Early 1800s Friendship Album

Regensburg, Germany: n.p., 1806. Approximately 7 x 4", oblong. Red leather over boards with gilt designs on covers and spine, front cover has gilt initials "J. A. S." and back cover has date of 1806, vibrant marbled endpapers with the front one having a minor corner missing, nice quality paper with watermark and chain lines still visible, back cover has some sort of split-open box attached, introduction loosely translates to "Great praise and good wishes, and be assured that I am eternally your respected brother, Joseph Scheller, Regensburg, Year 1806", many friendship entries in German along with some beautiful hand-drawn and sometimes colored illustrations, in very good + condition. Not much can be known about Johan Andreas Scheller except that he had many friends. As is traditional with friendship albums of this time, they are filled with poems, drawings, personal messages, and small pieces of verse, some religious in nature. The first drawing, for instance, refers to the sacredness of friendship. These friendship books were popular until the mid-19th century, when they were gradually replaced by yearbooks for university students.