AUTOGRAPH

[William Smith O'Brien, Irish nationalist, a leader of the Young Ireland movement, deported to Van Diemen's Land by the British.] Autograph Signature and valediction on part of a letter.

Author: 
William Smith O'Brien [Liam Mac Gabhann Ó Briain] (1803-64), Irish nationalist Member of British Parliament, a leader of Young Ireland movement, convicted of sedition and deported to Van Diemen's Land
William S OBrien
Publication details: 
No place or date.
£30.00
William S OBrien

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. Slip of paper, roughly 8 x 4.5 cm, cut from a letter. In fair condition, on lightly aged and discoloured paper, with several vertical postage folds. On one side good clear signature and valediction: ‘I remain, dear Sir / Faithfully Yours / William S OBrien’. On the other side, tantalizingly: ‘[...] part of England what [...] | [...] not her all to obtai[n] [...] | [...] sense of justice - [...]’

[The Lord Mayor of London plans a ‘cockney expedition’: William Thompson, Lord Mayor of London, 1828-9.] Autograph Letter Signed to Theodore Hook, describing the itinerary of the three-day ‘excursion to the Medway’.

Author: 
William Thompson (1793-1854), Lord Mayor of London, 1828-9, ironmaster, financier and Member of Parliament [Theodore Hook (1788-1841), writer and hoaxer; John Wilson Croker; Sir Henry Blackwood]
Publication details: 
‘Mansion House [London] / 20 July 1829’.
£90.00

An excellent slice of Georgian London history. See his entry, and Hook’s, in the Oxford DNB. 4pp, 12mo. Fifty-five lines of text. On bifolium. In fair condition, on discoloured and lightly-worn paper, with closed tear at foot of gutter. Also present is a typed transcript. The letter concerns a proposed three-day ‘excursion to the Medway’. Hook has engagements that will interefere, but Thompson undertakes to land him ‘safe at the Tower by seven o’clock on Saturday’.

[Sir Robert Liston, Scottish diplomat, British Envoy Extraordinary (Ambassador) to the United States.] Autograph Note Signed to William Jerdan ('My Dear old Boy'), editor of the Literary Gazette, agreeing to come to 'the free masons'.

Author: 
Sir Robert Liston (1742-1836), Scottish diplomat, British Envoy Extraordinary (Ambassador) to the United States [William Jerdan (1782-1869), editor of ‘The Literary Gazette’; Freemasonry]
Publication details: 
30 January [no year]. No place.
£45.00

See the two men's entries in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In fair condition, lightly aged. Folded for postage. Reads: ‘Jany 30. / My Dear old Boy / Ill come on Thursday with great pleasure to the free masons / Yrs faithfully / Robt Liston / W. Jerdan Esq’.

Sir Walter Elliot, Scottish orientalist, archaeologist, naturalist, and senior East India Company servant.] Autograph Letter Signed to the German orientalist Reinhold Rost, regarding books he donated to ‘the Library’, needing a ‘Pandit’ to read them.

Author: 
Sir Walter Elliot (1803-1887), Scottish orientalist, archaeologist, naturalist, and senior East India Company functionary [Reinhold Rost (1822-1896), German orientalist in England]
Publication details: 
11 November 1876; on letterhead of Wolfelee, Hawick, N[orth]. B[ritain]. (i.e. Scotland).
£50.00

See the two men’s entries in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. Addressed to ‘R. Rost Esq Ph.D’ and ‘Dear Dr Rost’, and signed ‘Walter Elliot’. He thanks him for taking the trouble to ‘hunt out the books. I gave a large number in 1866 & some in subsequent years but it is difficult to recal [sic] to mind the details of transactions of so distant a date’.

[‘The Colossus of Roads’: Sir James Nicoll McAdam, Scottish builder and administrator of roads.] Autograph Signature cut from document.

