Colonial History (51 items)

Griffith, Ordinances of the Gold Coast Colony, and the Rules and Orders Thereund

21. Griffith, Sir William Brandforth.

Ordinances of the Gold Coast Colony, and the Rules and Orders Thereunder in Force 31st March, 1903; An Appendix Containg the Letters Patent; The Imperial Orders in Council, And Various Acts of Parliament in Force in the Colony, And an Index. Also The Ordinances, & c., In Force in Ashanti and the Northern Territories of the Gold Coast. Prepared under the Authority of “The Reprint of the Statutes Ordinance, 1903” by Sir William Brandford Griffith, Chief Justice of the Gold Coast Colony.

Original / First Edition. 2 Volumes (complete set). London, Stevens & Sons, Limited, 1903. 15.5 cm x 24.5 cm Volume 1: XLVI, 878 pages. Volume 2: 907 pages. Interleaved with blank pages throughout for later annotations / notes. Hardcover/ Original, brown half-leather with gilt lettering on spine with raised bands. Massive, stunning set in overall very good condition with only minor signs of external wear (Leather-corner missing from front board bottom corner of Volume I). Minor gutter-split between front endpaper and half title of Volume I but binding still firm and strong. Binding of Volume II is very firm and strong. Boards are faded and carry minor stains. Board of Volume II has minor worming. Volume I carries occasional annotations. Some staining to edges of Volume I. Occasional inkstains and spotting to interiors but both volumes are sharp cornered, bright and for the most part clean. Very Rare, rather scarce original edition !

EUR 380,-- 

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Collection of four very important and meaningful manuscript letters by Leopold II

27. Congo / Kongo – Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909) – King of the Belgians and Owner / Absolute Ruler of the Congo Free State from 1885 to 1908.

Collection of four very important and meaningful manuscript letters by Leopold II to his administrator and Foreign Minister of the Congo – Free-State, Baron Adolphe de Cuvelier (1860-1931) with a total of 16 pages filled with Leopold’s instructions on pressing issues regarding a warning about an imminent visit by the Rector of the Mill-Hill Missionaries [probably Herbert Alfred Henry Vaughan (1832 – 1903)] and Leopold’s qualification of the visit of being detrimental to the Congo Free State (″ne travaillent pas pour l’État”). Leopold continues in another letter to talk about the hostile positions of english officials (consuls) and missionaries (″que les consuls anglais et les missionnaires anglais se conduisent bien mal envers l’État”). Interestingly, Leopold also touches on the nuisance of the german press criticizing Belgian Railway Lines and he is of the opinion that this is all happening in order to force the german parliament [″Reichstag”] to finance the building of the Tanganyika Railway [between Dar es Salaam and Kigoma]: (″cherche à effrayer l’opinion [en] Allemagne à propos de mes chemins de fer afin d’obtenir du Reichstag des fonds pour la ligne allemande vers le Tanganika”.

16 pages of MLS, Manuscript Letters (signed) on 10 leaves of Leopold’s official stationery “Château de Laeken” and “Palais de Bruxelles”. Laeken / Brussels, Château de Laeken [Palace of Laeken], 1901 – 1906. The leaves with different sizes (13,5 cm x 9 cm) and (18 cm x 11,5 cm). Excellent condition. Unsigned. Tremendously rare to find original letters by Leopold II on the open market in which the Colonial Free State and the protection against inquisitive visitors is discussed in such clear and instructive fashion. Leopold’s correspondence with Adolphe de Cuvelier shows how he is very much trying to still protect and influence the narrative of his Colonial Slavery Outpost even in the final years of his life.

EUR 7.800,-- 

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Richard Ligon, A True and Exact History of the Island of Barbadoes [sic].

28. Ligon, Richard.

A True and Exact History of the Island of Barbadoes [sic] / [Barbados]. Illustrated with a Map of the Island [missing], as also the Principal Trees and Plants there, set forth in their due Proportions and Shapes, drawn out by their several and respective Scales. Together with the Ingenio that makes the Sugar, with the Plots of the several Houses, Rooms, and other places, that are used in the whole process of Sugar-making; viz. the Grinding-house, Still-house, and Furnaces; All cut in Copper.

[Second Edition]. London, Printed, and are to be sold by Peter Parker, at his Shop at the Leg and Star over against the Royal Exchange, and Thomas Guy at the corner Shop of Little Lumbard-street and Cornhill, 1673. Small-Folio (19 cm x 29 cm). [II], 122 pages plus an unnumbered Index-page (bound, according to instructions for the bookbinder after page 84), lacking the Fold-out-Map of Barbados but including all six illustrations of Plants, as well as the three diagrams of Houses and Production-Rooms for Sugar. 19th-century Hardcover (half-leather with gilt lettering on spine). Condition of Binding: Very good condition with only minor signs of wear to the binding / Condition of bookblock: Original, front free endpaper was preserved and bound in. Rear endpaper missing. The original endpaper includes two historical ownership-signatures in ink (c.17th or early 18th century) as well as several annotations in ink and pencil. The previous owners seem to have been one Richard Gardner and there is an additional notation verso which reads: “E[x] Libris Richmondi Garnays [or Garneys]”. Some ink-annotations or corrections throughout the book. Signs of old bookworm – damage and very few abrasions due to fire-sparks (few pages effected only). Some plates with professional repairs, some tears. Some professional paper-repairs and re-enforcements to title-page and Content-Page. All the described flaws sound worse than they really appear. All plant-plates in strong impresion. A scarce publication ! From the library of Rev. William Andrew Lamb, Kilcoleman Park, County Cork.

EUR 1.480,-- 

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