Libros raros de Jeff Weber Rare Books

Paris:: Crapart & C.L.F. Panckoucke, 1812-22., 1812. Complete set of 60 volumes. 127 engraved plates, list of subscribers in the index volume, 10 folding charts; occasional foxing, ink and water-stains. Modern quarter green spines over original marbled boards, gilt-stamped black leather spine labels; re-backed. Ex-lib bookplates and ink stamps of the Norwich & Norfolk United Medical Book Society, early ownership inscription of Hudson Gurney. Fine. FIRST EDITION. [19th Century French Medical Encyclopedia] Possibly one of the most important encyclopedia/dictionaries of medicine ever assembled, and certainly the earliest. As Diderot's encyclopedia became the model for assembling scientific knowledge, this massive set brings together all that was known about medicine in the post-Napoleonic era. Included here are numerous engraved plates of surgical instruments of the period. Also illustrated are facial expressions and signs of mental abnormality, many in the style of Esquirol's work. A smaller set,… Leer más

Berlin:: Nikolaus Voltz, 1583., 1583. Two volumes in one. Folio. 368 x 238 millimeters. Melitsah: [*]2, )(2, *2, A-Zz2, a2. Megale: [*]2, )(2, ()2, A-Nn2. [Lacks index at the end, as usual (six leaves).] Pagination: [12], 188; [12], 144 pp. Both titles in red and black in fine woodcut borders, two woodcut portraits of Thurneysser, and numerous woodcuts, figures and tables, typesetting in numerous languages. The Melitsah has the two folding woodcut plates "Tabula Quarundam Syllabarum" & Tafel etlicher Sylben" which are symbolic illustrations of the four continents but lacks, as usual, the six plates of scripture tables, which Sudoff conjectures were available separately and thus often lacking. / Contemporary vellum, old ink manuscript spine title, edges red; soiled, tears in spine at cords, and head of spine, lacks ties. On first title page, small repaired pieces at bottom of title pages (removing previous owner's stamp?), red eagle stamp at ends and on folding plates (some obscured), light marginal… Leer más

Paris:: Chez Thomas Jolly, & Simon Benard, 1671., 1671. Colophon reads: 'De l'Imprimerie de Jean Cusson, 1670'. Tall 4to. [xlviii], 419, [1], [30] pp. 60 engraved plates (six double-page, some pls. signed 'L. Cossinus sculp.', incl. 3 text figs.), including the beautiful engraved allegorical half-title (drawn by Jean le Pautre (1618-1682) and engraved by Gerard Edelinck (1640-1707), title woodcut vignette; the leaves all extended at the gutter to permit the best possible opening for this volume. Modern full blind-stamped speckled calf, gilt-spine title. Title blind embossed: Franklin Institute Library, related small rubberstamp toward title-gutter, additional similar stamps found within. Cloth slip-case. Near fine. First edition of the most exhaustive treatise on optical instruments and lens making in the seventeenth century. This work deals with lenses for all types of instruments, including microscopes, telescopies, the camera obscura, as well as a study of what has been learned with different… Leer más

Paris:: Chez Pierre Billaine, 1638., 1638. 6to. [xxiv], 120, [2] pp. Engraved frontis. (by Pierre Daret), 25 engraved copper plates (1 double-page). Original full blind-stamped calf, spine with gilt rules and title; spine neatly replaced, extremities rubbed. Bookplates of Newbattle Abbey Library, [First] Earl of Ancram [Sir Robert Kerr (c. 1578–1654)] and the Honorable William Marquiss of Lothian (General William John Kerr, 5th Marquess of Lothian, 1737-1815). Fine. ANAMORPHOSES AND THE THEORY OF PERSPECTIVE. First edition, with a fine provenance, of Niceron's important treatise on perspective, geometrical optics, and anamorphic projection, which gains added significance in the history of science for containing (in Book IV) "perhaps the first published reference to Descartes' derivation of the law of refraction (1638) and thus gains some historical significance" -- DSB. / The work is famous for its study of the application of illusion to optical science: "The classic phase of anamorphosis, during… Leer más

