The Native Tribes of Central Australia
London, Macmillan and Co. Limited, 1899.
Octavo, xx, 671 pages with 12 unnumbered line illustrations of churingas, a map and 130 illustrations (mainly after photographs) plus 2 folding maps, 3 folding charts, 4 folding chromolithographic plates and an erratum slip tipped in at page 1 (noting that on page 570, the tassel should be 'pubic' not 'public').
Olive-green gilt-pictorial buckram a little flecked and rubbed, with the spine a little sunned; all edges uncut; scattered light foxing; minimal chipping to some uncut leading edges; an excellent copy.
The head of the title page is signed in ink by both authors (as 'W. Baldwin Spencer' and 'F.J. Gillen'). Inscribed in indelible pencil before the signatures (in an unknown hand) is 'With Kindest | Regards from'. The 'Australian Dictionary of Biography' makes short work of the significance of the book, and by extension, this signed copy, in its entry on Sir Walter Baldwin Spencer (1860-1929): 'The 1894 Horn scientific exploring expedition to central Australia recruited Spencer as zoologist and photographer. Because of friction between members and their sponsor, Spencer later combined mediation with editorship of all four volumes of reports. His own seminal contribution included his classic biogeographic interpretation of Australian faunal distribution. This expedition rekindled his anthropological interest when he met F.J. Gillen, the Alice Springs postmaster [Francis James Gillen (1855-1912), ethnologist]. What began as his offer to assist in publishing Gillen's ethnological notes matured into an enduring partnership and a landmark in anthropological history. In 1896 Spencer joined Gillen for the most intensive field-work then attempted in Australia. "The Native Tribes of Central Australia" (1899), which resulted, was to influence contemporary theories on social evolution and interpretations of the origins of art and ceremonial. It impressed (Sir) James Frazer, author of "The Golden Bough", who developed a lifelong friendship with Spencer'.
Item #111095
Price (AUD):
$10,000.00