Humour

London: Jones & Co., 1822. Half morocco, 8 1/2 inches tall. A handsome Victorian binding by Murphy of Liverpool, with gilt raised bands, fine gilt tooling incorporating shamrocks in the panels and gilt top edge. With an hilarious hand-coloured frontispiece and 18 further outrageous plates by, amongst others, Henry Alken and William Heath. The binding is slightly faded, but still bright. There is some foxing, occasional creasing and slight grubbiness but overall an unusually good example of this scarce work in the style of Pierce Egan.

London: John Fairburn, 1822. Full calf, 9 1/2 inches tall. A sparkling later full calf binding by Tout with gilt raised bands, superb extra gilt tooling to the panels and triple labels. Delicate gilt tooling frames the boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges. With the armorial bookplate of George Seton Veitch. Original wrapper bound in. Embellished with 21 hand comic hand-coloured aquatints by George Cruikshank and a further 22 wood engravings. This unique copy also contains a tipped in signature of George Cruikshank, a tipped in note by Robert Cruikshank and a tipped in letter of George Bell. Slightly rubbed but still a super copy of the rollicking adventures of a band of young English Gentlemen enjoying life to the full in Paris.

London: G. Virtue, 1830. Full morocco, 10 inches tall. An exceptionally tall copy in a beautiful later full straight grain morocco binding by Sotheran of Piccadilly. With gilt raised bands, a superb boxing centre tool within an ornate cartouche in the panels and the boards, gilt dentelles and top edges, the remaining edges untrimmed. With 2 armorial bookplates. Embellished with all 36 hilarious hand-coloured aquatints from designs by Robert Cruikshank. A pristine example of this great comic work, in which our heroes continue with their debauched adventures around London.

London: C. Baldwyn, 1823. 2 volumes bound in 1, 9 1/4 inches tall. A wonderful full morocco binding by the great firm of Bedford from the library of a Scottish Gentleman. Gilt raised bands, exceptionally fine gilt tooling to the panels and triple gilt fillets framing the boards. Gilt dentelles and top edge. A curious comic work in which Cruikshank " selects or invents those incidents which might be interesting or amusing in themselves, while they afford scope for the peculiar talents of the artist who adorns them with his designs". Both volumes contains 10 themes, each illustrated with a full page wood engraving. There are further engraved vignettes on India paper throughout. With 6 leaves of advertisements bound in. An absolutely pristine copy of the first edition.

London: R. Ackermann, 1815: 1815. Full morocco, 10 inches tall. A tall and sumptuous later full crushed morocco binding by the great firm of Bedford. With gilt raised bands and exceptional gilt tooling to the panels. Gilt dentelles and top edge. Very slight fading to the spine but still a wonderful copy from the library of a Scottish Gentleman. Hand-colored aquatint frontispiece, engraved title page and a further 16 hand-colored aquatint plates, as listed. First edition in book form. As good a copy of this highly entertaining work as one could hope to find.

London, The Punch Office, 1845. Full morocco, 10 inches tall. A pristine example of this classic comic work bound in sumptuous full morocco by the great firm of Bedford, from the library of a Scottish Gentleman. An exceptionally tall copy with gilt raised bands, ornate floral gilt tooling to the panels, triple gilt fillet framing the boards, wide gilt dentelles and top edge gilt. Embellished with 12 full page steel engravings and 117 superb engraved vignettes. With over 50 leaves of highly entertaining advertisements. As fine a copy as one could hope to find.

London: Sherwood, Neely, and Jones, 1822. Full morocco,10 inches tall. A superlative later full morocco binding by the great firm of Bedford, from the library of a Scottish Gentleman, in pristine condition. An exceptionally tall copy with gilt raised bands, ornate floral gilt tooling to the panels, triple gilt fillet framing the boards, wide gilt dentelles and top edges gilt. With 36 hand coloured aquatints by I.R. and George Cruikshank and 3 folding pages of songs. The original paper spine and cover, and advertisements, bound in. The images illustrate the hilarious and bawdy adventures of Jerry and his companions in Regency London. A beautiful volume.

London: Thomas Boys, 1820. Full morocco, 10 inches tall. A wonderful tall late Victorian binding by the great firm of Bedford in pristine condition, inside and out. With gilt raised bands and luxurious floral gilt tooling to the panels. Gilt triple fillets frame the boards. Gilt dentelles and top edge. With an engraved title page and 12 hilarious full page hand coloured plates by Isaac Robert Cruikshank. From the library of a Scottish Gentleman. As fine a copy as one could possibly find of the first edition of this hilarious work advising much scrimping and saving.

London: Methuen & Co., 1910. Full morocco, 6 1/2 inches tall. A very smart copy in full crushed morocco Edwardian binding by Bumpus with gilt raised bands, simple gilt framing to the panels and boards, gilt dentelles and all edges. Slight fading to the spine but still a luxurious and neat volume.