New York:: Harcourt, Brace, 1932., 1932. 8vo. xii, 690 pp. Frontis. (portrait of Sherman), plates, index. Deluxe binding in contemporary navy blue crushed levant gilt, purple watered-silk moire endleaves, gilt dentelles, all edges gilt, upper cover with COSWAY-STYLE inset center medallion with glass plate protecting an original watercolor portrait of General Sherman. Protected in the original open-end box bound in half crushed morocco, raised bands, gilt stamps in each compartment, bale blue cloth sides, felt inner lining, cloth ribbon-pull. Beautifully preserved. Ownership inscription. Fine. First edition. Concealed under the gold edge a FORE-EDGE PAINTING of William Tecumseh Sherman (1820-1891), leading his troops to battle in the Civil War. In the scene, it appears that Atlanta (or Savanah?), all ablaze, is in the background (left) and a pasture of cows (right of center), a small rural bridge is in the path ahead leading to the next town. PROVENANCE: Inscribed (half-title) "For my friend Fred… Leer más

Paris:: Imprimerie Royale, 1819., 1819. 2 volumes. Text (sm. 8vo.) and Atlas folio. TEXT VOLUME: 8vo. [xii], 460 pp. Half-title ["se trouve chez Delaunay, libraire Palais-Royal, no. 243"], title vignette of the Armes Royale, dedication to the king, list of plates, with the rare folding engraved plate "Plan du Saint Sepulcre à Jerusalem"; plate is torn and mended (some Kozo, etc.). Contemporary quarter calf, paste-paper overs boards, red morocco gilt-stamped spine label, spine with gilt bands. ATLAS VOLUME: Large oblong folio. [54 cm]: [2] pages, 78 leaves of plates (70 lithographs after Carle Vernet, Fragonard, Isabey, Pierre Prevost, and Forbin, 8 aquatints by Debucourt after Forbin, 2 engravings by Englemann and Debucourt after Forbin), plans (etchings). Original printed cover-title mounted as a title, "Voyage dans Le Levant en 1817 et 1818 » on rouge colored paper. Handsomely bound in modern half dark calf, gilt-stamped spine, original spine preserved, early green cloth over boards, decorative… Leer más

Schlesswig:: Bey Jacob zur Glocken. Jm Jahr [1645]-1647., 1645. Large 4to. [13] ff., 546 [i.e. 536] pp., [1] f., 42 pp., [6] ff. With full-page engraved half title, 10 double-page engraved plates, 11 full-pages engraved plates, 60 text figures, engr. head and tail pieces, initial letters. Title with vignette "Allah" in Arabic script. First edition of Offt begehrte Beschreibung der newen orientalischen Reise, 1645-7. This is an important and widely-read seventeenth century account of travels through Russia and Persia, and into India and the Far East. The maps include the large folding plan of the Volga, plus the Baltic regions, Muscovy, Persia, Asia, China, etc. In addition to the OLEARIUS book, this HAND-COLORED DOUBLE-PAGE ENGRAVED MAP depicting Adam Olearius' [Olschlager] route, from the atlas of Willem Janszoon Blaeu (1571-1638). The map is fully hand-colored in a contemporary hand. The map is entitled: Nova et Accurata Wolgae Fluminis olim Rha dicti deline atio Auctore Adamo Oleario. /… Leer más