Author: 
Sir James Nicoll McAdam (1786–1852), ‘The Colossus of Roads’, Scottish builder and administrator of roads
James Nicoll McAdam
Publication details: 
No date or place.
£45.00
James Nicoll McAdam

See his joint entry with his father John Loudon McAdam (1756-1836) in the Oxford DNB. On slip of paper roughly 11 x 6.5 cm, cut from document. In good condition, lightly aged, and laid down on part of brown paper leaf from an autograph album. (Part of an autograph by ‘[...] Perry’ is on the reverse.) Good large disciplined autograph ‘James Mc Adam’ (with the initial ‘J’ closely cropped at the head and left-hand side), beneath which is written, in a contemporary hand ‘The Colossus of Roads’. See Image.

[Sabine Baring-Gould, ghost story writer, antiquarian and folklorist.] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Miss Hall', giving news of friends in Germany, and of his intention to travel to Bayreuth to hear Wagner's 'Parsival'.

Author: 
Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-1924), ghost story writer, antiquarian, folklorist and Anglican priest [Richard Wagner]
Publication details: 
20 March 1885. Lew Trenchard, North Devon.
£90.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. On bifolium. Thirty-lines of text in his distinctive close hand. Addressed to 'Dear Miss Hall' and signed 'S. B. Gould'. In fair condition, lightly aged, with slight loss to the upper corners of the second leaf from removal from mount. Folded twice for postage. He begins by stating that he will be writing to 'the Chaplain & also to some cousins of mine who are at Freiburg, & who are nice cheerful people - the Snows'. He informs her of the death of 'Herr v.

[Sir Herbert Maxwell, 7th Baronet, Scottish writer, salmon fisher and Conservative MP.] Autograph Letter Signed to Grant Reid, sending a copy of one of his books, and explaining that his days of drawing are over.

Author: 
Sir Herbert Maxwell [Sir Herbert Eustace Maxwell, 7th Baronet] (1845-1937), Scottish writer, artist, antiquarian, horticulturalist, salmon angler and Conservative MP
Publication details: 
4 December 1895; on his crested letterhead from The Airlour, Whauphill, Wigtownshire, N[orth]. B[ritain]. (i.e. Scotland).
£50.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient would appear to have been an impudent autograph collector. Addressed to ‘Grant Reid / Esq’ and signed ‘Herbert Maxwell’. Begins: ‘Dear Sir / I have directed a copy of Post Meridiana to be sent to you according to your desire.’ He cannot however comply with Reid’s other request. ‘I have no time to give to drawing now, and my family have possessed themselves of all my old drawings.’

[Princess Sophia of Gloucester, niece of King George III.] Autograph Letter Signed (‘Sophia Matilda’) [to Sir Herbert Taylor, Private Secretary to George IV], regarding ‘the kind Legacy from the late Queen at Wirtemberg’.

Author: 
Princess Sophia of Gloucester [Sophia Matilda] (1773-1844), daughter of the Duke of Gloucester, niece of King George III [Lieut-Gen. Sir Herbert Taylor (1775-1839), Private Secretary to the Sovereign]
Publication details: 
‘Bagshot Park / Septr. 16th. [1829]’.
£90.00

See Taylor’s entry, and that of Princess Sophia’s brother William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (1776-1834), in the Oxford DNB. Bagshot Park was the residence of her brother the duke (Silly Billy’), to whom she was very much attached. The siblings were not entirely accepted by the Royal Family due to the unequal nature of their parents’ marriage. 3pp, 12mo. On bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded for postage. Taylor, who is not named but is clearly the recipient, has marked the letter as ‘Private’. Good firm signature ‘Sophia Matilda’.

[Richard Holt Hutton, journalist and theologian.] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Miss Stuart', returning her 'paper', and complaining that the criticism of Keats by 'Mr. Bridges' [the poet Robert Bridges?] 'seems so flat'.

Author: 
Richard Holt Hutton (1826-1897), journalist and theologian, joint-editor of the Spectator and National Review [Robert Bridges, Poet Laureate]
Publication details: 
17 May 1895; on on letterhead of ‘ “The Spectator” Office’, 1 Wellington Street, Strand, London, W.C.
£50.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged, with strip of mount adhering to inner margin. Folded once for postage. Reads 'My dear Miss Stuart / I don't think Mr. Bridges brings us much forrider with Keats. Many thanks for the article but I am a little disappointed that his criticism seems so flat. I return your paper with many thanks - / Every yours very truly / Robert H Hutton'.