London: Tilt and Bogue, 1842. Full morocco, 9 1/2 inches tall. In pristine condition in a wonderful binding by the great firm of Bedford from the library of a Scottish Gentleman. With gilt raised bands and very fine gilt floral tooling to the panels. Triple gilt fillets frame the boards, gilt dentelles and top edge. The first edition of this classic comic work embellished with 22 full page engravings and a further 78 woodcut vignettes by George Cruikshank. Bound with 48 leaves of advertisements and the original covers of the original parts. As fine a copy of this splendid work as one could hope to find.

London: Macmillan and Co., 1932. Full morocco, 7 1/2 inches tall. A super mosaic binding by Riviere with gilt raised bands fine gilt floral tooling to the panels, gilt dentelles and all edges. On the boards, within elaborate gilt borders, splendid colourful morocco onlays illustrate two of the "Bab" Ballads, 'The Yarn of the "Nancy Bell"' on the upper board and 'For he who'd make his Fellow-Creatures Wise should always Gild the Philosophical Pill' on the lower. Embellished with 350 illustrations, also by W. S. Gilbert. Very slight rubbing and an extensive neat ink inscription on the first blank, otherwise a pristine collection of Gilbert's light verse, named after is childhood nickname, in which he developed his "topsy-turvy" style of humour.

London: T. Tegg, 1815. Full morocco, 10 inches tall. A fabulous later tall full crushed morocco by the great firm of Bedford from the library of a Scottish Gentleman. With gilt raised bands, superb gilt tooling to the panels of the highest quality, wide gilt denteles and gilt top edge. With 30 hand-coloured aquatints, by George Cruikshank, including the title page, as called for. There is a small gouge in one of the panels, otherwise a sparking, pristine and exceptionally tall copy of this great and highly disrespectful comic work by 'Doctor Syntax'.

Boston, Lincolnshire: Robert Roberts, 1875, 1875 & 1876. 3 Volume Set, 7 inches tall. A beautiful late Victorian full crushed morocco binding Andrew Grieve of Edinburgh in pristine condition. With gilt raised bands and extra gilt tooling to the panels. Dense gilt corner tooling and a single pallet frame the boards. Gilt top edges. These reprints are limited to 400 copies and were originally printed in the seventeenth century. With 2 blookplates to each volume. A selection of Restoration poetry for 'Lovers of Wit' and as an 'Antidote Against Melancholy'.

London: Sherwood, Neely, and Jones, 1821. Full morocco, 9 3/4 inches tall. A glorious later full morocco binding by the great firm of Bedford in pristine condition. With gilt raised bands, superb floral gilt tooling to the panels, triple gilt fillet framing the boards, wide gilt dentelles and top edge gilt. With the armorial bookplate of Bertram Freeman Mitford, Earl of Redesdale, grandfather of the Mitford sisters. With 36 hand coloured aquatints by I.R. and George Cruikshank and 3 folding pages of songs. Two of the plates (facing pages 286 and 310 are laid down without the titles). The images illustrate the hilarious and bawdy adventures of Jerry and his companions in London. With adverts and original wrappers bound in. A beautiful example of the first edition.

London: Macmillan and Co., 1906. Full crushed morocco, 7 1/2 inches tall. A very fine full crushed morocco by the great firm of Morrell with gilt raised bands, suitably macabre/comic centre tools and ornate gilding to the spine and boards. Gilt dentelles and all edges. There is a neat ink former owners name on the first blank that has partially offset. 20 superb full page steel engravings by Cruikshank, Leech and the author. A super copy of this classic comic work.

London: John Templeman, 1841. Full morocco, 6 3/4 inches tall. A delightful little binding in fine full crushed morocco with gilt raised bands and delicate floral gilt tooling to the panels. All edges gilt. Triple gilt fillets and floral corner tooling frames the boards. From the Library of the Late Christopher Foyle of Beeleigh Abbey. Extra-illustrated with 52 fine engraved plates. Hazlitt is considered one of the greatest critics and essayists in the history of the English language.

London: Chatto and Windus, 1882. 2 volume set, 7 1/2 inches tall. A wonderful full crushed morocco binding by Riviere with gilt raised bands, very fine gilt tooling to the panels and with triple gilt fillets framing the boards. Gilt dentelles and top edges. With the armorial bookplates of W.H. Lever of Thornton Manor, Sir W. Hesketh Lever, Bart. and Baron, Lord Leverhulme of Bolton-Le Moors, all one and the same and the founder of 'Port Sunlight'. This beautiful set has an extra 89 plates, 34 hand-coloured, bound in, some particularly interesting ones, including Mr. Kean as Richard and as Count Bertram and 2 box tickets for His Majesty's Theatre. A unique set in pristine condition.

Paris: Isidore Liseux, 1879. 2 volume set, 6 3/4 inches tall. A superb half morocco by Bumpus with gilt raised bands and fine extra gilt panels and gilt top edge. The title pages are printed on vellum. Very slight wear to the joints but very solid and in a beautiful binding. From the Library of the Late Christopher Foyle of Beeleigh Abbey. Poggio Bracciolini, writing in the 16th century is celebrated for rediscovering many classical Latin manuscripts, many otherwise unknown, from monastic libraries. He made important finds in St. Gallen, Cluny Abbey, Langres, Monte Cassino and Hersfeld Abbey, amongst many others. The texts here are in English with the original Latin in a smaller type below.