[Persia],: undated [pre-1800]., 1800. 11.25 x 7.5 inches. [ca. 228 leaves] Written mostly in old Farsi, with some Arabic marginal notes. With one leaf [f. 66] illuminated on upper quadrant, another 2 leaves with a penciled sketch where an illumination was planned but never completed [ff. 108, 170]. There are numerous decorative motifs of flowers throughout the manuscript. Each leaf is variously partitioned, perhaps suggestive of a garden[!], in this case with flowers adorning most leaves. Binding style suggests 18-19th centuries. Bound in Islamic style, Ottoman period, full Turkey morocco, with elaborate gilt rule, corner and centre ornamental flourishes, with leather flap; some minor repairs to the sides of the binding are evident when examined closely. MANUSCRIPT OF SAADI' GOLESTAN THE GREAT PERSIAN POET: ORIGINAL COMPLETE MANUSCRIPT OF ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS OF ALL PERSIAN POETS, SA'ADI OF SHIRAZI. The calligraphic style and the binding are suggestive of the 16th or 17th century. This piece is… Leer más

Paris:: Arthus Bertrand, [1840-55]., 1840. Atlas folio (in sheets). 55 x 35.5 cm. 10 lithographic plates with drawings by Louis Bevalet & lithographed by Muller [and] Himely (engr.), 2 additional maps or charts. With the original printed wrapper chemise. Wrapper is a bit worn. Plates are in excellent condition. Very good. First printing, extremely rare, of the unfinished publication of Gaimard expedition, containing what is often missing from the main body of the expedition report (probably due to the size of the plates and their non-bound format?). It seems Rudolph Ackermann (1764-1834), the famous lithographer from London, may have also been involved in the production of these plates as his name is on the plates themselves. / Gaimard, a French naval surgeon and naturalist, built an observatory at Bossekop, Finnmark, where he made his scientific observations of the Arora Borealis. There were 10 striking lithographs used to illustrate the Atlas geologique, among the most impressive astronomical… Leer más

In Bologna,: 1684., 1684. Quarto. [17] ff. The plates include an engraved title within elaborate border populated with weapons and gimmicks for hunting, a bird-age is shown on the top; engraved "times to begin birding" and 15 plates bearing two plates: top illustration, and bottom engraved text. Later quarter chocolate morocco, simple spine title, raised bands, marbled boards. Fine. FIRST EDITION OF THIS EXTREMELY RARE WORK, ENTIRELY ENGRAVED, BEING MITELLI'S EXTREMELY RARE FIRST PRINTING OF HIS OWN FORM OF BIRD-HUNTING, OR BIRD TRAPPING . The magnificent illustrations depict different bird hunting techniques, all very curious. According to Ceresoli these techniques for bird trapping were actually used at the time of this publication. "The aucupio modes depicted may seem fantastic, but actually practiced in those times, in which game was more credulous and more abundant than now: the Mitelli, then, a strenuous hunter, depicts some invented or modified by himself." – Ceresoli. Mitelli practiced the… Leer más

Edinburgh:: John Ballantyne, 1813., 1813. 4to. [x], 330, cxvi pp. Original olive green straight-grain morocco, gilt-extra, with alternating pattern of ovals and feathers, raised bands, all edges gilt, BOUND BY TAYLOR & HESSEY, London, with their gilt-stamp on the outer fore-edges of the upper and lower cover (as is common with their stamps). Near fine. ". . . BOUND UNDER THE DIRECTION OF SIR WALTER SCOTT HIMSELF": Manuscript note found within this copy: "Sir Walter Scott's Rokeby, Edinburgh, 1813. Original edition, green morocco. * This precious volume was bound under the direction of Sir Walter Scott himself, transmitted to the binder by John Ballantyne, the publisher; the edge when bent discloses a wonderful view of Rokeby [(corrected in pencil): Barnard] Castle painted by the celebrated Patrick Nasmyth [1787-1831] when in the full rigor of his great artistic talent." – THIS MUST BE THE TAYLOR & HESSEY PAINTER, his work is profoundly similar to this artist, especially when considering his expert… Leer más