'[Robin Humphrey Legge (pen-name ‘Musicus’), chief music critic of the Daily Telegraph.] Autograph Letter Signed to ‘Richards’, declaring a desire to meet Hornung (author of the ‘Raffles’ books), discussing his brother’s ‘cruel death’.

Author: 
Robin Humphrey Legge (pen-name ‘Musicus’) (1862-1933), chief music critic of Daily Telegraph, early champion of Elgar and Puccini [Ernest William Hornung (1866-1921), author of the 'Raffles' books]
Publication details: 
5 January or 1 May 1901.
£45.00

See his obituary in The Times, 7 April 1933, and Hornung's entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. With mourning border. In fair condition on discoloured paper. Folded for postage. Begins: ‘My dear Richards, / Greetings! / I should like very much to meet Hornung - practically any day would suit me. I admire his book immensely, not only for the excellence of its workmanship but the remarkable manner of the characterization. It struck me as being intensely sincere.’ He hopes that the Richards clan are well (‘all of you’): ‘We are molto moderato so to speak - My brother’s cruel death in S.

[Roden Noel [Roden Berkeley Wriothesley Noel or Noël], poet and Cambridge Apostle.] The last page of an Autograph Letter Signed, bearing his signature and a long postscript regarding sad scenes in London.

Author: 
Roden Noel [Roden Berkeley Wriothesley Noel or Noël] (1834-1894), poet and Cambridge Apostle
Publication details: 
‘Kew Green. Kew. / Feb 1. 1869’.
£50.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In fair condition, on aged paper, with strip of sunning, and evidence of mounting on reverse, which also bears contemporary pencil annotation: ‘Honble Roden Noel / Son of Earl of Gainsborough / A considerable writer & Poet / Author of “A little Child’s Monument” & other Poetry’. Folded twice. The signature is large and firm, but rest of his handwriting is appalling. The page carries the letter’s valediction, with date and address, and a seven-line postscript: ‘[...] Kind regards [...] How sad is the [...] London!

[Mr. Serjeant Ballantine [William Ballantine, Serjeant-at-Law], lawyer and author.] Substantial Autograph Letter Signed, praising 'a new family paper called The English Resident', with regard to 'English sojourners' in Boulogne-sur-Mer.

Author: 
Mr. Serjeant Ballantine [William Ballantine, Serjeant-at-Law] (1812-1887), lawyer and author ['The English Resident', journal; Boulogne-sur-Mer]
Serjeant Ballantine
Publication details: 
'Boulogne s/m June 18 1883'.
£250.00
Serjeant Ballantine

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 4to. On first leaf of bifolium. Forty-three lines of neat text. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn, with a few small closed tears. The author ('Sir') is unnamed, but is presumably the 'Editor' referred to in the text. Signed 'Wm Ballantine'. By recipient, at head of first page: 'Letter from Mr Sergeant [sic] Ballantine / United Club -'.

[Victorian fraud: Philip Bliss, Registrar of the University of Oxford; William Okill, agent for Thomas Hudson, claimant to the Dukedom of Devonshire.] Unsigned Autograph notes by Bliss, on Autograph Letter Signed to him by Okill.

Author: 
Philip Bliss (1787-1857), Registrar of the University of Oxford and Principal of St Mary Hall, antiquary; William Okill of Liverpool, agent for Thomas Hudson, claimant to the Dukedom of Devonshire
Philip Bliss
Publication details: 
ONE (Okill's ALS): '2 Duke Street / Liverpool 30th. June 1848'. TWO (Bliss's Unsigned Autograph notes): Without date or place.
£200.00
Philip Bliss

This forgotten case of identity fraud predates the celebrated Titchborne case by more than a decade.

[Katharine Bruce Glasier [née Katharine St John Conway], socialist and suffragist, wife of Scottish politician John Bruce Glasier.] Signed Autograph Inscription (as ‘Katherine o’ the Bruce’) on postcard with photographic of ‘The Waterfall, Earby’.

