Egypt & Nubia, From Drawings Made on the Spot by... with Historical Descriptions by William Brockedon... Lithographed by Louis Haghe.
London: F.G. Moon, 1846-49. First standard edition. Three volumes bound in one. Folio. Contemporary maroon half morocco over cloth boards, spine with raised bands, gilt lettered direct to two panels and decorated to the others, the arms of Jerusalem in gilt to the upper cover, all edges gilt. Three title pages with vignette views and 60 half page illustrations, all tinted lithographs, plus a full page map. The binding rubbed and worn, spotting to the first title page and the succeeding plate, some sporadic spotting thereafter, but the set is cleaner than most examples. Comprising the text leaves of the Roberts' series of views of Egypt and Nubia only. Thus, whilst the full page views are sadly lacking - presumably bound up separately and now lost - the set consists of all of the half page views and the decorative title pages. Considered by Abbey to be the "apotheosis of the tinted lithograph", the work presented the wonderful marriage of Roberts' skilled draughtsmanship, Haghe's sensitive rendering into lithography and the highly developed printing techniques of the firm Day & Son. Moon's remaining stock of the plates were auctioned off on his retirement in 1852 and the lithographic stones, or at least a proportion of them, were destroyed during the course of the sale to demonstrate to bidders that no more prints could be made from them. Item #27370
Price: £3,000.00