a current of advantage for the Colony: [continued in manuscript handwriting by Storrs]: including the revision to date of yr. admirable handbook [that is ‘Handbook of Cyprus’] (any bequests thereto ?)….”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Cyprus, July 6th, 1927. Octavo. 1 sheet (1 page). From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.

18. [Cyprus Content] – Luke, Sir Harry Charles / [Lieutenant Governor of Malta].

More Moves On An Eastern Chequerboard. Illustrated.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Lovat Dickson & Thompson Ltd., 1935. 22,5 cm x 15 cm. X, 268, [1] pages with 28 photographic illustrations. Original Hardcover with original dustjacket in protective Mylar. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) copy from his personal library. Loosely inserted a Christmas Message from Lambeth and Canterbury, The Archbishop of Canterbury [Michael Ramsey and Mrs. Ramsey] with a handwritten note “With our Love”. Some fraying to dustjacket. Otherwise in very good condition.

19. [Ecclesiastical Content] – Luke, Harry Charles.

Prophets, Priests And Patriarchs: Sketches of the Sects of Palestine and Syria. [With three original letters].

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, The Faith Press Ltd., 1927. 22 cm x 14,5 cm. IX, 130 pages, 30 illustrations and including the beautiful, large fold-out-plan in colour: “Plan of the Holy Sepulchre and Surroundings”. Original Hardcover with original dustjacket in protective Mylar. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Some tearing to dustjacket. Otherwise in very good condition.

20. [Ecclesiastical Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry / Lukach, Harry] Bell, George Kennedy Allen.

Typed Letter Signed (TLS) on Lambeth Palace stationery from Bishop George Kennedy Allen Bell to Sir Harry Luke: ‘My dear Luke – very many thanks for your letter and kind congratulations. I am sending this in duplicate to Jerusalem and to the St. James’ Club. I should greatly like to see you when you are in London if this is possible. I do not disguise the sorrow with which I hear of your impending departure from Jerusalem. The loss of yourself following so soon after Deedes’ [Brigadier General Sir Wyndham Henry Deedes] departure must be a great loss to Palestine and in particular to the Patriarchate. I am also very sorry to hear that Barron [J.B.Barron of the Palestine Land Commision Weights and Measure Commission] is leaving and I wonder what is going to happen to the Commission and all its affairs. I shall be leaving Lambeth on March 31st and spending ten days in the Lakes: then I go down at once to Canterbury where I shall be from April 12th to May 5th. I shall be in London for about a fortnight from May 5th onwards. I would greatly like to see you if you are about at that time. Yours very sincerely, G.K.A. Bell.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Lambeth Palace, 18th March 1924. Octavo. 1 page with original envelope. From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.

21. [Fermor, Patrick Leigh] Doughty, Charles M.

Travels in Arabia Deserta. With an Introduction by T. E. Lawrence. [Patrick Leigh Fermor’s personal copy] / [Also including all three Volumes of his autobiographical journey (one of them signed), on foot across Europe from the Hook of Holland to Constantinople in the years 1933 – 1934].

Second Impression of the ‘New and definitive Edition’. Two Volumes (complete set). London, Jonathan Cape, 1943. 20 cm x 26 cm. Volume I: Frontispice- Portrait of Doughty, 674 pages. Volume II: 696 pages. With both Volumes including each the beautiful large colour-fold-out-map in the rear showing “North Western Arabia and Negd”. Hardcover / Publisher’s original buckram with gilt lettering on spine and original dustjackets in protective collector’s Mylar. Deckled fore- and tail-edges. Coloured top edges. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear. Dustjackets slightly stained and price-clipped. Interior is bright and clean. Patrick Leigh Fermor’s personal copy with his name in ink on the endpaper of Volume II: “Patrick Leigh Fermor. London, July 1945.”. Leigh Fermor obviously rewarded himself with the purchase of Doughty’s masterpiece directly after World War Two. Stunning item, manifesting Doughty’s heavy influence on Patrick Leigh Fermor’s Travel writing. The set includes also three first editions in original dustjackets, of Patrick Leigh Fermor’s famous Travel writings: A Time of Gifts, Between the Woods and the Water [SIGNED], The Broken Road (with the second book, “Between the Woods and the Water” signed by Patrick Leigh Fermor.

22. Gilman, Arthur.

The Saracens – From the Earliest Times to the Fall of Bagdad. With maps, many illustrations, a chronological table and a list of books treating the subject.

Rare and sought after Third Edition. Great Britain, T. Fisher Unwin, 1895. 14 x 21 cm. xiv, 493 pages. Maps and Illustrations. Original Hardcover. Cloth covered boards with gilt lettering on spine. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear.

