Art

John La Farge – Artist and Writer – Cecilia Waern – First edition 1896

A first edition of this scarce book published by Seeley, London in 1896.

Large octavo, 104 pages with 8 colour and 28 black and white plates. Bound in heavy green cloth covered boards, quarter leather with gilt lines. Some rubbing to the spine and foxing in the extreme ends – very clean from frontispiece onwards, except some foxing around the tissue slips that remain. [generally, whoever came up with the tissue slip idea needs talking to.]

Carries the bookplate of A.A.R. Boyce CBE FRAS FRGS Australian artist among many things. he was prolific with the wood and lino cut and likely self produced the bookplate.

La Farge lived in New York, Greenwich Village. He was a prolific artist, in many forms, from an early age. He did illustrations for editions of Tennyson and Browning. His work in stained glass is memorable – Trinity Church Boston being a fine example. He patented a new technique of layering glass colour which was stolen by Tiffany resulting in a lawsuit [it is America].

He was also a traveller with an eye to his art. he spent time in Japan and wrote much on their style of art. But, it was his journey through the Pacific and in particular his observations and artwork connected to Samoa that we most admire.

A worthy copy of a book that commands some dollars in the rare book world.

John La Farge – an American artist of many talents.

$120.00

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Sarah Bernhardt – William Embodden

A first US edition published by Macmillan, New York in 1975.

Quarto, 176 pages, and a very good copy of a excellent work on Bernhardt, not the least for the introduction by Sir John Gielgud.

Nicely illustrated throughout from period photographs. Includes our image of Sarah as Frou-Frou.

Accompanied by a useful appendix listing the plays in which she acted chronologically and a healthy bibliography.

Sarah Bernhardt – well-presented and exceptional images.

$40.00

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Tek Sing Shipwreck Treasure [Recovered by Mike Hatcher] – Shipwreck in the Gaspar Straits 1822

Qing Dynasty decorated footed dish recovered by Mike Hatcher from the Tek Sing shipwreck. A very good clean example.

Niceley decorated and with peony and magnolia flowers and double lines at rim, simple decoration under rim. Strong colouring and no damage which is rare. 10.5 cm in diameter 2.5 cm high. Retains the auction reference sticker from the famous Nagel auction in Germany underneath.

A fine example of a Tek Sing shipwreck bowl

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The Tek Sing Shipwreck – Background

The Tek Sing (Chinese for “Bright Star”’) was a large Chinese Junk which sank in 1822 in the South China Sea at the Belvidere Shoals. She was 50 meters long, 10 metres wide and weighed a thousand tons. Manned by a crew of 200. The great loss of life has led to the Tek Sing being referred to as the “Titanic of the East”.

Sailing from the port of Amoy (now Xiamen), the Tek Sing was bound for Jakarta, with a cargo of porcelain goods and 1,600 Chinese immigrants. After a month of sailing, Captain Lo Tauko took a shortcut through the Gaspar Straits and ran aground on a reef and sank in 100 feet of water.

The next morning and English East Indiaman captained by James Pearl sailing from Indonesia to Borneo passed through the Gaspar Straits. He found debris from the sunken Chinese vessel and survivors. They managed to rescue 190 people.

In 1999, marine salvor Mike Hatcher discovered the wreck. His crew raised what has been described as the largest cache of Chinese porcelain ever recovered. It was auctioned by Nagel in Stuttgart, Germany the following year

$140.00

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Tasmanian Photographs – Rex Direen [with text by Bob Brown]

Self-published by the photographer in 1988. Landscape soft cover, unpaginated, 73 photographs with Bob Brown’s introduction and notes on the photographs following. Good condition bar crease to lower right front cover

One of our favourite photographic records probably because of the breadth of subjects – activism and activism against the activists [it is Tasmania]; landscapes to die for; people about their work and leisure [including the t-shirtless wet t-ship competition at Judbury] and a super image of a shirtless Geoff Dyer crouching as he completes one of his striking landscapes.

Tasmanian photographic images, a broader story and special collection.

$30.00

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IMAGO MVUNDI (MUNDI) – Vol 30 [Second Series Volume 4] – 1978 The Journal of The International Society for the History of Cartography

Published by Imago Mundi, c/o Lympe Castle, Kent [Harry Margary's magnificent residence] . Small folio, 132 pages plus advertisements. Illustrated with maps, charts and diagrams. original blue cloth with gilt titling and device. Very good condition.

An annual publication and the pinnacle of cartographic research. Superbly presented.

The Treasure in this publication includes a paper title “The map in Vermeer’s Art of Painting” by James Welu. 17^th C Dutch painting of indoors scenes show intricate and authentic maps of the period used a wall-hangings – decorative items. In addition, a quality paper by Louis de Vorsey on the ”Amerindian contributions to the mapping of North America with some great cartographic illustrations. The very early woodcut map know as the Rom Weg map circa 1500 gets a good airing.

Extensive book reviews provided an excellent bibliography for cartography enthusiasts.

Imago Mundi cannot be improved

$70.00

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La Belle Viscontesse – Costume pour la Mer – Guy Arnoux for La Gazette du Bon Ton – 1913.

A beautiful hand coloured “Pochoir” by Pierre Guy Arnoux (1886-1951) for the Paris Gazette du Bon Ton, and early one published in 1913.

The beautiful Viscountess dressed for the Sea. Her outfit made from printed muslin caught by taffeta ribbons and a stylish short sailor’s jacket – trendy for the period.

Price $90.00 unframed.

An early Bon Ton – and a rare nautical theme

$90.00

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John La Farge – Artist and Writer – Cecilia Waern – First edition 1896

Sarah Bernhardt – William Embodden

Tek Sing Shipwreck Treasure [Recovered by Mike Hatcher] – Shipwreck in the Gaspar Straits 1822

Tasmanian Photographs – Rex Direen [with text by Bob Brown]

IMAGO MVUNDI (MUNDI) – Vol 30 [Second Series Volume 4] – 1978 The Journal of The International Society for the History of Cartography

La Belle Viscontesse – Costume pour la Mer – Guy Arnoux for La Gazette du Bon Ton – 1913.

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