1. Foster, Sir Augustus [British Ambassador to the United States of America] / Sir Charles Stuart [Britain’s Ambassador to France and Russia, Charles Stuart, 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay] / [Lady Bess Foster, (née Lady Elizabeth Christiana Hervey), later Duchess of Devonshire (1759-1824)] / [Vere Henry Louis Foster] / [Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington].

Archive of a fantastic series of 42 Autograph Letters (signed) / Manuscript Letters (signed) by Sir Augustus Foster, British Diplomat and British Ambassador to the United States of America, prior and at the outbreak of the War of 1812, Recipient of the ‘Declaration of War’ on the “HMS Colibri” (June 28th, 1812), Ambassador to Denmark (1814-1825) and Ambassador to Sardinia (1824-1840). The letters were written between 1815 and 1841, during his time as Ambassador of Denmark (Copenhagen) and from his posting in Turin, as Ambassador to the Kingdom of Savoy-Sardinia [Piedmont-Sardinia]. Fortyone (41) of the letters are addressed to his friend, Sir Charles Stuart, Baron Stuart de Rothesay (1779-1845), Secret Agent, Diplomat, privy councilor as well as British Ambassador to France and Ambassador to Russia and the Duke of Wellington’s distinguished administrator in Europe during the Napoleonic Wars. The 42nd letter in the Archive, is a meaningful, three-page-letter, written by Sir Augustus Foster from Copenhagen in the year 1818, to his mother, Lady Elizabeth (″Bess”) Foster” [(née Lady Elizabeth Christiana Hervey), later Duchess of Devonshire (1759-1824)]. The Letters comprise of sizes between Octavo and Quarto and amount to 130 pages in total, written from Turin (27) & other places, including Copenhagen, Stockholm, London, Calais and Geneva, 1815-1841 / Important: The Archive includes also three important publications which touch on the work of Sir Augustus Foster in America: [1.Richard Beale Davis: “Jeffersonian America – Notes on the United States of America – Collected in the years 1805-1806-1807 and 1811 and 1812 by Sir Augustus Foster, Bart. San Marino, The Huntingdon Library, 1954 / 2. An Extra-Illustrated Version of the publication “The Two Duchesses”, by Vere Foster (son of Sir Augustus Foster), in which an american collector injected a plethora of original engravings, portraits of british and american personalities like Alexander Hamilton, George Washington as well as other contemporaries of Sir Augustus Foster (see 80 photographs of this breathtaking set, bound in red-morocco, on our website) / 3. [James Madison / James Monroe / Sir Augustus Foster – War of 1812] – “Three messages, from the President of the United States, to Congress, in November 1811, together with Documents accompanying the same”. Washington; printed 1811. Re-Printed for J.Hatchard, Bookseller to her Majesty, opposite Albany, Piccadilly, 1812 – The material here relates directly to the war of 1812; much of it is in the form of correspondence between Sir Augustus John Foster, H.M. Minister in America and James Monroe, Secretary of State under James Madison from 1811 to 1817. Other significant contributors include Mr. Pinkney and Lord Wellesley. Extremely scarce original edition. (No copy of the 1811 edition located. Not in COPAC or Sabin)] See more than 200 Images for all these books and manuscript letters in the Augustus Foster Archive on our website under “Libraries & Collections” /

Turin / London / Stockholm / Copenhagen / Calais / Geneva, 1815 – 1841. Octavo – Quarto. The Letters are housed in a beautiful, bespoke Solander-Chemise. The original books are either bound in Morocco (″Two Duchesses”), original cloth with dustjacket (″Jeffersonian America”) or in the publisher’s original interim-wrappers (the rare 1812-printing of “Three messages, from the President of the United States, to Congress, in November 1811, together with Documents accompanying the same”). Very good condition with some minor signs of wear only.

2. [Vanity Fair] Bowles, Thomas Gibson / [Fantastic collection of political caricature portraits of 19th century American Politicans / British Politicians]

Vanity Fair: A Weekly Show of Political, Social & Literary Wares – Complete Annual for the year 1872 with 51 full-page portraits of victorian statesmen of england as well as the united states of america (Hamilton Fish, Ulysses S. Grant, Horace Greeley etc.), politicians, writers, artists, “men of the day” and men of influence, portrayed in chromolithography / chromolithographs in colour (January 6, 1872 – June 29, 1872 & July 6, 1872 – December 28, 1872 ).

London, Vanity Fair, 1872. Folio. 208, 208 pages. Complete set. Interleaved with 51 chromolithographic portraits. Beautifully restored, original Hardcover (half-leather with orginal spine (gilt letttering and ornament). With new, linen-covered boards, using the original pastedowns and endpapers. A stunning Volume in excellent condition. All illustrations in wonderful colour.