23. Gray, Andrew.

A Pilgrimage to Bible Lands. Historical Notes and Reflections on Scenes and Places Visited.

London / New York, Skeffington & Son / Edwin S. Gorham, 1903. 13 cm x 19 cm. VIII, 178 pages. Hardcover [publisher’s original green cloth] with gilt lettering on spine and on front board. Blind stamp to front board. Excellent condition with only minor signs of external wear. From the library of O.N.Ogilvie.

24. Hooke, Nathaniel.

The Roman History, From the Building of Rome to the Ruin of the Commonwealth [with the printed Dedication to Alexander Pope]. Illustrated with 17 folding Maps, 4 Fontispieces and 11 other Plates [32 copper-engravings in total].

The Fourth Edition. Four Volumes (complete set with all maps and plates). London, Printed for J. and R. Tonson; Hawkins and T.Longman, 1766 – 1771. Quarto (27 cm x 22 cm). Collation: Volume I: Frontispiece, XLVI, XLVI, 634 pages with 10 plates and 3 maps / Volume II: Frontispiece, XXXII, XXXII, 668 pages with 8 maps / Volume III: Frontispiece, VI, 694 pages with 5 maps / Volume IV: Frontispiece, VII, 464 pages plus 76 unnumbered pages of a General Index and 1 plate and 1 map. Hardcover / Original 18th-century leather with gilt lettering and labels on spine. Interior of this set with all maps and illustrations in excellent, very clean condition. The boards of the bindings with abrasions and some bumping but overall very firm. Some stronger peeling of the leather on board of Volume I, Only three pages with minor tears. The large map of Northern Africa (Palestine, Egypt and Libya) with a minor tear. The stunning maps and plates in timeless beauty. Highly underestimated work, in the shadow of Gibbon but with meticulous detail in presenting the geographical impact of the Roman Conquest. From the library of Daniel Conner (Connerville / Manch House), with his Exlibris / Bookplate to pastedown.

25. [Malta Content] – [Luke, Harry Charles] / 400 Year Anniversary of Great Siege of Malta.

Unidentified Manuscript Letter Signed (MLS) / Autographed Letter Signed (ALS) regarding Luke’s resignation [possibly from an order or other form of organization regarding Malta]: “Everyone at the meeting on Saturday was really sorry to hear of your resignation and it was immediately unanimously agreed that you should be invited to be the Guest of Honour at the next Dinner. I think this is particularly appropriate this year, when the 400th anniversary of the Great Siege is being celebrated – and who is there who knows more about the History of Malta than you do !”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. [London], 29th of April, 1965. A4. Two pages on one sheet with envelope. From the personal collection of Sir Harry Luke.

26. [Malta Content] – [Luke, Harry Charles] / [General Sir John Philip Du Cane].

Manuscript Letter Signed (MLS) / Autographed Letter Signed (ALS) from a friend of Sir Harry Luke, informing Luke about making contact for him with “Johnny du Cane”, clearly because of Luke’s imminet posting as Lieutenant-Governor of Malta, which had been announced the very same day. Du Cane had at this moment been Governor of Malta since 1927: “My dear Harry, I have written to Johnny du Cane for you. He is a real good [?], very intelligent and gloriously indolent – Which a men thinks me in everywhere ! – Ever yours – Archie Weyall [?]”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Petwood / Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire, 30th of June, 1930. Octavo. One page letter with envelope. From the personal collection of Sir Harry Luke.

27. [Malta Content] – [Luke, Harry Charles] Under Secretary of State, Colonial Office / Downing Street.

Typed Letter Signed (TLS) addressed to Harry Luke and signed OGR Williams on “Downing Street Stationery” / “The Under Secretary of State, Colonial Office”: “Sir, I am directed by Lord Passfield to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 15th of July and to inform you that the Crown Agents for the Colonies are being authorised to pay to you subsistence allowance at the rate of 25/– a night in respect of your attendance at the Colonial Office Conference for the period 23rd of June to the 15th of July (inclusive). I am, Sir, your obedient servant, OGRWilliams [?]”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. [London] Downing Street, 23rd of July, 1930. A4. One page with envelope “On His Majesty’s Service”. From the personal collection of Sir Harry Luke. Important letter stating Luke’s attendance at the Colonial Conference in 1930, shortly before he started the Governorship on Malta.

28. [Malta Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry].

