LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2007 Apr Books, Manuscripts & Autographs #658  / 

25762

Appleton's Picturesque America

Currency:USD Category:Books / Nonfiction Books Start Price:50.00 USD Estimated At:200.00 - 300.00 USD
Appleton's Picturesque America
<B>Appleton's <I>Picturesque America</B></I></B></I><I> Or, The Land We Live In. A Delineation By Pen And Pencil of the Mountains, Rivers, Lakes, Forests, Waterfalls, Shores, Cañons, Valleys, Cities, and Other Picturesque Features Of Our Country. With Illustrations on Steel and Wood by Eminent American Artists.</B></I> Original text by Oliver B. Bunce and others, edited by William Cullen Bryant (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1872-4); in Two Volumes; first edition in book form; viii, 568 pages, vi, 576 pages; illustrated with hundreds of woodcuts and 49 full-page steel engravings; full brown morocco with decorative blind tooling and gilt title, banded spine with gilt titles; marbled endpapers; all edges gilt; thick folio (10.5" x 13"). This ambitious work, edited by the talented poet, lawyer, and journalist William Cullen Bryant, was originally issued by subscription with semi-monthly parts being sent to paid subscribers for later binding into volumes. It is said that it cost Appleton the huge sum (for the day) of $250,000 to produce such a magnificent illustrated work. These stately volumes are divided into chapters with each describing both in word and image the beauty of a different area of our great country. Forty nine full page steel engravings are interspersed throughout the book with cities, towns, and natural wonders as subjects including Niagara Falls, Cleveland (a very early image), the Smoky Mountains, Louisville, Detroit, Buffalo, St. Louis, Philadelphia, New Orleans, West Point, etc. The engravings from this book are often removed and sold separately (fetching $75-100 each from antique print dealers) so it's getting harder to find these books complete. The bindings show some wear to the leather but are still tight and intact. There is scattered light foxing inside and one engraving has been cut out but is still present. Overall very good with some scuffing to leather at the perimeter of the boards and shelf wear to the spines.<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Books & Catalogs (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>) <BR><BR><B>Important notice:</
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