Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám -
Omar Khayyám, Edmund Dulac (illustrator)
Circa 1909 - Hodder and Stoughton, London - First Dulac Illustrated Edition
An exquisite Bayntun-Riviére binding of this large and intricately decorated edition of the Persian poem of life by the renowned 11th century philosopher, poet, mathematician, and astronomer Omar Khayyám, beautifully illustrated with twenty tipped-in colour plates by Edmund Dulac. Housed in a bespoke clamshell case.
Come fill the cup, and in the fire of spring
Your winter garment of repentance fling:
The bird of time has but a little way
To flutter – and the bird is on the wing.
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Price HK$ 20,000
Circa 1909 - Hodder and Stoughton, London - First Dulac Illustrated Edition
An exquisite Bayntun-Riviére binding of this large and intricately decorated edition of the Persian poem of life by the renowned 11th century philosopher, poet, mathematician, and astronomer Omar Khayyám, beautifully illustrated with twenty tipped-in colour plates by Edmund Dulac. Housed in a bespoke clamshell case.Come fill the cup, and in the fire of spring
Your winter garment of repentance fling:
The bird of time has but a little way
To flutter – and the bird is on the wing.
More details
Price HK$ 20,000
The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám -
Omar Khayyám, Gilbert James (Illustrator)
1901 - New Amsterdam Book Company, New York - One of Fifty Copies. Fourth Edition with notes
Come fill the cup, and in the fire of spring
Your winter garment of repentance fling:
The bird of time has but a little way
To flutter – and the bird is on the wing.
An exquisitely rendered edition of the Persian poem of life, written by the renowned 11th century philosopher, poet, mathematician, and astronomer Omar Khayyám.
Number fifteen of fifty copies printed on deckle-edged paper, illustrated from drawings by Gilbert James two of which (the frontispiece and title) are heavily embellished in gilt, the remaining fourteen are water-coloured by hand on Japan vellum, also accompanied with an extra set of the illustrations in black and white on Japan vellum. Hand numbered and signed by the New Amsterdam Book Company.
Enhanced by a biographical preface by Michael Kerney, Andrew Lang’s ‘To Omar Khayyám’, Edward Fitzgerald’s ‘Omar Khayyám, the Astronomer-Poet of Persia’, and copious notes to the rear.
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Price HK$ 12,000
1901 - New Amsterdam Book Company, New York - One of Fifty Copies. Fourth Edition with notes
Come fill the cup, and in the fire of spring Your winter garment of repentance fling:
The bird of time has but a little way
To flutter – and the bird is on the wing.
An exquisitely rendered edition of the Persian poem of life, written by the renowned 11th century philosopher, poet, mathematician, and astronomer Omar Khayyám.
Number fifteen of fifty copies printed on deckle-edged paper, illustrated from drawings by Gilbert James two of which (the frontispiece and title) are heavily embellished in gilt, the remaining fourteen are water-coloured by hand on Japan vellum, also accompanied with an extra set of the illustrations in black and white on Japan vellum. Hand numbered and signed by the New Amsterdam Book Company.
Enhanced by a biographical preface by Michael Kerney, Andrew Lang’s ‘To Omar Khayyám’, Edward Fitzgerald’s ‘Omar Khayyám, the Astronomer-Poet of Persia’, and copious notes to the rear.
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Price HK$ 12,000
Westward Ho!; Hereward The Wake; Hypatia; Two Years Ago; Alton Locke -
Charles Kingsley
1896-1900 - Macmillan and Co., London -
A finely bound five volume set of Kingsley’s best known historic novels, ‘Hypatia’, ‘Hereward the Wake’ and ‘Westward Ho!’, the classic action-packed saga of romance and seafaring adventure set against the dramatic backdrop of Elizabethan England, the battle of the Spanish Armada, and the exploration of North America, illustrated by Charles Brock.
Together with ‘Alton Locke’, the story of a tailor-poet who rebels against the ignominy of sweated labor and becomes a leader of the Chartist movement, and ‘Two Years Ago’ about a doctor named Tom Thurnall and his friends as they deal with the effects of the Crimean War and a cholera epidemic, reflecting on social issues of the time, such as public health, slavery, and social reform.
