Oxford (Angleterre, Gb)

New edition of the French translation.
Handsome copy.

First edition, published at the same time as the folio edition in one volume, without being able to determine which is the first. Rare.
Contemporary full speckled and glazed calf binding. English binding. Spine with raised bands richly decorated. Red morocco title label and black morocco volume labels. Headcap of volume II slightly worn, that of volume III with lacks, same at foot of volume II but a more severe lack; that at foot of volume III fragile with small lacks. 6 corners bumped. Rubbing.
The life of Edward earl of Clarendon, containing I. An account of the chancellor's life from his birth to the Restoration in 1660. II. A continuation of the fame, and of his history of the Grand Rebellion, from the Restoration to his banishment in 1667. Written by himself. Printed from his original manuscripts given to the university of Oxford by the Heirs of the late Earl of Clarendon. Influential statesman under Charles I then under Charles II whom he rejoined, he became Chancellor of England under the Restoration, but unpopular measures, a rigid virtue which displeased the king led him to banishment.

Second edition, rare, after the first published in 1679, also rare. Fine printer's device of Sheldon's theatre.
Contemporary full brown sheep binding. Spine with raised bands, decorated. Joint split with lacks. Corners heavily bumped. Worn binding.
Studies by the famous scholar and learned Isaac Vossius on the oracles and predictions that preceded the birth of Christ. Follow the objections and criticisms, then Vossius's response. At the end of his life, Vossius was settled in England where he was appointed canon of Windsor; this writing appears to date from his English period.

Original photograph by Lewis Carroll (Charles Ludwidge Dodgson), rectan­gular albumen print. The tondo portrait of the little girl gives way to a partic­ularly visible collodion emulsion, also bearing the number added by Carroll in the negative at top left. Discreet resto­ration at the ends of the plate, a diago­nal fold in the upper left corner.

 

Extraordinary photograph of Lewis Carroll's favorite sitter Xie Kitchin, one of the first portraits of his young muse, then aged 5. One of the few retaining as much of the collodion emulsion peel­ing away from the edges of the glass negative - a deliberate artistic choice by Carroll. 

The use of the collodion process, dubbed "black art" is in fact insepa­rable from Carroll's creative process. He discovered photography through this new technique and described it as "completely scientific and wonderfully mysterious," requiring long exposures and tedious handling which appealed to his inventor side. In addition to be­ing a practitioner, he also wrote a book on the subject, titled Photography Ex­traordinary. Twenty-three years later as he wrote in his memoirs, Carroll aban­doned photography when collodion disappeared in favor of dry plate. This extremely rare print bears witness to this complex technique, revealing the portrait of little Xie surrounded by a dark, tormented halo induced by the chemical collodion reaction.
Carroll immortalises one of his most fa­mous little girls, who along with Alice Liddell has become the very symbol of his photographic work. The striking portrait embodies Victorian ideals of childhood, reflecting Carroll's belief in the child's innocence rooted in their perceived temporal proximity to God, shielding them from sin and the cor­rupting influences of society. Alexan­dria "Xie" Kitchin, daughter of one of the writer-photographer's colleagues at Christ Church, appeared in no few­er than fifty of his photographs. This portrait dates from their earliest ses­sions, taken in August 1869 at his Badcock's Yard studio.
A marvelous example of Lewis Car­roll's ceaseless pursuit of beauty and a testament to his mastery of the pho­tographic arts.
Edward Wakeling, IN-1710, p. 204. 
Provenance: Sotheby's London, 08/05/1992, lot no. 186. Another print in smaller format was sold in 2023 - cropped without the number added by Dodgson in the negative.
We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of M. Alan Tannenbaum in the cataloguing of this photograph.

Second edition of the revised French translation containing the Russian Yellow Book. A tiny chip at the foot of the spine.