Collection of nineteen (19) Letters and five (5) Congratulatory Telegrams on the occasion of Sir Harry Luke being awarded the post of Lieutenant Governor of Malta (1930 – 1938). The often very detailed and personal letters are full of praise and support for Luke and not seldom are filled with regret for seeing him not return to Palestine. Other colleagues who served in Malta, are encouraging him and promise he will like it there. Letters included are important reflections on Luke’s character and show his impeccable reputation among peers and family.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London / Austria / New York etc., June 1930. Octavo. From the personal library of Sir Harry Luke.

29. [Malta Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry] / [Archbishop of Rhodes (Sir Mauro Monsignor Caruana)] / Bishop of Gozo (Mikiel Monsignor Gonzi)] / [Lord Strickland, 4th Prime Minister of Malta].

Manuscript Letters Signed (MLS) / Autograph Letters Signed (ALS) on Stationery of the Lieutenant Governor of Malta, from Sir Harry Luke to his mother during the month of June, 1932. The two multi-page letters (from the 6th and 13th of June, 1932) deal with private matters but also have significant content about the famous conflict between the two local, Maltese Bishops [1. Archbishop of Rhodes (Sir Mauro Monsignor Caruana) / 2. Bishop of Gozo (Mikiel Monsignor Gonzi)] and Lord Strickland, 4th Prime Minister of Malta. Luke writes in the letter from June 6th, 1932: “There have been a succession of political changes here these last 2 weeks, keeping me very busy. The Bishops here first refused to accept an apology from Lord Strickland, then agreed to accept it, so the Elections, which were nearly again suspended, will after all be held, next week & after which the new Ministry will be formed and, if all goes well, I should with luck be able to get away about end of June & go with the first instance to England, coming out to you (I hope with Peter) about first week in August…..Things politically seem in a pretty awful mess everywhere. I hope this depressing crisis will soon pass off. Ronald Storrs, whose time in Cyprus is up in hours, has been made Governor of Northern Rhodesia (Central Africa) which I fear he won’t like very much, & he is being succeeded by a very senior man, Sr R[eginald Edward] Stubbs, the present Governor of Jamaica, who is one of the most senior of the Governors. I should have had [?] Cyprus, of course, but would rather be here than go to some remote & awful African hole.”

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Malta, 6 June, 1932 & 13 th June, 1932. Quarto. Two Letters, each four pages on two sheets. From the personal library of Sir Harry Luke, letters to his mother which he inherited after her death.

30. [Malta Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry] / Major Algnernon Tudor-Craig.

Manuscript Letter / Autograph Letter signed on Stationery of the Lieutenant Governor of Malta, from Sir Harry Luke to Major Sir Algernon Tudor-Craig: “Dear Sir Algernon Tudor-Craig, oddly enough your letter of the 28th August, after following me about Austria & Yugoslavia, actually found me in Dubrovnik, from which I have just returned via Hercegovina & Bosnia. That will explain why i failed to show up when you called at Malta. I am sorry, as I should have liked to see you at Casa Leoni” – Luke continues by expressing his hope that both parties will be “more fortunate next time”….″Yours sincerely H C Luke”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. [St.James Club Piccadilly], 21-IX-1936. Small Quarto. 1 sheet with both sides in manuscript handwriting. From the library of Algernon Tudor-Craig. Very nice letter by Luke on his beautiful Maltese stationery to the british army officer and reknown heraldist Tudor-Craig.

31. [Malta Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry] / Pirie-Gordon, Christopher.