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Price HK$ 4,000
1896-1900 - Macmillan and Co., London -
A finely bound five volume set of Kingsley’s best known historic novels, ‘Hypatia’, ‘Hereward the Wake’ and ‘Westward Ho!’, the classic action-packed saga of romance and seafaring adventure set against the dramatic backdrop of Elizabethan England, the battle of the Spanish Armada, and the exploration of North America, illustrated by Charles Brock.Together with ‘Alton Locke’, the story of a tailor-poet who rebels against the ignominy of sweated labor and becomes a leader of the Chartist movement, and ‘Two Years Ago’ about a doctor named Tom Thurnall and his friends as they deal with the effects of the Crimean War and a cholera epidemic, reflecting on social issues of the time, such as public health, slavery, and social reform.
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Price HK$ 4,000
Crusader Castles - I. The Thesis & II. The Letters -
T. E. Lawrence
1936 - The Golden Cockerel Press, London - Number 924 of 1000 copies
‘I will have such difficulty in becoming English again: here I am Arab in habits, and slip in talking from English to French and Arabic unnoticing.'
T. E. Lawrence travelled through Britain, France, Syria and Palestine to research his undergraduate thesis on ‘The Influence of the Crusades on European Military Architecture to the End of the Twelfth Century’. Lawrence’s brilliant observations have since been confirmed by modern research. Moreover, the thesis and correspondence that make up Crusader Castles give us an insight into both Lawrence’s fascination with the Crusades and his origins as an adventurer.
After visiting the major sites in England and Wales, Lawrence crossed Ottoman-controlled Syria on foot and by bicycle. He wanted to prove that, contrary to the received wisdom of the time, the castles built by the Normans during their campaigns were not influenced by Byzantine architecture, but conformed to a purely Western model. In 1909, Syria and the Holy Land were remote and dangerous destinations, and few historians had actually seen a crusader castle. His 1,100-mile journey was arduous in the extreme, but Lawrence succeeded in seeing 36 of the 50 castles on his itinerary.
Finely bound first editions, number 924 of a limited 1,000 copies, illustrated throughout with numerous plates, and facsimiles, maps and plans, including two large loose maps in separate sleeve.
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Price HK$ 20,000
1936 - The Golden Cockerel Press, London - Number 924 of 1000 copies
‘I will have such difficulty in becoming English again: here I am Arab in habits, and slip in talking from English to French and Arabic unnoticing.'T. E. Lawrence travelled through Britain, France, Syria and Palestine to research his undergraduate thesis on ‘The Influence of the Crusades on European Military Architecture to the End of the Twelfth Century’. Lawrence’s brilliant observations have since been confirmed by modern research. Moreover, the thesis and correspondence that make up Crusader Castles give us an insight into both Lawrence’s fascination with the Crusades and his origins as an adventurer.
After visiting the major sites in England and Wales, Lawrence crossed Ottoman-controlled Syria on foot and by bicycle. He wanted to prove that, contrary to the received wisdom of the time, the castles built by the Normans during their campaigns were not influenced by Byzantine architecture, but conformed to a purely Western model. In 1909, Syria and the Holy Land were remote and dangerous destinations, and few historians had actually seen a crusader castle. His 1,100-mile journey was arduous in the extreme, but Lawrence succeeded in seeing 36 of the 50 castles on his itinerary.
Finely bound first editions, number 924 of a limited 1,000 copies, illustrated throughout with numerous plates, and facsimiles, maps and plans, including two large loose maps in separate sleeve.
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Price HK$ 20,000
The Karla Trilogy – Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy; The Honourable Schoolboy; Smiley’s People -
John le Carré
1974 - Hodder and Stoughton, London - First Editions
A finely bound first edition set of John le Carre’s acclaimed espionage trilogy – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Honourable Schoolboy and Smiley’s People – featuring legendary master spy George Smiley pitted against his elusive Cold War rival, Karla.
