The Blue and Brown Diamond. A History of the 27th Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, 1915-1919
Adelaide, Lonnen and Cope, 1921. Dornbusch 310; Fielding and O'Neill, page 227; Trigellis-Smith 226. More
Die Aranda- und Loritja-Stämme in Zentral-Australien by Pastor Carl Strehlow, published in seven parts between 1907 and 1920, is a fabled rarity. Our latest catalogue contains the author’s personal set of these volumes, with some 240 corrections in his hand.
But relax! There are plenty of other items to tempt you: many of them also unique, but they won’t require an overdraft. We are still making our way through large collections of Folio Society publications (the deluxe edition of Dante's Paradiso, and sets of volumes by Tolkien, Le Carré, Proust and Conrad are among them), and books on the occult (mainly by or about Aleister Crowley).
Photographs, autographs, trade catalogues, books ranging from art to zoology … the mixture as before!
Adelaide, Lonnen and Cope, 1921. Dornbusch 310; Fielding and O'Neill, page 227; Trigellis-Smith 226. More
Melbourne, Modern Printing Co. Pty. Ltd., 1936. This copy is not identified as such, but it comes from the personal collection of Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Thomas Paterson (1886-1950), Commanding Officer of the 39th Battalion AIF, and the author of that battalion's history. Dornbusch 330; Fielding and O'Neill, page 228; Trigellis-Smith 233..... More
Adelaide, The Collotype Co., Commercial Printers [for the Adelaide 5th Pioneer Reunion Club], 1937. The book includes a five-page Honor Roll, and a preface by Lieutenant-Colonel Herbert Gordon Carter, DSO (1885-1963), the Battalion's Commanding Officer from August 1916 to the end of the war. The editor was 'late Sergeant "D"..... More
[London, Thomas M'Lean, 1847]. Plate 1 from 'South Australia Illustrated'; the lithographer is James William Giles. This handsomely framed print has a small printed card set into the mat below the image: 'Presented to Mr. R.H. Waters by the Council of the Royal Automobile Association of S.A. Inc. on the..... More
Sydney, Art in Australia (and later, 'Sydney Morning Herald'), 1916 to 1940. More
Sydney, 'Sydney Morning Herald', 1941 and 1942. The fourth and final series of 'Art in Australia' comprised only six quarterly numbers between March 1941 and August 1942. They were a marked departure in all respects from the previous 94 numbers of the journal, which commenced publication in 1916: new editor..... More
Melbourne (Volume I) and Canberra, Australian War Memorial, 1938 (second edition)/ 1930 and 1940. The first two volumes of the three-volume medical companion to the twelve-volume 'Official History of Australia in the War, 1914-1918'. The third one, 'Problems and Services', was published in 1943; it is very scarce. Arthur Graham..... More
Wendover, 'Photo by Panora Ltd., 60 Doughty St. W.C.', March 1918. The Australian War Memorial has the following caption on an example of this impressive group photograph in its collection: 'Wendover, Buckinghamshire, England, 1918-03-11. Large group portrait of officers, cadets, NCOs and men of the Australian Flying Corps (AFC), together..... More
Washington, National Geographic Society, 1928. These twelve issues contain a number of important lengthy articles by (or about) famous early aviators: Lindbergh (two), Cobham, de Pinedo, and Kingsford-Smith and Ulm. The main article in the December issue, 'Renascent Germany' (pages 639-717), makes very interesting reading. More
Paterson, Wright Aeronautical Corporation, 1943 (first edition, second printing)/ 1943. This American-designed radial engine (formerly designated the GR-1820-G series) powered many well-known Second World War aircraft, including some produced by France and Russia. More
The framer's pencilled notes indicate that the original client's name was Butler, almost certainly Harry Butler himself during his brief years in Adelaide between the war and his early death in 1924. An article from the Adelaide 'Advertiser' for Tuesday 21 May 1946 records Butler's own description of this scene..... More
The original gelatin silver prints are approximately 75 × 100 mm each (some a little smaller, some a little larger). One of the photographs is of a blackboard inscribed '6 RSU [Number 6 Repair and Salvage Unit RAAF] Balikpapan, Borneo. Coppersmiths & Welders. Honour Roll 1945', with a list of..... More
London, Printed by Henry Lintot for John and Paul Knapton and John Nourse, 1745. More
