A Collection of Ordinances and Regulations for the Government of the Royal Household, made in divers reigns. From King Edward III to King William and Queen Mary. Also Receipts in Ancient Cookery -
1790 - Printed for the Society of Antiquaries by John Nichols, London - First Edition
A fine example of this important collection of ordinances and regulations on the stewardship of the Royal House of England.
‘Most of these texts appear here for the first time from manuscripts preserved in various English libraries (Harleian, Cotton, the Society of Antique Dealers, Thomas Astle, etc). They form a source of first-rate information about table manners, protocol, menus, feasts, official holidays, table and cellar service, expense accounts, lists of the officers of fine dining, of the wardrobe, etc. and contain numerous pieces of information about all the products used in the royal kitchens, the grocery stores, kitchen gardens, farmyards, Crown breweries, about the composition of breakfasts, dinners, suppers and princes’ snacks, about the names, salaries and roles of the staff.
At the end of these prescriptions, pages 423 to 476 are dedicated to a ‘Collection of Old English Recipes’, extracts from a manuscript from the Arundel Collection, kept in the Royal Society library. This manuscript dates from the 15th century but the recipes could be a lot older. It is undoubtedly the ‘Oldest Culinary Recipe Book’ in England. The spelling of the manuscript has been preserved.
This important and rare publication was carried out at the expense of the Society of Antique Dealers in London. It is a collection of 20 texts, ordinances, edicts etc, from the 15th century to the end of the 17th century, concerning the functioning of the English Royal Household from the reign of Edward III until 1689, by way of Henry VI (1455), Prince Edward (1474), Edward IV’s Black Book of the Royal Household, the house of George Duke of Clarence in 1469, Henry VIII in 1526; Queen Elizabeth, King James in 1604, etc.’ [Oberlé]
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Price HK$ 5,000
1790 - Printed for the Society of Antiquaries by John Nichols, London - First Edition
A fine example of this important collection of ordinances and regulations on the stewardship of the Royal House of England.‘Most of these texts appear here for the first time from manuscripts preserved in various English libraries (Harleian, Cotton, the Society of Antique Dealers, Thomas Astle, etc). They form a source of first-rate information about table manners, protocol, menus, feasts, official holidays, table and cellar service, expense accounts, lists of the officers of fine dining, of the wardrobe, etc. and contain numerous pieces of information about all the products used in the royal kitchens, the grocery stores, kitchen gardens, farmyards, Crown breweries, about the composition of breakfasts, dinners, suppers and princes’ snacks, about the names, salaries and roles of the staff.
At the end of these prescriptions, pages 423 to 476 are dedicated to a ‘Collection of Old English Recipes’, extracts from a manuscript from the Arundel Collection, kept in the Royal Society library. This manuscript dates from the 15th century but the recipes could be a lot older. It is undoubtedly the ‘Oldest Culinary Recipe Book’ in England. The spelling of the manuscript has been preserved.
This important and rare publication was carried out at the expense of the Society of Antique Dealers in London. It is a collection of 20 texts, ordinances, edicts etc, from the 15th century to the end of the 17th century, concerning the functioning of the English Royal Household from the reign of Edward III until 1689, by way of Henry VI (1455), Prince Edward (1474), Edward IV’s Black Book of the Royal Household, the house of George Duke of Clarence in 1469, Henry VIII in 1526; Queen Elizabeth, King James in 1604, etc.’ [Oberlé]
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Price HK$ 5,000
The Universal Bible: or, Every Christian Family's Best Treasure. Containing the Sacred Text of the Old and New Testament at Large. Illustrated with Notes and Comments; Whereby the difficult passages are explained; the mistranslations corrected; and the seeming contradictions found in the oracles of truth, reconciled. -
, Samuel Nelson (notes, comments, and explanations)
1758 - J. Coote, London
A massive (42.4x29x11.5cm) eighteenth century folio Bible, in a contemporary binding, with title page in red and black.
Magnificently illustrated with forty-six engraved plates including three maps, separate titles dated 1759 for the New Testament and 'Apocrypha'. With a twenty-six page index.
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Price HK$ 10,000
1758 - J. Coote, London
A massive (42.4x29x11.5cm) eighteenth century folio Bible, in a contemporary binding, with title page in red and black.Magnificently illustrated with forty-six engraved plates including three maps, separate titles dated 1759 for the New Testament and 'Apocrypha'. With a twenty-six page index.
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Price HK$ 10,000
The Monkey Wrench Gang -
Edward Abbey
1975 - J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia and New York - First Edition
‘Hell of a place to lose a cow,’ Smith thinks to himself while roaming through the canyonlands of southern Utah. ‘Hell of a place to lose your heart. Hell of a place... to lose. Period’.