Author: 
Katharine Bruce Glasier [née Katharine St John Conway] (1867-1950), socialist and suffragist, wife of Scottish politician John Bruce Glasier (1859-1920) [Clough & Wells, Skipton photographers]
Katharine Bruce Glasier
Publication details: 
Undated [post 1922]. 'Real Photo Post Card | Printed in Great Britain', by 'Clough & Well's / Nile Series / Skipton'.
£90.00
Katharine Bruce Glasier

See her entry, and that of her husband, in the Oxford DNB. Black and white print postcard, on shiny paper stock. In good condition, lightly aged. Showing image of waterfall in thick foliage, with caption at foot ‘The Waterfall, Earby.’ Photographers’ details at bottom right.

[The man who ‘saved France and the freedom of the world’ by backing Marshal Foch: Lord Milner [Alfred Milner, Viscount Milner].] Autograph Letter Signed to ‘Joyce’ explaining why he must decline an invitation.

Author: 
Lord Milner [Alfred Milner, Viscount Milner] (1854-1925), German-born British politician, South African colonial administrator, who ‘saved France and the freedom of the world' by backing Marshal Foch
Publication details: 
29 June 1910; 47 Duke Street, S.W. [London].
£50.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. With mourning border. In good condition, lightly aged and worn. He apologises for an engagement that will keep him ‘out of Town’ on the date proposed. Reads: ‘My dear Joyce / I should so much have enjoyed coming to your party, & it was very kind of you & Olive to think of it / Yours affec[tion]ately / Milner’.

[Madame Albani [Dame Emma Albani Gye], celebrated Canadian operatic soprano.] Autograph Inscription to 'J. Bennett Esq', on calling card of 'Mlle. Emma Albani'.

Author: 
Madame Albani [Dame Emma Albani Gye; Madame Albani; born Marie-Louise-Emma-Cécile Lajeunesse] (1847-1930), celebrated Canadian operatic soprano
Madame Albani
Publication details: 
1876. No place.
£45.00
Madame Albani

See her entry in the Oxford DNB. 9 x 6 cm calling card, with 'Mlle. Emma Albani' printed in copperplate in the centre. Above this, at the head of the card, she has written 'J. Bennett Esq.' And around the printed signature she has written the unsigned inscription: 'With [Mlle. Emma Albani]'s compliments & heartfelt thanks -'. Date by her at bottom left: '1876'. See IMage.

[Margaret Froude, daughter and editor of James Anthony Froude, historian and biographer of Thomas Carlyle.] Autograph Letter Signed, explaining why she is denying the unnamed recipient’s request to reprint two passages from Thomas Carlyle.

Author: 
Margaret Froude, daughter and editor of J. A. Froude [James Anthony Froude] (1818-1894), historian, editor of Fraser’s Magazine, disciple and biographer of Thomas Carlyle
Publication details: 
4 October [no year]; on letterhead of 8 Cresswell Gardens, South Kensington [London].
£38.00

Although it does not state so explicitly, Froude’s entry in the Oxford DNB appers to suggests that the Margaret Froude who edited his work after his death was the same daughter as the Georgina Margaret Froude (1850-1935) who married William Mallock. 1p, 12mo. On first leaf of a bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. The recipient is not named. Addressed to ‘Dear Madam’ and signed ‘Margaret Froude’. She cannot alter the opinion that she expressed to ‘Mr Longman’ (the London publisher).

[J. A. Fuller Maitland [John Alexander Fuller Maitland], music critic and musicologist.] Autograph Letter Signed, regarding a lecture the recipient is about to give on 'a subject which is especially dear' to him.

Author: 
J. A. Fuller Maitland [John Alexander Fuller Maitland] (1856-1936), influential music critic and musicologist, who championed the work of Purcell, Stanford and Parry
Publication details: 
21 November [1899]. On letterhead of 39 Phillimore Gardens, Kensington, W. [London]
£50.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 3pp, landscape 12mo. On bifolium of grey paper. The letter is complete, on what appears to be the upper half of a 4to bifolium. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn, with stamp, postmark and remains of autograph address on reverse of second leaf, with traces of mount. Signed ‘J A Fuller Maitland’. Begins: ‘Dear Sir / Very many thanks for your book, the second copy of which has just come. I shall hope to be able to come & hear your lecture on a subject which is especially dear to me.