Long (2-page) Manuscript Letter (MLS) / Autographed Letter, signed (ALS) by Christopher Pirie-Gordon, 14th Laird of Buthlaw, “formerly Assistant-Resident in Amman and seconded for service under the Foreign Office, following the winding-up of the Palestine Administration”, to Sir Harry Luke from Pirie-Gordon’s post in Taiz (Yemen). Pirie-Gordon writes: “‘My dear Harry Charles, thank you so very much for your recent letter. Iremain almost aghast at the extent of your “wanderlust”. Brazil and Penang combined with almost permanent residence in Malta and a flat in London seem quite a good way of keeping at bay in suggestion of the humdrum or routine in life”. Pirie-Gordon describes his recent activities, including a ‘visit to stay with our Ambassador in Addis Ababa’, where he found the Ethiopians ‘a friendly courteous people’. Regarding the situation in the Yemen Pirie-Gordon writes: “We have been through a rough summer here during the Crown Prince’s period of Regency with one unpleasant afternoon in Taiz when the army ran amok”. The fact that the country did not have ‘the long awaited revolution then, when the Imam [Ahmad bin Yahya] was out of the country’, has convinced Pirie-Gordon ‘that revolutionaries of the necessary calibre are just not to be found locally’. Of the Imam he writes: “If someone bumps the old man off (no easy undertaking) or if Allah decides that he can do without him no longer then all hell will be loose and the War of the Roses will probably be declared at once.” In the meantime the country will ‘probably slide into a nice quiet anarchy’. Regarding ‘His Majesty’s gracious message’, Luke’s ‘mental imagery’ of ‘the Dragon breathing fire’ is ‘not inapt’. Pirie-Gordon now turns to his own future, which ‘remains shrouded in mystery’. His aim is to secure a ‘particular post’, despite ‘the Ambassador in the country concerned’, who is ‘anxious to have it for an old boyfriend of his own’. The letter ends with Pirie-Gordon describing his ‘highly international social life’, which, he declares, ‘suits me well’.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Taiz [Yemen], 8 October, 1959. Quarto. Two pages. From Sir Harry Luke’s personal library. The letter comes with a publication, edited by Hector Bolitho: “The British Empire”, in which are contained two essays on the Colonial History of the Empire by Sir Harry Luke: I.The Mediterranean Colonies and Aden” / II. “The British Islands of the Pacific”.

32. [Middle East Collection with Kuwait / Iran (Persia) / Yemen / Jordan] Naylor, David (Dave).

Collection of two (2) large boxes with rare and sometimes inscribed, Printed Materials and very rare Geological Surveys with Maps (for example it includes the very rare Geological Survey of Iran) from the private Reference- library of Geologist Prof. David (Dave) Naylor regarding Kuwait, Iraq (near Basrah), Lebanon, Jordan (Halat Ammar and Al Mudawwara), Jordan in general, Arava Valley (Dead Sea). See a full list of the contents below. These materials are all publications, sometimes official government papers or maps or academic publications from fellow geologists as well as for example official publications of talks given for OAPEC. All publications are revolving around the evaluation of Petroleum Deposits, Petroleum Geology and Stratigraphy or Hydrocarbon in the “Near and Middle East” – Maps and Charts and offprints, all of them rare publications and some only reprinted for private circulation. The focus of the publications ranges from very scientific-geological (″The Fauna of some Recent Marine Deposits near Basrah, Iraq”) to actual problems of prospecting (″Some Problems of Petroleum Geology in Kuwait”). These two boxes are only the Middle East Section of the David Naylor Collection (see all the Materials we own from the David Naylor-Reference library on our website). The collection also includes books related to the region (inquire for separate list).

Amman (Jordan) / Kuwait / Mexico / Potsdam, etc., c.1958 – 2011. Quarto. c. 1200 pages plus maps. Hardcover Boxes / Two bespoke made Boxes for the private reference library of Geologist David (Dave) Naylor. Very good condition with only minor signs of wear.

33. Miller, Donald E. / Touryan Miller, Lorna.

Survivors: An Oral History of the Armenian Genocide.

Berkeley / London, University of California Press, 1999. 15.5 x 23cm. (12), 242 pages. Original softcover. Excellent condition, other than minor signs of shelf wear.

34. [Miscellaneous Harry Luke] – [Luke, Harry Charles] Rose, Horace Arthur / Brown, John Porter.

The Darvishes; or, Oriental Spiritualism. By John P. Brown, Edited with Introduction And Notes By H. A. Rose. With Twenty-Three Illustrations.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Oxford University Press, 1927. 19 cm x 13 cm. XXIV, 496 pages, 23 illustrations. Original Hardcover. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Good condition with some minors signs of external wear.

35. Mitford, William.

The History of Greece.

First Edition. Five Volumes. London, Printed by Luke Hansard & Sons, near Lincoln’s-Inn Fields for T.Cadell and W. Davies, in the Strand, 1808 – 1818. Quarto. Pagination: Volume I: VII, 590 pages / Volume II: VIII, 551 pages / Volume III: VIII, 572 pages / Volume IV: XII, 647 pages plus Errata / Volume V: XI, 565, [3] pages. Hardcover / Original, full 19th century leather with gilt lettering and ornament on spine and boards. Very good condition with some signs of external wear. All Volumes in protective Mylar.

36. Naser al-Din Shah Qajar [Nassereddin Shah Qajar, the King of Persia].

Two vintage photographs of the visit of the Shah to England in 1873. The Two photographs show: 1. Forerunners of Shah crossing Artillery Square” and 2. The Shah crossing Artillery Square”.

