Non-fiction

The Journal of the Royal Geographical Society 1915 September – Exploration in the Northern Japanese Alps – Walter Weston

An exceptional mountaineering report detailing explorations in the wild and unfamiliar regions of the northern Japanese Alps, featuring the ‘Great Lotus Peak’ (O Renge), Shirouma, Shiro-Uma-Dake, Yari-Ga-Take, Akashina, Nakabusa, Yarigatake, Hodaka and the Shirasawa ravine, illustrated with photographic plates and a fold-out colour map. With interesting remarks on ancient customs practiced in remote high altitude villages.

Weston (1861-1940), is regarded as the father of mountaineering in Japan. It is largely due to him that Japanese Alpine Club was created. The map to illustrate this paper was based on the latest maps of the Topographical Survey of Japan, with alterations and additions, as existing maps needed many corrections in the mountain regions.

Weston’s post in Japan was that of a Chaplain at Yokohama, but he found leisure to go off into the interior of the country, and particularly these mountain districts, of which he knew more than any other European.

The remainder of this complete edition includes the exploration of the Itari River, Forest and their Pygmies by Cuthbert Christie

$90.00

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Facts in Mesmerism – With Reasons for a dispassionate inquiry into it by Rev Chauncy Hare Townshend – Very Scarce First Edition 1840

An extremely rare First edition, published by Longman, London 1840

An extensive study and defence of mesmerism by Chancy Hare Townshend (1798-1868) and English priest, poet, collector of natural history and a man with a passionate interest in mesmerism. He was a good friend of Charles Dickens who dedicated “Great Expectations” to him [Townshend had the manuscript of Great Expectations at the time of his death].

Mesmerism (named after Franz Mesmer) a hypnosis based on the theory of animal magnetism. Due to its spiritual associations and uncanny effects it was controversial in the early 19th century. Towsnhend describes in detail the mental states mesmerism induces, which he defines as similar to a state of sleepwalking. Fascinating content including the accounts of experiments carried out by the author in which he hypnotised his subjects into feeling his own sensations and possessing knowledge that they could not have known.

Townshend has quite a Wikipedia write up and the hilarious meeting with poet John Clare is worth a read

Rare and valuable first edition of an early work on Mesmerism

$90.00

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The Unknown Guest [and Other Essays] – Maurice Maeterlinck

The Unknown Guest by Nobel Prize winning author, playwright and poet Maurice Polydore Marie Bernard Maeterlinck. Published by Methuen, London in 1925 a fourth printing. Bound in original green cloth, 340 pages some flecking to soft paper page edges but generally a pretty good copy of a hard to get book.

An unusual group of essays including the title offering we have … Phantasms of the Living and the Dead; Psychometry; the Knowledge of the Future and The Elberfield Horses.

An intellectual potpourri if there ever was one.

$40.00

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The Constitution of Man – George Combe – 1871

An 1871 edition of this important book published by MacLachlan and Stewart, Edinburgh. Over 350 page in very good condition still tight in its original cloth binding with rich dark green endpapers.

George Combe (1788-1858) was an ardent phrenologist and writer. Born in Edinburgh he founded the Edinburgh Phrenological Society in 1820. He led the field there for over twenty years and this was his great work.

Originally a lawyer with a successful practice. In 1816 Johann Spurzheim came to Edinburgh and Combe was invited to a private dissection of the human brain which greatly impressed him. This spurred him on to make his own investigations and he was satisfied that the fundamental principles of phrenology were sound, namely “that the brain is the organ of the mind; that the brain is an aggregate of several parts, each subserving a distinct mental faculty; and that the size of the cerebral organ is, caeteris paribus, and index of power or energy of function”.

Many of the principles set out in The Constitution of Man would challenge modern morality.

Combe – Distinguished in his field

$50.00

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Tasmaniana – Clifford Craig’s Auction Catalogues – 1975 A useful and hard to come by reference for the collector and historian.

The Important Collection of Books, Manuscripts, Prints, Drawings and Paintings relating to the Discovery and History of Van Diemen’s Land and Tasmania and with a few items relating to Australasia, the property of Dr Clifford Craig of Launceston, Christie, Manson & Woods auction catalogues – October 1975.

Two catalogues, printed wrappers, Catalogue I – 89 pages, 16 plates (some colour); Catalogue II – 129 pages, 4 plates. Over 1600 items described. Catalogues for the sale of the collection formed by Doctor Clifford Craig, who based two of his works – ‘The Engravers of Van Diemen’s Land’ and ‘Old Tasmanian Prints’, largely on prints from his collection. A significant collection by any standards.

$70.00

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The Microscope by Hogg – 1867

Another great mid-Victorian book on the microscope by Jabez Hogg who was President of the medical Microscopical Society and a leading Ophthalmic Surgeon of hid day. Published by Routledge, London.

This is the sixth edition 1867 still in its rather grand red cover. Intact and firm binding, unusual for such a thick book from that period. Over 750 pages and over 500 illustrations some in colour.

Superb history of the development of the instrument and in terms of application excellent chapters on various natural history subjects and mineralogy as well as superior content on histology as might be expected given the authors background

A sizeable body of work well executed and collectable

$120.00

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The Journal of the Royal Geographical Society 1915 September – Exploration in the Northern Japanese Alps – Walter Weston

Facts in Mesmerism – With Reasons for a dispassionate inquiry into it by Rev Chauncy Hare Townshend – Very Scarce First Edition 1840

The Unknown Guest [and Other Essays] – Maurice Maeterlinck

The Constitution of Man – George Combe – 1871

Tasmaniana – Clifford Craig’s Auction Catalogues – 1975 A useful and hard to come by reference for the collector and historian.

The Microscope by Hogg – 1867

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