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The World in Miniature – Africa, Four volumes bound in two

£1,100.00

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Weight 508 g
Dimensions 45 × 35 × 16 mm
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The World in Miniature – Africa, Containing a Description of the manners and Customs, with Some Historical Particulars of the Moors of Zanzibar and of the Negro Nations Between the Rivers Senegal and Gambia – Four Volumes in Two Edited By Frederic Shoberl. Plates are lovely and bright, having held their color.
Item description: R Ackermann, London, 1821. Full-Leather. Book Condition worn, cover split First Edition. 24mo – over 5 – 5¾ tall. Four volumes bound in two. Contemporary full diced calf with decorative gilt spines and gilt spine letters on red morocco labels. Back strip of Vol II . Both boards loosed. Some loss to head of spine. Vol I upper board and free front endpaper detached. Some minor loss of head of spine. Marbled endpapers. Some neat contemporary ink notes to frontispiece recto of each volume and title of vol II. First volume – xii, (6),180 ; title, 170 pages. Second volume – title, 168, title, 184 pages. A few occasional staining to margins, otherwise clean and bright. Splendid colour plates as you would expect from Ackermann, a few with the odd blotch or marginal foxing however missing first map in Vol I, frontispiece of Vol III, pages 101-104 + one plate of Vol III, one plate of Vol IV. So in all only 43 of 47 plates and only 1 out of two maps. One fold-out plate has some loss to the fore edge just affecting the image..
London, Rodolphe Ackermann, (1821). 4 vols. 12mo. Contemporary brown morocco, each spine blind and gold tooled with morocco title-labels. Engraved frontispiece, engraved title, engraved folding map and 8 engraved plates to vol. 1; engraved frontispiece, engraved folding map and 11 engraved plates , 3 of which folding, to vol. 2; engraved frontispiece and 14 engraved plates, 2 of which folding, to vol. 3 and engraved frontispiece and 7 engraved plates, 2 of which folding, to vol. 4. All engravings are beautifully executed and finely coloured by hand. XII, (6), 180; (2), 170; (2), 168; (2) 184 pp. Charming complete set of 4 volumes on Africa from the series World in Miniature, published in 43 12mo-volumes between 1820 and 1828 by the London publisher Rodolphe Ackermann. Africa was the second set to be published, after Illyria and Dalmatia in 2 vols. The series resembles a similar series published in France by Nepveu some ten years earlier. The text for these volumes on Africa was translated in English from the original French text by Geoffroy-Villeneux for the Nepveu edition of 1814. The plates are also from the French series, although placed in a different order. These English series, which was one of many to be edited by Shoberl for Ackermann was announced to increase the store of knowledge concerning the various branches of the great family of Man, not only for adults, but also keeping in view the instruction and amusement of the juvenile student (Abbey). In each copy an announcement is made of the next division which is to be published. Bindings are worn and damaged, all internal pages in good condition. On foreword and title pages ink inscription listing all illustrated plates in both volumes, To Anne Fullen Madland given her by her dear father August 31st 1821. List of hand coloured plates: Vol. 1, No. I A Moor and Moorish Woman, 2 Engraved & Coloured Title, 3 Map & Country of the Moores (missing), 4 A Chief of the Assounas & Moorish method of confining horses, 5 A Moorish Chief & his Wife, 6 A Moorish Adouar, or Camp, with the Tent of a Chief, 7 A Moorish Princess going abroad on a Dromedary, 8 A Talbe, or Moorish Priest in his ordinary Drefs, 9 Moors surprising a Negro Village, 10 A Negro and a Moor belonging to a Gum Caravan, 11 Grisgris, Water-bottle & Pouch. Vol.II plate 12 A Felup frontispiece, 13 Map of the Countries inhabited by the Wolofs, 14 View of St. Louis, 15 A Signara, or Woman of Colour of St. Louis, 16 A Negro Foot Soldier, 17 Nero Horse Soldier, 18 View of Goree, 19 View of the Village of Ben, 20 Canoes of the Negroes, 21 View of Guioala, or Joal (par