London / England, Artillery Square, 1873. 21.5 cm x 16 cm. 2 photograph sheets. Original Softcover. Both photographs frayed but in overall good condition. condition with only minor signs of external wear. Two extremely scarce and early photographs of a state visit under Queen Victoria.

37. [Oriental Tour 1907 – 1908] – [Lukach, Harry Charles / Sir Harry Luke] / [Harry Pirie-Gordon] / [Anastas Hanania (Jordan)].

Oriental Tour of Harry Charles Lukach, together with Harry Pirie-Gordon in the years 1907 – 1908 – Reflected in a large collection of Manuscript Letters Signed (MLS / See complete List of Letters below) / The envelope with letters was kept by Luke within the Manuscript-Annotated publication “The Fringe Of The East” and was always part of Luke’s personal collection in this constellation, hence we did not separate it. The collection of manuscript letters report back home from Damascus and his wider trip through the middle east in the years 1907 – 1908. [These letters reflect the formative years of Sir Harry Luke during his Travels through the Middle East, prior to World War One and shortly before starting his career in the British Colonial Administration in the year 1911 as A.D.C. (Assistant District Commissioner) in Cyprus under High Commissioner, Sir Hamilton Goold-Adams, who succeeded Sir Charles King-Harman in 1911 / Including also a letter of Palestinian-Jordanian Lawyer Anastas Hanania to Luke].

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Glasgow, Robert MacLehose & Co., Ltd., 1913. 22,5 cm x 15 cm. 267 pages. Original Hardcover. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. With annotations and markings by Harry Luke. Split hinge, detached front board. Fair condition. Includes a large envelope with original letters Harry Luke sent home from his trip through the Near East / Levant.

38. [Pacific Content] – Luke, Harry Charles.

[Luke Pamphlets and Essays] Extremely interesting Sammelband with 18 items of which are: twelve (12) pamphlets [Omnibus-Letters] on the British Pacific Colonies including very rare, printed (!) personal and confidential situation-reports from Fiji (with at least one manuscript-annotation by Luke), together with five (5) essays and news paper-articles by Luke, hidden in a pocket to the rear of the Volume / Also loosely included one (1) pamphlet on Malta / Cyprus: “Discrittione delle cose di Cipro, con le ragioni in favore, o contra diverse openioni, et delle provisioni, che erano necessarie per quel Regno”. – See detailed list and some confidental content mentioned below.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Fiji / Malta, Government Printing Office etc., 1932 – 1943. 26 cm x 17,5 cm Original Softcover pamphlets bound in red cloth. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Very good condition.

39. [Palestine / Transjordan / Israel / Egypt / Suez] – [Luke, Sir Harry / Lukach, Harry] Burrows, Ines / [Sir Bernard Alexander Brocas Burrows].

Interesting Manuscript Letter Signed (MLS) / Autographed Letter Signed (ALS) from Harry Luke’s friend, Ines Burrows, wife of British Diplomat, Sir Bernard Alexander Brocas Burrows, written from Sir Bernard’s posting in Bahrain, hinting at “The Suez Crisis” and the “British–French–Israeli invasion of Egypt in 1956”. Written on Stationery of “The Residency – Bahrain – Persian Gulf”, Ines Burrows describes part of their life during Sir Bernard’s posting in 1953 as “Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, based in Bahrain and handling relations with Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and the seven Trucial States (Wikipedia). After Ines Burrows asks Sir Harry Luke how long he will be staying with them she describes their life of Dinner Parties and their wish to not constantly be invited by those guests who feel they have to reciprocate. But the interesting parts of the letter clearly hint at meetings between Sir Bernard Burrows and the “Rulers”, just weeks prior to the outbreak of the “Suez Crisis” and the letter also delves into Burrows’ opinion of the Gulf States and into an arrangement of need to know between Sir Bernard’s official work and his wish to not disclose any of it to his wife Ines: “Darling, I quite forgot to say in my last letter (which I thought you knew) that the Goddard ….left Kuwait about a year ago- I don’t know if you thought they had come here ? Anyway I will do my very best to be as free as possible from rehearsals when you do arrive…….This place is still in a State. Bernard is constantly about. The Rulers came and spend 2 1/2 hours in the drawing room yesterday [5th of September,1956] & it was followed by an afternoon at the Palace & another conference. Things are now going a bit better and the news will “break” in due course. Bernard is very discreet & says respectfully that its better I shouldn’t know, in case my eyes should light up ….visible understanding if anything is asked or mentioned at a dinner party. Our [?] trip seems now to be starting on Saturday – if nothing worse happens……Much much Love…Ines”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Bahrain [Persian Gulf], 6th of September, 1956. A4. Four pages on two sheets, with original envelope, cancelled in Bahrain and sent to Sir Harry Luke at Kuching, Sarawak, while staying with Sir Anthony Foster Abell KCMG, then Governor of Sarawak. From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.