As a secret service agent, Le Carre moved from MI5 to MI6, and was in Berlin when the wall was erected. His experiences inspired him to write a novel which became 'Call For The Dead'; 'When I first began writing, Ian Fleming was riding high and the picture of the spy was that of a character who could have affairs with women, drive a fast car, who used gadgetry and gimmickry to escape.' Le Carre's aim was to portray the intelligence world from a new view and he has earned a reputation for gritty, realistic, suspenseful spy novels based on a wide knowledge of international espionage or simply human behaviour. His famous recurring character, George Smiley, is an ageing, diffident, shadow-like member of the British foreign service, and the antithesis of James Bond; this trilogy of Smiley books is the author's masterwork, a thrilling elegy for post-imperial Britain. 'Tinker Tailor...' was the basis for the Oscar-nominated 2011 film starring Gary Oldman.
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Price HK$ 22,000
1974 - Hodder and Stoughton, London - First Editions
A finely bound first edition set of John le Carre’s acclaimed espionage trilogy – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Honourable Schoolboy and Smiley’s People – featuring legendary master spy George Smiley pitted against his elusive Cold War rival, Karla.As a secret service agent, Le Carre moved from MI5 to MI6, and was in Berlin when the wall was erected. His experiences inspired him to write a novel which became 'Call For The Dead'; 'When I first began writing, Ian Fleming was riding high and the picture of the spy was that of a character who could have affairs with women, drive a fast car, who used gadgetry and gimmickry to escape.' Le Carre's aim was to portray the intelligence world from a new view and he has earned a reputation for gritty, realistic, suspenseful spy novels based on a wide knowledge of international espionage or simply human behaviour. His famous recurring character, George Smiley, is an ageing, diffident, shadow-like member of the British foreign service, and the antithesis of James Bond; this trilogy of Smiley books is the author's masterwork, a thrilling elegy for post-imperial Britain. 'Tinker Tailor...' was the basis for the Oscar-nominated 2011 film starring Gary Oldman.
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Price HK$ 22,000
Grasses and Pastures of South Africa -
D. Meredith (editor)
1955 - Central News Agency, Johannesburg - First Edition
A large and comprehensive work in two parts - ‘A Guide to the Identification of Grasses in South Africa’ by Lucy Chippindall, and ‘Pasture Management in South Africa’ by J. D. Scott, J. J. Theron, D. Meredith and others.
In a unique and elegant binding, initially ‘J.K. 97’, with what appear to be handmade paper end leaves incorporating wild grasses. Housed in matching bespoke marbled slipcase.
Illustrated throughout with full page colour plates and in-text black and white photographs, folding colour maps bound in at the rear.
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Price HK$ 6,000
1955 - Central News Agency, Johannesburg - First Edition
A large and comprehensive work in two parts - ‘A Guide to the Identification of Grasses in South Africa’ by Lucy Chippindall, and ‘Pasture Management in South Africa’ by J. D. Scott, J. J. Theron, D. Meredith and others.In a unique and elegant binding, initially ‘J.K. 97’, with what appear to be handmade paper end leaves incorporating wild grasses. Housed in matching bespoke marbled slipcase.
Illustrated throughout with full page colour plates and in-text black and white photographs, folding colour maps bound in at the rear.
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Price HK$ 6,000
Five Children And It -
E. Nesbit
1902 - T. Fisher Unwin, London - First Edition
A fine first edition of this brilliant story exquisitely bound by Bayntun-Riviere of Bath, wonderfully enhanced with forty-six black and white illustrations by H. R. Millar.
Cyril, Athena, Robert, Jane, and baby brother, Lamb, are exploring the land around the house their parents have rented for the summer when they find the sandpit. They decide to dig a hole straight through to Australia. Their plan is interrupted when Athena discovers a magical creature hiding in the sand. It is a Psammead, and it can grant wishes.
‘The children stood around the hole looking at the creature they had found. It was worth looking at. Its eyes were on long horns like a snail's eyes, and it could move them in and out like telescopes; it had ears like a bat's ears, and its tubby body was shaped like a spider's and covered with thick soft fur; its legs and arms were furry too, and it had hands and feet like a monkey's.’