[Sydney], 'Imprinted by Richard Edwards & Roderick Shaw at the Barn on the Hill, over St Columbkille's', [1939]. A collection of stories for children, told from the perspective of a young girl, Juditheden. The exuberant design of the book matches its eccentric prose style. One of only 600 copies of..... More
Melbourne, Gryphon Books, 1977. Number 9 of only 20 copies signed by Jack Hibberd and David Fitts; the leaf containing the manuscript translation of the poem 'Bien loin d'ici' (recto only) is also signed by Hibberd. More
Sydney, Angus and Robertson, 1923 (one volume), 1933 (two volumes), 1936 (one volume), 1937 (one volume), 1938 (four volumes), 1940 (two volumes) and 1942 (one volume). The fourth volume is the first edition of 1933, the sixth volume is the first and only edition of 1942, the twelfth volume is..... More
London, William Heinemann, 1922 to 1928. Number 453 of 780 sets (750 for sale), with the first volume signed by the author. The titles are 'The Works of Max Beerbohm'; 'More'; 'Yet Again'; 'A Christmas Garland'; 'And Even Now'; 'Zuleika Dobson'; 'Seven Men'; 'Around Theatres l'; 'Around Theatres ll'; and..... More
London, Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, [1920s]. 'All the old cookery recipes have been carefully re-tested, and the details modified, wherever necessary, to suit present-day conditions ... The book contains more than 4,000 recipes, many of which are contributed or adapted bt Mr. C. Herman Senn ... assisted by some..... More
London, Smith, Elder, & Co., 1843. The author lived in South Australia from March 1839 to March 1842. Chapters include 'Sketch of Adelaide and Surrounding Villages - Colonial Life and Manners', 'The Native Inhabitants', and 'Information for Emigrants', plus an appendix bringing the information up to date to the end..... More
Norwood, Sydenham Gallery, 1976. Number 703 of 1500 copies signed by the author. Loosely inserted is the original catalogue for the exhibition held in conjunction with the launch of the book ('Festival Exhibitions, March 1-27, 1976'). [2 items]. More
London, Thames and Hudson, 1970. 'A comprehensive account of the art in Greek lands from the early Bronze Age down to the Hellenistic period. The gems are related to history and to the artistic achievements in other media of their day, and the subject matter of the scenes engraved upon..... More
London, The Golden Cockerel Press, 1945. Number 371 of a total edition of only 500 copies; the first 100 copies were bound in full vellum. 'Written by Napoleon as a young captain of artillery in 1793, shortly before Toulon, it presented to the public of Provence, in the difficult circumstances..... More
London, Printed for E. and R. Brooke, 1792. The bookplate is for one Joseph Radcliffe, Milnsbridge, Yorkshire; an early ownership stamp and the later name-stamp of the Howard Zelling (1917-2001), sometime Supreme Court Judge of South Australia. More
London, The Folio Society, 2000 (first thus). Introduction by Eugen Weber. [3 items]. More
Deakin, Officina Brindabella [Brindabella Press], 1986. Number 124 of 220 copies signed by the artist. The first printing of a story unpublished during the author's lifetime. The twelfth book of the Brindabella Press. More
Dover Gardens, The Vinall Family, 1987. One of 1000 copies. Provenance: 'E.J. Harris' is written in ink on the front pastedown. More
London, Ward, Lock & Bowden, Limited, 1895. Not least, 'The Wild White Man. An Australian Tale' ('founded on historical facts', pages 101-196). William Buckley (1780-1856) was transported for life in 1802; the following year he absconded from a camp at Port Phillip. He was 'befriended by Aboriginals of the Watourong..... More
London, H.S. Nichols Ltd., 1897/ [1894, the 'Library Edition']. The second impression of the Nichols-Smithers 'Library Edition' in Penzer's 'Style A' binding. This edition reprints the original 1886 Benares edition. Provenance: Lance Strother Walters (1906-1978), Chief Brewer of the SA Brewing Company from 1944, with his armorial bookplate on each..... More
Adelaide, Sullivan's Cove, 1979. Number 17 of 750 copies initialled by the publisher. The prospectus (annotated by the purchaser, with the order form torn away) is loosely inserted. More
[Bronte, Public Pictures, 2008]. The title leaf would have been excised when the production flaw was discovered; its removal has also removed $1000 from the price we would have otherwise asked for this impressive and highly sought-after item. More