[J. S. Fletcher [Joseph Smith Fletcher], notable writer in the Golden Age of Detective Fiction.] Autograph Letter Signed to D. Webster, bookseller, commenting on ‘two Chichester pamphlets’ and ordering an item from his catalogue.

Author: 
J. S. Fletcher [Joseph Smith Fletcher] (1863-1935), prolific author, a notable writer in the Golden Age of Detective Fiction [D. Webster, bookseller]
Publication details: 
24 October 1923; on embossed letterhead: Hambrook, Emsworth, Hants.
£120.00

In a letter to ‘John O’London’s’ in 1921, Fletcher boasted of having ‘written (and published) seventy-three novels, twelve volumes of collected short stories, and fifteen historical and topographical works, the last-named mostly of considerable length’. 3pp, 12mo. On bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once for postage. Annotated by recipient with date of response. Addressed to ‘Mr D. Webster.’ and signed ‘J. S. Fletcher.’ He thanks him for ‘the two Chichester pamphlets duly to hand’, noting that one was ‘The Accompt Cleared’ by Roger L’Estrange.

[G. W. Foote [George William Foote] (1850-1915), radical journalist and secularist, twice prosecuted for blasphemy.] Autograph Letter Signed regarding his forthcoming plans.

Author: 
G. W. Foote [George William Foote] (1850-1915), radical journalist and secularist, editor of ‘The Freethinker’, twice prosecuted for blasphemy
Publication details: 
‘14 Clerkenwell Green / E. C. / Feby. 14/’88’. [14 February 1888; London]
£50.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 4to. On creased and worn paper with postage folds. The recipient is not named. Large firm signature: ‘G. W. Foote’. He will be in Plymouth on 8 April, but is in London on 1 April. ‘Mr. Burrows is down for that date on your list, but as he is nearly always in London I dare say he could easily make an exchange.’ Should Burrows do so, Foote will be glad to comply with the recipient’s request.

[George Ebers, German Egyptologist and novelist.] Autograph Letter Signed, in German, with reference to Graf's arrival with antiquities from Venice, dinner with Winnels, and his fairy tale.

Author: 
Georg Ebers [Georg Moritz Ebers] (1837-1898), German Egyptologist and novelist [Theodor von Graf, Austrian dealer in antiquities]
Publication details: 
15 September 1883. Tutzing [Bavaria].
£100.00

2pp, 16mo. Twenty-eight lines of text, in purple ink. With contemporary English translation on both sides of a separate 16mo leaf. Both items in fair condition, on aged paper, with slight damage to corners from mounts. Trust the translation, the letter is addressed to a 'Dear friend', and begins: 'My friend Graf [i.e. the antiquities dealer Theodor von Graf] arrived yesterday from Venice and brought many most interesting antiquities - His visit prevented my writing to you - but then I hope to show you some of his treasures, next time we meet. He came early and stayed late.

[Dame Isobel Baillie, Scottish soprano and teacher at the Royal College of Music.] Typed Letter Signed to James Butt, recommending ‘a young New Zealand girl with a sweet voice’ (Kiri Te Kanawa?) for ‘sacred work’.

Author: 
Dame Isobel Baillie [née Isabella Douglas Baillie] (1895-1983), Scottish soprano and teacher at the Royal College of Music and elsewhere [James Butt; Kiri Te Kanawa?]
Publication details: 
17 January 1968; on letterhead of 3 Langford Close, London, NW8.
£60.00

1p, 12mo. On blue-grey paper with matching stamped, postmarked envelope with typed address to ‘Mr. James Butt / 23 Hartop Rd. / St. Marychurch / TORQUAY’. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded for postage. Good large signature: ‘Isobel Baillie’. In response to his enquiry, she reports that she has ‘several good pupils who could make satisfactory Sacred Records’, but she would like him to hear them first.

[Frank Greenwood, painter, etcher and illustrator.] Autograph Receipt for ‘Pen & Ink Sketch / Stokesay’, made out to J. D. Hughes of Sherratt & Hughes, with ink caricature self-portrait.