Psammead: I am a Sand Fairy!
Jane: A Sand Fairy? I thought fairies had little ballet dresses and wings and wands.
Psammead: What on earth have you been reading?
Jane: I'll call you Sandy.
Psammead: Why?
Jane: Because we found you in the sand.
Psammead: You're so funny. Have your parents tried boiling you?
More details
Price HK$ 12,500
1902 - T. Fisher Unwin, London - First Edition
A fine first edition of this brilliant story exquisitely bound by Bayntun-Riviere of Bath, wonderfully enhanced with forty-six black and white illustrations by H. R. Millar.Cyril, Athena, Robert, Jane, and baby brother, Lamb, are exploring the land around the house their parents have rented for the summer when they find the sandpit. They decide to dig a hole straight through to Australia. Their plan is interrupted when Athena discovers a magical creature hiding in the sand. It is a Psammead, and it can grant wishes.
‘The children stood around the hole looking at the creature they had found. It was worth looking at. Its eyes were on long horns like a snail's eyes, and it could move them in and out like telescopes; it had ears like a bat's ears, and its tubby body was shaped like a spider's and covered with thick soft fur; its legs and arms were furry too, and it had hands and feet like a monkey's.’
Psammead: I am a Sand Fairy!
Jane: A Sand Fairy? I thought fairies had little ballet dresses and wings and wands.
Psammead: What on earth have you been reading?
Jane: I'll call you Sandy.
Psammead: Why?
Jane: Because we found you in the sand.
Psammead: You're so funny. Have your parents tried boiling you?
More details
Price HK$ 12,500
Life and Writings of Thomas Paine -
Thomas Paine, Daniel Edwin Wheeler (editor)
1908 - Vincent Parke and Company, New York - Independence Edition of the Centenary Issue
‘These are the times that try men's souls’
Elegantly bound ten volume set of the de luxe independence edition, number 166 of just 500 hand-numbered sets signed by the editor Daniel Edwin Wheeler, published to celebrate the centenary of Paine's death.
Included are Paine’s ‘Common Sense’, ‘The American Crises’, ‘The Rights of Man’, and ‘The Age of Reason’, as well as essays, letters and speeches. Each volume with three photogravure or facsimile plates, as well as a frontispiece, title-pages printed in two colours, autographed limitation leaf to volume one.
‘On January 10, 1776, an obscure immigrant published a small pamphlet that ignited independence in America and shifted the political landscape of the patriot movement from reform within the British imperial system to independence from it. One hundred twenty thousand copies sold in the first three months in a nation of three million people, making Common Sense the best-selling printed work by a single author in American history up to that time. Never before had a personally written work appealed to all classes of colonists. Never before had a pamphlet been written in an inspiring style so accessible to the “common” folk of America.’ - Jack Miller Center.
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Price HK$ 35,000
1908 - Vincent Parke and Company, New York - Independence Edition of the Centenary Issue
‘These are the times that try men's souls’Elegantly bound ten volume set of the de luxe independence edition, number 166 of just 500 hand-numbered sets signed by the editor Daniel Edwin Wheeler, published to celebrate the centenary of Paine's death.
Included are Paine’s ‘Common Sense’, ‘The American Crises’, ‘The Rights of Man’, and ‘The Age of Reason’, as well as essays, letters and speeches. Each volume with three photogravure or facsimile plates, as well as a frontispiece, title-pages printed in two colours, autographed limitation leaf to volume one.
‘On January 10, 1776, an obscure immigrant published a small pamphlet that ignited independence in America and shifted the political landscape of the patriot movement from reform within the British imperial system to independence from it. One hundred twenty thousand copies sold in the first three months in a nation of three million people, making Common Sense the best-selling printed work by a single author in American history up to that time. Never before had a personally written work appealed to all classes of colonists. Never before had a pamphlet been written in an inspiring style so accessible to the “common” folk of America.’ - Jack Miller Center.
More details
Price HK$ 35,000