Taipei, Me Ya Publications, 1978 (second, revised, edition)/ 1969. The 'most comprehensive collection [and examination] of Chinese opera texts and ... what is certainly the most complete set of opera masks, beautifully executed and reproduced'. More
London, The Folio Society, 2010 (first thus). Introduction by Nicholas Shakespeare. More
London, The Folio Society, 1986 (first thus). Original text edited by F.N. Robinson. Translation by David Wright. [3 items]. More
London, The Folio Society, 1990 (first thus). Introductions by Tim Heald and Robert Barnard respectively, with the superb design and ornaments by David Eccles. [2 items]. More
London, A.& C. Black, 1927. The 'first person to fly from England to Australia and back in his de Havilland D.H. 50J biplane, Sir Alan Cobham [also] became famous for his exploits in the interwar years by making civil aviation accessible and popular throughout the world' (RAF Museum website). Cobham's..... More
Adelaide, Andrew Murray, Printer, Rundle Street (Sold by C. Platts, Bookseller, Hindley Street ...), 1845. The State Library of South Australia has a copy of this item with the map (and it's a beauty - a hand-coloured lithograph, 322 × 213 mm, produced in 'Goodwood nr Adelaide' in 1845). However..... More
Adelaide, Friends of the State Library of South Australia, 2019 (first thus). Number 93 of only 125 copies of this deluxe edition; the small numbered slip tipped in on the front flyleaf notes this is a 'Subscriber's Copy'. It comes from the collection of the pioneering desert field archaeologist Professor..... More
London, The Folio Society, 1996 to 2005 (all first thus). Each volume has an introduction by one of a range of notable writers (including Malcolm Bradbury, Giles Foden, Paul Theroux and Richard Woodman). The titles are: The Duel & Other Tales; An Outcast of the Islands; Heart of Darkness; Typhoon..... More
Kota Kinabalu, Natural History Publications (Borneo), in association with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 1998 (second edition)/ 1987. A Botanical Magazine Monograph. More
[Adelaide, Australian Cricket Board, 1991]. Philip Lovett Ridings (1917-1998) played first-class cricket for South Australia from 1937 to 1957; he was captain from 1946 to 1957. He was then a cricket administrator, serving as Chairman of the Australian Cricket Board from 1980 to 1983. Loosely inserted is an original colour..... More
The signatories are a'Beckett, Fairfax, Grimmett, Hurwood, Kippax, Oldfield, and Walker. The signatures were collected by the parents of a five year-old boy when the family travelled on the same ship as the cricketers on the voyage to England in early 1930. The leaves are the first two in an..... More
A small broadside (295 × 210 mm) limited to 500 numbered copies, signed by Stoppard, of an extract from his play of the same name published by Faber in 1982. It is a monologue on the construction of a cricket bat. 'Henry: (holding his cricket bat). This thing here, which..... More
William Albert Oldfield (1894-1976), described by Jack Hobbs as the 'best wicketkeeper of his time', played for NSW and Australia, and his Test career of 54 matches ran from 1920 to 1937. This photograph is a fine sepia-toned head-and-shoulders studio portrait of Oldfield in a suit; he has signed and..... More
A program (octavo, 12 pages of colour photocopy) signed by the entire squad of eighteen next to their portraits on the last few pages; a fine copy. The fifteen players are Jayasuriya, Attapatu, De Silva, Vaas, Muralitharan, Tillakaratne, Jayawardena, Arnold, Sangakkara, Fernando, Gunawardene, Gunaratne, Fernando, Nissanka and Mubarak. Offered with..... More
New York, Samuel Weiser, Inc., 1974 (third impression)/ 1973 (second printing)/ 1972 (facsimile edition, first thus)/ 1929. The 'Blue Equinox'. More
New York, Samuel Weiser, Inc., 1978 (third printing)/ 1972 (facsimile edition, first thus)/ 1909 to 1913; and 1973/ 1972 (facsimile edition, first thus)/ 1929. [11 items]. More
New York, Gordon Press, 1974 (first thus)/ 1898 to 1913. Titles and presumed dates of original publication are as follows. (1) Songs of the Spirit (1898). (2) Jephthah (1899). (3) Jezebel and Other Tragic Poems by Count Vladimir Svareff (1899). (4) The Soul of Osiris (1899). (5) Tannhauser (1901). (6)..... More
Nashville, Thelema Publishing Company, 1980 (first edition). More
Nashville, Thelema Publishing Company, 1981 (first edition). More