3. Tempsky, Gustav Ferdinand von.

Mitla, a Narrative of Incidents and Personal Adventures on a Journey in Mexico, Guatemala and Salvador in the Years 1853 to 1855 with Observations on the Modes of Life in Those Countries. Edited by J.S.Bell.

First Edition. London, Longman, Brown, Green, Longmans & Roberts, 1858. Large Octavo. XVI, 436 pages with all illustrations and the large folding map complete ! The illustrations include: 5 coloured chromolithographic plates one of these is a folded, double-page size), 11 woodcuts, large folded map “Route through Mexico, Guatemala & San Salvador” (this 19th century map also shows Upper California, New Mexico and Texas as well as New Orleans with Red River and the Missouri River). Hardcover / Beautifully rebacked, modern dark green morocco with gilt ornaments to spine and boards. Excellent, firm condition with only minor signs of external wear. Only very minor signs of foxing to some of the plates as usual. The text clean. Von Tempsky’s explorations and descriptions of the journey from San Francisco to Mazatlan to Durango to Mexico City to Puebla to Tehuantepec to Guatemala to Santa Catarina to San Salvador with cultural descriptions of the locals and their customs are of great value.

4. [Strong, George Crockett] The Secretary of War.

U.S. Infantry Tactics, for the Instruction, Exercise and Manoeuvres of the United States Infantry, Including Infantry of the Line, Light Infantry, and Riflemen. [with vintage cabinet photograph / Carte de visite of Union Brigadier General George Crockett Strong, loosely inserted and his name signed and dated to endpaper on April 28, 1863 (3 months prior to his death after being wounded during his assault on Fort Wagner on Morris Island, South Carolina)]. Prepared under the direction of the War Department, and Authorized and Adopted by the Secretary of War, May 1, 1861. Containing The School of the Soldier; The School of the Company; Instruction for Skirmishers; the General Calls, the Calls for Skirmishers, and the School of the Battalion; Including the Articles of War and a Dictionary of Military Terms.

Philadelphia, J.B. Lippincott & Co, 1861. 9.3 cm x 13.5 cm. Fold-out Frontispiece, 450 pages. 77 plates with illustrations of various stances and manoeuvres. 12 additional fold-out diagrams. Hardcover / publisher’s original blue pebbled cloth with gilt lettering and stamp on spine. Blind triple ruling and stamp on both boards. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear. Corners slightly bumped. Very minor abrasion to cloth at bottom front corner. Very minor closed tear to page 25. Minor foxing occasionally throughout. Signs of dampstaining evident throughout otherwise clean and bright volume. Binding good and firm and tight bookblock. Inked annotation to title page. Ownership annotation to front pastedown. Embossed stamp of Wm B Sprague Jr, 51 State St, Albany on front endpaper. Endpaper also carries pencilled signature of George C Strong dated April 28 1862. Carte de visite of General Strong also loosely inserted.

5. Levy, Arthur Joseph / Zangwill, Israel.

Archive / Collection of more than 350 items, letters, documents, ephemera, pamphlets, manuscript notes, receipts , manuscript letters from the private library of Providence (Rhode Island) lawyer, Arthur (Art) Joseph Levy. The collection includes an important, controversial typescript-essay (8 pages) on Israel Zangwill’s address before the American Jewish Congress at Carnegie Hall on October 14th, 1923 (″Watchmen, what of the Night ?”); with manuscript annotations and remarks on Israel Zangwill’s position “the hopes of Jewry for the establishment of a Jewish State in Palestine are doomed to disappointment”. The collection includes a plethora of interesting letterheads of jewish organizations and also important documentation of Levy’s contribution to and support for the “Palestine Foundation Fund”, (receipt from Boston, Mass. June 1923). Levy, who was a graduate of Brown and Boston University Law School, practiced law in Providence, Rhode Island and led an active life as a member and leader of several Jewish civic organizations, such as the Jewish Family and Children’s Service, which he established and led for twenty years, Rhode Island Jewish Historical Society, the Temple Beth-El Brotherhood, the Miriam Hospital, the Touro Fraternal Association and the Jewish Home for the Aged of Rhode Island. He was also a prominent member of the American Bar Association, the Brown University Alumni Association and the Brown Club of Rhode Island. Highly regarded as a jurist, he was a member of the Commission to Consolidate State Laws, a member of the Advisory Committee of the Federal Tax Institute of New England and an editor of the Rhode Island Bar Journal. Included in this archive are a group of letters written during World War I discussing his role in the Jewish Welfare Board of the United States Army and Navy, an invitation to a fund-raising dinner for the Jewish Orphanage of Rhode Island, a group of documents and letters discussing the establishment of a Jewish country club in Providence, several documents from the early 1920s concerning the mostly Jewish fraternity Phi Epsilon Pi and several items relating to Levy’s personal life, such as personal letters, bills from clothiers and invitations to social events. (Main source of the description of this archive is the research of our colleague Greg Talbot from The Lawbook Exchange).