‘Since the publication of The Monkey Wrench Gang, Mr. Abbey has become an underground cult hero.’ - New York Times
A fine first edition of this inspirational and incendiary call to protect the American wilderness, by its prickliest and most outspoken environmentalist. A ‘comic extravaganza’ based on a group of misfits who join forces with a Vietnam vet on a rafting trip down the Colorado River, and together they wander off to wage war on the big yellow machines.
‘Ribald, outrageous and, in fact, scandalous.’ - Smithsonian.
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Price HK$ 6,000
1975 - J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia and New York - First Edition
‘Hell of a place to lose a cow,’ Smith thinks to himself while roaming through the canyonlands of southern Utah. ‘Hell of a place to lose your heart. Hell of a place... to lose. Period’. ‘Since the publication of The Monkey Wrench Gang, Mr. Abbey has become an underground cult hero.’ - New York Times
A fine first edition of this inspirational and incendiary call to protect the American wilderness, by its prickliest and most outspoken environmentalist. A ‘comic extravaganza’ based on a group of misfits who join forces with a Vietnam vet on a rafting trip down the Colorado River, and together they wander off to wage war on the big yellow machines.
‘Ribald, outrageous and, in fact, scandalous.’ - Smithsonian.
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Price HK$ 6,000
Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness -
Edward Abbey, Peter Parnall (illustrator)
1968 - McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York - First Edition
A bright first edition of Abbey’s powerful work of nature writing and environmental concern, based on the inner and outer observations Abbey made during three summers at Arches National Park, Utah. His first book of non-fiction and most famous and defining work. Only 5000 copies of the first edition were printed, it has since sold more than 2,000,000 copies.
‘Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit, and as vital to our lives as water and good bread. A civilization which destroys what little remains of the wild, the spare, the original, is cutting itself off from its origins and betraying the principle of civilization itself.’
With drawings throughout by Peter Parnell.
‘The desert is... atonal, cruel, clear, neither romantic nor classical, motionless and emotionless at one and the same time... Like death? Perhaps. And perhaps that is why life nowhere appears so brave, so bright, so full of oracle and miracle as in the desert.’
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Price HK$ 7,000
1968 - McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York - First Edition
A bright first edition of Abbey’s powerful work of nature writing and environmental concern, based on the inner and outer observations Abbey made during three summers at Arches National Park, Utah. His first book of non-fiction and most famous and defining work. Only 5000 copies of the first edition were printed, it has since sold more than 2,000,000 copies.‘Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit, and as vital to our lives as water and good bread. A civilization which destroys what little remains of the wild, the spare, the original, is cutting itself off from its origins and betraying the principle of civilization itself.’
With drawings throughout by Peter Parnell.
‘The desert is... atonal, cruel, clear, neither romantic nor classical, motionless and emotionless at one and the same time... Like death? Perhaps. And perhaps that is why life nowhere appears so brave, so bright, so full of oracle and miracle as in the desert.’
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Price HK$ 7,000
The Player of Games -
Iain M. Banks
1988 - Macmillan, London - First Edition
A fine first edition of the second volume in Banks’ acclaimed ‘Culture Series’ (published at the same time as a limited edition of 400 in slipcase but which did not have iconic dust jacket illustrated by Richard Hopkinson / The Garden Studio).
The story of Gurgeh, one of the Culture’s greatest game masters who, bored with success, travels to the cruel and wealthy Empire of Azad, where he becomes entangled in the most dangerous and complex game he has ever played.
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Price HK$ 4,500
1988 - Macmillan, London - First Edition
A fine first edition of the second volume in Banks’ acclaimed ‘Culture Series’ (published at the same time as a limited edition of 400 in slipcase but which did not have iconic dust jacket illustrated by Richard Hopkinson / The Garden Studio).The story of Gurgeh, one of the Culture’s greatest game masters who, bored with success, travels to the cruel and wealthy Empire of Azad, where he becomes entangled in the most dangerous and complex game he has ever played.
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Price HK$ 4,500
Wuthering Heights -
Emily Bront
1955 - The Zodiac Press, London - Third Impression
An elegant edition of the classic gothic romance, set on the bleak Yorkshire moors. Finely bound in blue crushed morocco, by Frost & Co. of Bath.
‘My greatest thought in living is himself. If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be;’
Nelly, I am Heathcliff! He's always, always in my mind: not as a pleasure... but as my own being.’
Wuthering Heights is the only novel of Emily Brontë, who died a year after its publication, at the age of thirty. A brooding Yorkshire tale of a love that is stronger than death, it is also a fierce vision of metaphysical passion, in which heaven and hell, nature and society, are powerfully juxtaposed. Unique, mystical, with a timeless appeal, it has become a highlight of English literature.
