Books and Manuscripts

Roberts, David
The Holy Land, Syria, Idumea, Arabia, Egypt, & Nubia
London: Day & Son, 1855-56. In six volumes. First quarto edition. 4to. Illustrated with 248 numbered and tinted lithographic plates by Louis Haghe after Roberts's drawings (including illustrated title-pages in each volume, and frontispieces in Vols. I, IV-VI), and two maps; each with original tissue-guards. Publisher's full blue cloth-covered boards, elaborately stamped in gilt, with the armorial ensign of Jerusalem gilt stamped on front and rear board of each volume, light rubbing to front and rear boards of each volume, spine ends of each volume lightly worn; all edges gilt; light to moderate foxing to plates; scattered moderate to heavy foxing to text. Abbey, Travel 388 (first four volumes)

A bright and lovely example in the scarce original cloth of the first quarto edition of David Roberts's monumental work on the Holy Land and Near East. Originally issued in folio parts between 1842-49, this collected set reduced the size of the tinted lithographic plates by means of photographic reproduction. Roberts was the first British artist to sketch the monuments of Ancient Egypt, traveling some 800 miles south of Cairo in a short two-month span in 1838. He produced more than one hundred sketches while on his travels which were then exquisitely printed in lithography by Louis Haghe.