Providence (Rhode Island), Cambridge (Massachusetts), New York, 1917 – 1931. Octavo and A4. Two heavy folders with original documents. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear.

6. [Jefferson, John Garland / Thomas Jefferson Circle] Botta, Charles.

History of the Independence of the United States of America. [Association copy with provenance – riddle: From the library of one John Garland Jefferson, being either the brother of American Civil War Hero Thomas Garland Jefferson and received as a gift from his namesake father, John Garland Jefferson (as stated on the endpaper in contemporary ink), with his name signed in ink to the fontispiece of Volume One or alternatively, being John Garland Jefferson (born 1815 – date of death unknown), the son of Captain Samuel Allen Jefferson (1776-1843)]. Translated from the Italian by George Alexander Otis. With ten illustrations and six maps.

Ninth Edition, In Two Volumes, Revised and Corrected. New-Haven, T.Brainard, 1839. Octavo. Volume I: Frontispiece, 473 pages with four maps and four illustrations (including frontispice) / Volume II: Frontispice, IV, 468 pages with six illustrations (including frontispice) and two maps. Hardcover / Original full eather with gilt lettering and ornament on spine and boards. Bindings a little rubbed. Lower spines stronger rubbed and only very slightly damaged but the Volumes and bookblocks overall very firm and in very good condition with only minor signs of external wear. Some plates and pages with foxing (as usual with this edition). Both tissue-guards for the frontispieces in place. A stunning set regarding the American War of Independence with an interesting provenance.

7. Gregory, G. [Reverend George Gregory].

Essays – Historical and Moral [including “Freedom of Speech and of the Press” and “Resistance to the Legislature” an ‘Essay on the Slavery of the Female Sex’ – ‘Of the Schemes asserting an Equality of the Sexes’ and ‘The History of the Female Sex’ and the ‘General State of the Controversy concerning the Inferiority of the Female Understanding’ / “Inquiry how far our commerce would be affected by the Abolition of the Slave Trade in respect of our West India Colonies”].

First Edition. London, Printed for J.Johnson, 1785. Octavo. VIII, 349 pages. Hardcover / Original, 18th century full calf with original spine-label. Front hinge weak but holding. Minor scuffing and rubbing. Overall in very good condition with only minor signs of external wear. Halftitle present but front free endpaper missing. Text in excellent condition. Exlibris / Bookplate of Daniel Conner to pastedown. Extremely Rare and important publication with early remarks on Gender Equality and a lengthy section on the justification of Slavery.

8. Fewkes, Jesse Walter.

Antiquities of the Mesa Verde National park – Cliff Palace.

Washington, Government Printing Office, 1911. 23 1/2 cm. 82 pages with illustrations and plates as well as 1 double-folded plan. Original Hardcover. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear. Bookblock slightly detached

9. Edwards, Jonathan.

A careful and strict Enquiry into the Modern Prevailing Notions of that Freedom of Will, which is supposed to be essential to Moral Agency, Virtue and Vice, Reward and Punishment, Praise and Blame.

First British Edition. Boston / London, Re-Printed for Thomas Field, 1762. Octavo. IX, [5], 414, [8] pages plus two pages of advertising for Jonathan Edwards’ “Treatise concerning Religious Effections”. Hardcover / Original 18th century calf, rebacked with new spine and spinelabel. Interior all original and besides some minor signs of foxing in very good condition. Name of preowner in ink on titlepage. Binding overall excellent with only minor signs of external wear. A very rare and important book.

10. Daubeny, Charles.

Sketch of the Geology of North America, being the Substance of a Memoir read before the Ashmolean Society Nov. 26, 1838.

First Edition. Oxford, Printed by T. Combe / The Ashmolean Society, 1839. Octavo. Frontispiece [Folded map of the eastern half of North America], XVIII, 73 pages. Original Softcover / Original printed wrappers in custom made cloth-case (see images). Content-Page detached and loosely inserted. Otherwise this publication is in its very rare original state and in excellent condition with only minor signs of external wear.