40. [Palestine Content] – [Luke, Harry].

Collection of eight (8) manuscript letters Sir Harry Luke received during his appointment as acting High Commissioner to the Government of Palestine (July 1928 – December 1928) from his father (J.H.Luke), mother (Eugenie Luke, nee Zamarski) and close family. Especially his father discussing also political matters that effected Sir Harry Luke during his posting in Jerusalem [in one letter from November 30th, 1928 J.H.Luke lets his son know that ‘I obtained two copies of the White Papers dealing with the Wailing Wall incidents – J.H.Luke asks provokingly: “Who was the Dept. Dir. Comm. ?” [during which the incident happened]. Some of the envelopes include multiple pages, plus several letters from other members of family that were posted to Luke’s appointment in Palestine together in one envelope. The letter from his father is of significance because it reflects the conversations Sir Harry Luke had with his father about the time during his posting as High Commissioner in Palestine.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London / Jerusalem, 1928. Octavo. From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.

41. [Palestine Content] – Luke, Harry Charles.

A Spanish Franciscan’s Narrative Of A Journey To The Holy Land. Translated from The 16th-Century Latin MS. In His Possession And Edited With Notes.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Palestine Exploration Fund’s Office, 1927. 22,5 cm x 14,5 cm. VII, 83 pages. Original Hardcover. Extremely scarce ! Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Some cockling to boards, bumping to corners. Otherwise in good condition.

42. [Palestine Content] – Luke, Harry Charles / Keith-Roach, Edward.

The Handbook of Palestine. Edited by Harry Charles Luke and Edward Keith-Roach. With an Introduction By The Right Hon. Sir Herbert Samuel. Issued under the Authority of the Government of Palestine.

First Edition. [This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Macmillan And Co., Ltd., 1922. 19 cm x 13 cm. Frontispiece, XII, 295 pages, (14) pages. With the stunning “Railway Map of Palestine & Transjordania” (64 cm wide x 54 cm high) folded in the pocket to the rear pastedown (stapled to the Map a corrigenda regarding “Kefr Jinnis”). Original Hardcover. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Fading to boards and spine. Otherwise in good condition.

43. [Palestine Content] – Luke, Harry Charles / Keith-Roach, Edward.

The Handbook Of Palestine And Trans-Jordan [With a manuscript letter signed / autographed letter signed (MLS / ALS) by Sir Edward Keith-Roach to Luke, dated Jerusalem, 13 th of July, 1930: “Dear Harry Charles, I was very sorry to learn of the death of your father for i know how attached you were to him….please accept my sympathy. We are now full steam ahead with the Handbook…I have sent off over 200 copies ….plus copies of the Times criticism ..I hope we shall be able to capture the early market…Ever yours Keith-Roach”]. Edited by Harry Charles Luke and Edward Keith-Roach. With Introductions By Sir John Chancelor And The Right Hon. Sir Herbert Samuel.

Second Edition, with Frontispiece and Map. [This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London, Macmillan And Co., Ltd., 1930. 19 cm x 13,5 cm. Frontispiece, XVI, 505 pages, (28) pages. Original Hardcover with gilt Seal of the Government of Palestine stamped to front board of the binding. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy. Some occasional wormholes to boards and beginning of the book. Slight tearing to front board. Otherwise in fair condition.

44. [Palestine Content] – [Luke, Harry Charles / Pirie-Gordon, Harry / Lambeth Palace / The Times / St.John – Meeting and Investiture at Buckingham (1927)] Allenby, Sir Edmund H.H.

Four Manuscript letters from Sir Harry Luke’s friend, Lieut.Colonel Harry Pirie-Gordon (Military Editor), together with a poor working-copy of Allenby’s “A Brief Record of the Advance of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force – July 1917 to October 1918” (Second Edition, 1919). Harry Pirie-Gordon wrote the Preface to this edition and T.E.Lawrence anonymously contributed two Reports to this publication [″Sherifian co-operation in September” / “Story of the Arab Movement”].

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London / [The Times], 1926 – 1930. 22,5 cm x 15 cm. Two bifold letters in their original envelope, one addressed to London and one addressed to Sierra Leone. Both letters on stationery of “The Times” , for which Pirie-Gordon worked as “Foreign Correspondent”. Disbound. Harry Luke’s (Lukach) personal copy of the Allenby Report but with no annotations. Three letters by Pirie-Gordon were actually kept with this bookblock of the Allenby-Report, one of them is listed in the Luke-Archive under a different topic [in this third letter, Pirie-Gordon actually writes to Sir Harry Luke’s father in a delicate matter regarding a Napoleon – Letter].