Author: 
Frank Greenwood (1883-1954), painter, etcher and illustrator [Joseph David Hughes (d. 1951) of the Manchester booksellers Sherratt & Hughes]
Frank Greenwood
Publication details: 
No date. On letterhead of Sherratt & Hughes, Booksellers and Publishers, 34 Cross Street, Manchester.
£50.00
Frank Greenwood

1p, 12mo. In fair condition, on discoloured and lightly-creased paper. Beneath letterhead: ‘to J D Hughes Esq’. Around middle of page: ‘Pen & Ink Sketch / Stokesay 15/-’. On lower part of page: ‘Recd with thanks / Frank Greenwood’. Beneath the signature is a simple stylized cartoon depicting the head and shoulders of a smiling walrus-faced figure (Greenwood?) in a trilby, with stiff-colour shirt and black bow tie.

[C. B. Oldman [Cecil Bernard Oldman], bibliographer and musicologist, Principal Keeper of Printed Books at the British Museum.] Autograph Letter Signed to the music bookseller Leonard Hyman, regarding his promotion and Hyman’s latest catalogue.

Author: 
C. B. Oldman [Cecil Bernard Oldman] (1894-1969), bibliographer and musicologist, Principal Keeper of Printed Books at the British Museum from 1948 to 1959 [Leonard Hyman, music bookseller]
Publication details: 
30 December 1947; on letterhead of 3 Cromwell Road, Kensington, S.W.7 [London].
£60.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged and creased. Folded for postage. Addressed to ‘Dear Hyman’ and signed ‘C. B. Oldman.’ He begins by thanking him for his ‘kind congratulations’ (on his promotion to at the British Museum, following the retirement of Sir Henry Thomas): ‘I have been laid up with a bad cold over Christmas otherwise I should have written before’. Hyman’s latest catalogue interested him very much, and he hopes that ‘the fact that I don’t buy much nowadays will not deter you from sending me future issues.

[Admiral Sir Phipps Hornby, hero of the Battle of Lissa, Lord of the Admiralty.] Autograph Letter Signed Phipps Hornby, as Superintendent of the Victualling Yard, Plymouth, discussing what to do with the butter and cheese for 'the Ordinary'.

Author: 
Admiral Sir Phipps Hornby (1785-1867), senior Royal Navy officer, hero of the Battle of Lissa, 1811, Lord of the Admiralty, Superintendent of the Naval Hospital and Victualling Yard, Plymouth
Publication details: 
‘Navl Hospl [Naval Hospital, Plymouth] / June 21st. [1834]’.
£90.00

See his entry, and that of his son, in the Oxford DNB. Hornby served as Superintendent of the Royal Naval Hospital and Victualling Yard at Plymouth between 1832 and 1838. This item is 2pp, 12mo. Bifolium with thin mourning border. Fifty lines, neatly and closely written. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn, with slight damage and a few closed tears around gutter. Folded for postage. Signed ‘Phipps Hornby’, and with recipient (‘My dear Sir’) unnamed. Pencil note giving note by recipient at head of first page, giving prices for butter and cheese ‘for the Year 1834’.

[Conan Doyle; Oscar Slater] Autograph Sentiment and signature Oscar Slater, with image seemingly extracted from a newspaper.

Author: 
Oscar Slater, victim of miscarriage of justice, supported by Conan Doyle among others.
Oscar Slater
Publication details: 
Dated '23/4.27' ("1927 saw the publication of The Truth about Oscar Slater by William Park."
£450.00
Oscar Slater

Sentiment Thanks for your good wishes | Sincerely yours | Oscar Slater | 23/4.27. Image (= portrait) appears to be a drawing extracted from a newspaper or periodical. Backing paper, 8 x 11.5, portrait and text (slightly overflowing) on laid down pink paper, c.9.5 x 6cm. SEE IMAGE. Note: a. Oscar Joseph Slater (8 January 1872 – 31 January 1948) was the victim of a notorious miscarriage of justice in Scotland.

[ Erasmus Middleton, Evangelical clergyman. ] Autograph Letter Signed to Mrs Squire of Wragby full of pious sentiment.

