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A collection of antique and vintage volumes encompassing travel, natural history, and classic literature, primarily dating from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. The group includes three volumes of Picturesque Palestine, Sinai and Egypt (Volumes I, III, and IV), edited by Colonel Wilson and published by Virtue and Co., London, circa 1880, featuring decorative gilt-tooled bindings. A notable historical record is The Story of the Cape to Cairo Railway and River Route 1887-1922, bound in green half-leather and cloth. The natural history section features Cassell’s Natural History, edited by P. Martin Duncan, and Homely Scenes from Great Painters, published by Cassell, Petter and Galpin. Literary works include two volumes of Charles Dickens’ works containing Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, Barnaby Rudge, and Edwin Drood. Children’s and poetic titles comprise Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson (Collins edition), The Water Babies by Charles Kingsley, Tom Brown’s Schooldays by Thomas Hughes, Little Women and Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott (Partridge and Co. edition), and Longfellow’s Poetical Works. Smaller format educational and poetic books include Algebra for Beginners by Isaac Todhunter and Sonnets published by Macmillan. The travel volumes include Illustrated Travels (Volumes I-IV). Identifying adhesive labels D183P and D963B are present on the bindings.
Condition report:
The collection is in generally poor to fair condition. Several of the larger travel and topographical volumes, particularly Picturesque Palestine and Illustrated Travels, exhibit severe spine degradation and red rot, resulting in significant loss of leather and cloth, crumbling surfaces, and exposed binding structures. Other volumes show typical signs of age and use, including bumped corners, frayed edges, surface staining, and shelf wear. Internal foxing and toning are to be expected throughout the group.
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