London:: Privately printed, 1944]., 1944. Reprinted from The British Journal of Experimental Pathology, 1929. Vol. X, p. 226. Sm. 4to (250 x 186 mm). 12 pp. 4figures, 4 tables. Caption title. Stapled as issued; small chip to upper margin of first leaf, toning to edges, creased. Laid into blind-stamped red calf, black gilt-stamped leather spine label, forming a drop-back folding case. Very good. LIMITED REISSUE OF 250 COPIES OF FLEMING'S LANDMARK ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE DISCOVERY OF PENICILLIN. "In 1929, while working at St. Mary's Hospital in London, Fleming discovered the antibacterial properties of Penicillium mould. He published his findings in this present essay and suggested that the brown liquid substance produced by the mould would be an "efficient antiseptic for application to, or injection into, areas infected with penicillin-sensitive microbes." However, the substance proved to be unstable and chemically complex, and attempts to create a pure and stable drug by Fleming proved unsuccessful. In… Leer más

Amstelodami,: apud Henricum Laurentium, 1644., 1644. Folio in 6s. [20], 418, 417-[694], 495-529, 730-[994], 997-1187, [1], [88] pp. Numerous mispaginations noted. With the magnificent engraved title, and 600-700 decorative botanical woodcuts. Text in 2 columns, index not paginated, parallel texts in Greek and Latin. Bound recently in full antique-style speckled calf, richly gilt-tooled in a masterfully elegant binding; some neat paper mends to gutter (front & back leaves), some leaves variously stained at edges in the rear, pages 950-988 browned. New endleaves. The splendid Bodaeus van Stapel edition of Theophrastus' seminal work, Enquiry into Plants, beautifully illustrated with hundreds of fine woodcuts of all the known plants. This is the first edition by edited by Johannes Bodaeus van Stapel (1602-1636), who died prior to the book being issued. This edition of Bodaeus van Stapel is the most important and influential edition of Theophrastus. The book is the first comprehensive systematization all… Leer más

Cologne:: Johann Guldenschaff, 1481., 1481. First edition. Small folio. 311 of 314 leaves; CCXII and CXV supplied in early manuscript, lacking [a1, blank]. Gothic type, rubrications in red or blue, leaves 90-132 with paragraph marks, initial strokes, and underlining in red; first four leaves with repairs to fore-edge margin, some dampstains. BOUND in full 19th century polished calf over wooden boards and decorated in blind, five raised bands, gilt spine lettering, decorative blind roll to edges, inner dentelles stamped in blind, marbled endpapers; moderate edgewear, joints starting, rear joint partially split, rubbed and worn with some losses, small sticker to upper board. Housed in modern custom brown cloth clamshell case, spine lettered in gilt, minor edgewear. Very good. EXTREMELY RARE: A FORE-EDGE PAINTING ON AN INCUNABLE. Fore-edge painting by John T. Beer depicting "Monastic Ruins at Mount Sinai, " signed & dated 1895 in the lower left corner. [NOTE (see below): 'yellow' circle marking the… Leer más

Venice:: Franciscus Renner, de Heilbronn, 1482/3., 1482. Volume II of III. Folio (in 10s). [12.5 x 8.7 inches / 32 x 22.4 cm.]. COLLATION (this volume is complete): A10, B10, C10, D10, E10, F10, G10, H10, J10, K8, 1(10), 2(10), 3(10), 4(10), 5(10), 6(10), 7(10), 8(10), 9(8), 10(8), 11(10), 12(10), 13(10), 14(10), 15(10), 16(10), 17(10), 18(10), 19(10), 20(10), 21(10), 22(10), 23(10), 24(10), 25(10), 26(10), 27(10), 28(10), 29(10), 30(10), 31(8), 32(10), 33(10), 34(12). This volume undated. NOTE: Part III [the third volume] is dated 1482, and the Additiones of Paulus Burgensis, 1483. CONDITION: occasional waterstains at beginning, mild staining: 14(2). ANNOTATIONS (ink): 11(10-verso), 28(8-r). HAND-COLORED INITIALS: With 1,176 beautiful hand-painted initials (599 red, 577 blue). Text printed in two columns with commentary of Nicolas de Lyra set within Biblical text, 73 lines per full sheet. BINDING: Eighteenth century stiff paper boards with paper spine or different stock, with manuscript spine… Leer más