Author: 
Erasmus Middleton (1739-1805), Evangelical Church of England clergyman and editor
Publication details: 
'B. Friars [ Blackfriars ], London, April 27th. 1785.'
£280.00

3pp., folio. Bifolium. Addressed, on reverse of second leaf, 'To | Mrs. Squire, | Wragby, | near Lincoln.' In fair condition, aged and worn, with Middleton's seal cut away from the second leaf (without any loss to text) and a number of closed tears along creases. Seventy lines of neatly-written text. A letter filled with pious sentiment, beginning: 'Mr. Squire favored us To-day with a Call, and it gave us a peculiar Pleasure to see that he is so well recovered from that Fit of Illness in which my Brother & I saw him, notwithstanding the uncommonly severe Winter we have since had.

[ Peter de Rome, 'Grandfather of Gay Porn'. ] Eight Letters (five in Autograph, three Typed), seven of them signed ('Peter.' and 'P.') to costume designer Ivan Alderman.

Author: 
Peter de Rome (1924-2014), homosexual filmmaker, called 'Grandfather of Gay Porn' [ Ivan Alderman (d.2003), costume designer ]
Publication details: 
Four from 1986-1987, on letterheads of the Paramount Pictures Corporation, New York. The others from New York, 1997-1998, the last two with his monogram letterhead.
£450.00

The eight letters total 10pp., 4to., of which 3pp. are typed and 7pp. in autograph. In good condition, lightly aged and worn. De Rome's reputation was enlarged towards the end of his life, with the British Film Institute mounting a thrusting retrospective season, with an accompanying DVD and a penetrating documentary by David McGillivray, 'Peter de Rome: The Grandfather of Gay Porn' (2007). For more information on Alderman, who acted in de Rome's films 'Scopo' (1966) and 'The Second Coming' (1970), and who had been J. R.

[Sophie-Ernestine de Tott, French émigrée artist.] Signed Autograph order for David Morier to pay Gregorio Francisco de Queiroz for Francisco Bartolozzi’s engraving of her painting of the Prince de Condé. With de Queiroz’s signed receipt.

Author: 
Sophie-Ernestine de Tott (1758-1848), French émigrée artist; Gregorio Francisco de Queiroz (1768-1845), Portuguese engraver, pupil to Francesco Bartolozzi (1727-1815) [David Morier, banker]
Gregorio Francisco de Queiroz
Publication details: 
Signed order by de Tott: ‘No. 13. Princes Street hanover Square / a Londres - ce 16. Juin 1802 -’. Receipt signed by de Queiroz: 16 June 1802; no place.
£280.00
Gregorio Francisco de Queiroz

A nice set of documents relating to the London émigré art scene. A copy of the engraved portrait to which these two items refer, titled ‘Louis Joseph de Bourbon, prince de Condé, prince du sang’, is BM P&D 1850,0211.17, and carries the information M.de de Tott pinx., F. Bartolozzi RA sculp., and her details, as publisher: London Publish'd by M.de de Tott Octo. 1 1802. De Tott’s original painting is in the Musée Condé in Paris. See Bartolozzi’s entry in the Oxford DNB and the second (1885) edition of Tuer’s monograph on him. The two items are attached with a wafer at top inner corner.

[Tom Chetwynd, author on spirituality.] Typescript (of the second part of his dystopian first novel ‘The Copper Cow’?) titled ‘The GHOSTLY and the BEASTLY. Part II.’

Author: 
Tom Chetwynd [Tom Wentworth Guy Chetwynd] (1938-2012), author of many works on spirituality [dystopian science fiction]
Chetwynd
Chetwynd
Publication details: 
No date (circa 1962?). On title-page: ‘Tom Chetwynd, / 12 Mornington Terrace, / N.W.1. / 387-7709.’
£250.00
Chetwynd
Chetwynd

Apparently an earlier version of the concluding part of Chetwynd’s dystopian first book, ‘The Copper Cow’, published in London by Anthony Blond in 1962 which gives a surrealistic description of a Britain of the near future. Duplicated typescript, double-spaced and printed on rectos of leaves only, all attached with metal stud. Paginated 115-210, preceded by title page and section title. In good condition, lightly aged. With deletions and manuscript corrections duplicated, but no actual manuscript emendations.

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