45. [Palestine Content] – [Luke, Harry Charles] Bentwich, Norman.

Manuscript Letter Signed (MLS) / Autographed Letter Signed (ALS) addressed to Harry Luke by Norman Bentwich, British-appointed Attorney-General of Mandatory Palestine, who is writing to Luke on the occassion of the passing of Sir Harry Luke’s father: “My dear Harry, I am very sorry to read the announcement of your father’s death. I know how devoted you have been to him & what a grief it will be to you. But it is, I hope, some comfort, that you had been able to have some days with him this year + last. I had your letter…..the Jerusalem ….launched this year after all & under your auspices. [?] is now convinced that he must do something at once about ……I believe that he will try to see you + Pirie-Gordon about it in London. Perhaps the ….has already been launched + if so you all have conjured up ….[?]Norman Bentwich”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Jerusalem, 11th of July, 1930. A4. One page on Stationery of “Government of Palestine – Attorney General’s Office, Jerusalem”. With original envelope, cnacelled stamp from Palestine, addressed to Harry Luke at St.James’s Club. From the personal collection of Sir Harry Luke.

46. [Palestine Content] – [Luke, Harry Charles] Roberts-Wray, Sir Kenneth [Order of St Michael and St George].

Six – Page (!) Manuscript Letter Signed (MLS) / Autographed Letter Signed (ALS) by Sir Kenneth Roberts-Wray to Sir Harry Luke. Stunning manuscript letter in which Roberts-Wray discloses information from the inner workings of the “Palestine Commission”, which investigated Sir Harry Luke and the Wailing Wall – Incident. Roberts-Wray would go on to become an important Legal Adviser for the Crown and the Colonial Office and his star rose steady and led to him writing “Commonwealth and Colonial Law”, the most important work on understanding the british understanding of legal procedure and Colonial Power today.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. German Colony, Jerusalem, , 12th of January, 1930. Small Quarto. 6 pages on 3 sheets with original envelope. From the personal collection of Sir Harry Luke.

47. [Palestine Content] – [Luke, Harry Charles] Wilson, Sir Arnold Talbot.

Manuscript Letter Signed (MLS) / Autographed Letter Signed (ALS) addressed to Harry Luke at “The Athenaeum” to congratulate him on becoming the next Lieutenant-Governor of Malta. Wilson uses the occasion to also spread his “Anti-Zionism” by bragging about a lecture he just held in front of the Palestine Society: “Dear Luke, I want to congratulate you very heartily on your appointment to Malta, to which I may be permitted to add an expression of my personal delight at the report of the Palestine Commission so far as it refers to you. I was confident that you would emerge with credit, & indeed nailed my colours to the mast by lecturing to the [?] Palestine Society in January, in a sense far from [?] to Zionism, & saying that I was confident that the Commission would absolve the principal officials, and that the Zionists had made a great error in making an attack on them. I believe I am the only Anti-Zionist who has ever spoken to them! I can send you if you like a copy of my notes ! It is curious that having had your fill of Jewry you should be posted to Malta where the Vatican will be your principal preoccupation. May God – the God of sound Protestants – speed you ! Yours sincerely A.T.Wilson”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. London [Britannic House], 13th of June, 1930. Quarto. 2 pages on one page of Stationery from Wilson’s office at Britannic House. From the personal collection of Sir Harry Luke.

48. [Palestine Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry / Lukach, Harry] Storrs, Sir Ronald Henry Amherst.

Manuscript Letter Signed (MLS) marked “Destroy” from Sir Ronald Henry Amherst Storrs to Sir Harry Luke. The two – page letter was written by Storrs in June 1925, during his posting as Governor of Jerusalem and Judea and reached Sir Harry while he was still Colonial Secretary in Sierra Leone. Storrs asks Luke “If you can, extract from Co [possibly Colonial Office] who is responsible for the dirty work over my leave, & how the Thane of Roach behaved [that is Edward Keith-Roach, British Colonial administrator and later Governor of Jerusalem].

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Jm [Jerusalem], 12 VI 25 [1925]. Octavo. 1 sheet (2 pages filled with red ink manuscript handwriting by Storrs, with original envelope). From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.

49. [Palestine Content / Ecclesiastical] – [Luke, Sir Harry / Lukach, Harry] Storrs, Sir Ronald Henry Amherst.