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Price HK$ 5,000
1955 - The Zodiac Press, London - Third Impression
An elegant edition of the classic gothic romance, set on the bleak Yorkshire moors. Finely bound in blue crushed morocco, by Frost & Co. of Bath.‘My greatest thought in living is himself. If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be;’
Nelly, I am Heathcliff! He's always, always in my mind: not as a pleasure... but as my own being.’
Wuthering Heights is the only novel of Emily Brontë, who died a year after its publication, at the age of thirty. A brooding Yorkshire tale of a love that is stronger than death, it is also a fierce vision of metaphysical passion, in which heaven and hell, nature and society, are powerfully juxtaposed. Unique, mystical, with a timeless appeal, it has become a highlight of English literature.
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Price HK$ 5,000
War Speeches - Including: Into Battle, The Unrelenting Struggle, The End of the Beginning, Onwards to Victory, The Dawn of Liberation, Victory, and Secret Session Speeches -
Sir Winston Spencer Churchill
1941 to 1946 - Cassell and Company, London - First Editions
Seven finely bound first edition volumes of the monumental orations from Britain's war leader, compiled by Randolph S. Churchill and Charles Eade. Illustrated with half tone plates mostly from photographs.
'Into Battle' contains the most memorable Churchill speeches of the war, from 'Blood Toil Tears and Sweat' to his heroic homecoming at Harrow School; 'Unrelenting Struggle' covers the period from Nov.'40 through Pearl Harbour and the 'some chicken, some neck' speech in Ottawa, Dec.'41; 'End of the Beginning' chronicles the turning point of the war, following victories at Alamein and Stalingrad and the North Africa landings; 'Onwards' features speeches delivered prior to the invasion of Europe on 6 June '44; 'Liberation' continues the 'hopeful' nature of the 1944 speeches, whilst 'Victory' provides us with the final, triumphant war speeches. Six 'secret' speeches concludes the series.
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Price HK$ 24,000
1941 to 1946 - Cassell and Company, London - First Editions
Seven finely bound first edition volumes of the monumental orations from Britain's war leader, compiled by Randolph S. Churchill and Charles Eade. Illustrated with half tone plates mostly from photographs.'Into Battle' contains the most memorable Churchill speeches of the war, from 'Blood Toil Tears and Sweat' to his heroic homecoming at Harrow School; 'Unrelenting Struggle' covers the period from Nov.'40 through Pearl Harbour and the 'some chicken, some neck' speech in Ottawa, Dec.'41; 'End of the Beginning' chronicles the turning point of the war, following victories at Alamein and Stalingrad and the North Africa landings; 'Onwards' features speeches delivered prior to the invasion of Europe on 6 June '44; 'Liberation' continues the 'hopeful' nature of the 1944 speeches, whilst 'Victory' provides us with the final, triumphant war speeches. Six 'secret' speeches concludes the series.
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Price HK$ 24,000
The Savoy Cocktail Book -
Harry Craddock
1930 - Constable &, London - First Edition
An uncommon bright and sharp first edition of this Art-Deco highlight and legendary Mixologist’s Bible.
Featuring 750 cocktails, with marvellous art-deco colour illustrations and decorations throughout by Gilbert Rumbold, in original art-deco illustrated covers, using a shiny gold foil transfer which is usually encountered in a poor state.
‘The way to drink a cocktail is quickly, while it's still laughing at you.’
Harry Craddock (1876–1963) was an Englishman who became one of the most famous bartenders of the 1920s and 1930s. Born in Stroud, Gloucestershire, Craddock moved to the United States in 1897, where he worked at Cleveland's Hollenden Hotel and New York's Knickerbocker Hotel and Hoffman House, becoming a United States citizen. He left America during Prohibition and sailed to Liverpool with his wife and daughter before joining the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel, London, in 1920. He became the star of the American Bar and is credited with inventing the White Lady and popularised classics such as the Dry Martini.
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Price HK$ 18,000
1930 - Constable &, London - First Edition
An uncommon bright and sharp first edition of this Art-Deco highlight and legendary Mixologist’s Bible.Featuring 750 cocktails, with marvellous art-deco colour illustrations and decorations throughout by Gilbert Rumbold, in original art-deco illustrated covers, using a shiny gold foil transfer which is usually encountered in a poor state.
‘The way to drink a cocktail is quickly, while it's still laughing at you.’
Harry Craddock (1876–1963) was an Englishman who became one of the most famous bartenders of the 1920s and 1930s. Born in Stroud, Gloucestershire, Craddock moved to the United States in 1897, where he worked at Cleveland's Hollenden Hotel and New York's Knickerbocker Hotel and Hoffman House, becoming a United States citizen. He left America during Prohibition and sailed to Liverpool with his wife and daughter before joining the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel, London, in 1920. He became the star of the American Bar and is credited with inventing the White Lady and popularised classics such as the Dry Martini.
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Price HK$ 18,000