Typed Letter Signed (TLS) and partly Autographed Letter on Stationery of The Governorate, Jerusalem, from Sir Ronald Henry Amherst Storrs to Sir Harry Luke. The two-page letter was written by Storrs in August 1925, during his posting as Governor of Jerusalem and reached Sir Harry while he was holidaying in Alt-Aussee (Austria). During this period, Luke was Colonial Secretary in Sierra Leone. Storrs writes: “My dear Harry – If this gets you in time please introduce yourselves to the Duchess of Rutland, a very dear friend of mine, and deeply interested in Jerusalem. “On behalf of the Council of the Pro-Jerusalem Society I have much pleasure in giving you permission to use the article and map produced by you for the second volume of the Annales on the Holy Sepulchre……[Storrs continues]: “The Plumers arrived the day before yesterday…. [that is Field Marshal Lord Plumer who was High Commissioner of the British Mandate for Palestine in 1925]…… and were well received by both sides……” [In Mandatory Palestine Plumer gained a reputation as being “genuinely even handed” and was one of the few British administrators who was consistently popular with both the Jewish community and the Arab community in that territory. Privately, he was sympathetic to the cause of establishing a homeland for the Jewish people; however, he tried his best to “be fair” to Arab concerns as well while he was High Commissioner there (source: Wikipedia)]. Storrs continues: “The Hendersons also to hand. The Worlds worker, now about to become a Mamur Hajz or Seizure Officer, rejects your cowric shells…..with all the contempt of a Mutamaddin for the Mutawahhishin…..I do hope you will secure in arriving Leone”

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Jerusalem, 27th August, 1925. Quarto. 1 sheet (2 pages partialyy typed, partially in manuscript hand by Storrs). From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.

50. [Palestine Content / Malta Content] – [Luke, Sir Harry / Lukach, Harry] Vilmos, William de.

Important Manuscript Letter Signed (MLS / Autographed Letter Signed (ALS) on the Palestine and Malta-Postings from Sir Harry Luke’s Great Uncle William de Vilmos. The letter, written in german, was addressed to Luke just after he was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Malta in the year 1931. Remarkably, the letter touches on William de Vilmos being happy that in this year 1931 his nephew Harry Luke, has now escaped Palestine “this impossible place, where the bloody disputes will be neverending…” / “…such life-endangering scenes you had to endure [in Palestine] will hardly occur during your posting in Malta” [free translation]”. The letter reads: ‘Budapest, 20. Jaenner 1931 – Mein geliebter Harry. Du hast mir mit Deinem lieben Brief vom 9. dieses eine grosse Stueck Freude bereitet & ich danke Dir dafuer herzlichst. Deine Neujahrswuensche erwidere ich aufs Herzlichste fuer Dich, wie fuer die liebe Joyce, Peter & Michael. Sehr freut es mich, dass der Aufenthalt in Malta, sowohl was Klima als Behausung, Garten etc. betrifft, jeden Einzelnen von Euch sehr conveniert & Euch viel Vergnuegen bereitet. In der schwierigen Weltlage in der wir jetzt leben, gibt es jetzt ueberall Schwierigkeiten die unausweichbar sind, aber jedenfalls bin ich froh und gluecklich, dass Du von Palaestina, diesem unmoeglichen Fleck Erde, wo die blutigen Zwistigkeiten kaum jemals aufhoeren werden, gluecklich und & lebendig weggekommen bist. Solche Szenen, wie Du durchzuleben gezwungen warst, in fortwaehrender Lebensgefahr Dich befindend, wirst Du in Malta nicht ausgesetzt sein. Ich wuensche Deiner Thaetigkeit den allerbesten Erfolg. Deine liebe Mutter habe ich waehrend den Weihnachtsfeiertagen, die ich in Wien verbrachte, mehrmals gesehen, war mit ihrem Aussehen & ihrem Gemuetsstand recht zufrieden. Mir geht es gottlob gesundheitlich sehr gut. Ich kann selbst ueber mein Alter nicht klagen, denn ich habe gottlob trotz meiner 92 Jahre ueber Altersbeschwerden keinerlei Klagen zu erheben. Leb wohl mein lieber guter Harry, ich gruesse & kuesse Dich & die theuere Joyce in aller Liebe – Dein Onkel Vilmos”.

[This item is part of the Sir Harry Luke – Archive / Collection]. Budapest, 20. Jaenner 1931. Octavo. 1 sheet with a three-page letter. From the private collection / library of colonial governor, diplomat and historian, Sir Harry Luke.