Fashion and Costumery

City Lights. San Francisco. 1977. FOLIO in Tabloid format. Folded, as issued. 11 issues, complete. (17.7 x 11.4 inches). Very good condition throughout with some very minor rubbing and toning to the edges but still all clean and sound. The set has been very well looked after. Started by Vale with $100 from Lawrence Ferlinghetti and the same amount from Allen Ginsberg, Search & Destroy was a hugely influential recorder of the early Punk scene in America, while also reporting on and interviewing the bands making a name for themselves on the British scene, including Iggy Pop, Blondie, Dead Kennedys, X, Devo, The Ramones, Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Damned, Sham 69, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Buzzcocks and an article on Vivienne Westwood. Complete sets of the original publications are uncommon.

Collection of plates and text from the first two volumes of Costumes, Weapons and Furniture to be used in the History of France, published from 1827-29.Suite of plates covering Frankish, Norman and French kings from the 5th century to the 13th century sourced from manuscripts, paintings, grave effigies, the Bayeux tapestry, etc. 155 hand-coloured or tinted lithographs by Villain after Viel-Castel, some heightened with gold.Lithographed title page, dedication to the king (Charles X), text pages 1-76 and plates numbered 1- 100 from Volume 1; 136-150 and 156-195 from Volume 2.Horace de Viel-Castel (1802-1864) was was an art lover, art collector and director of the Louvre, famous for his memoirs. Contemporary half-leather with gilt spine, black paper-wrapped boards. Some water staining and spotting to first 30 plates, but rest clean. Rare to find with hand-coloured plates.Heavy book will require extra postage.

Very good complete copy of this scarce collection of English women's fashions from the 11th to the 19th centuries. With calligraphic and floral frontispiece and 48 mounted hand-coloured lithographs, some heightened with gold, each with caption listing the source of the design, including manuscripts, effigies, tapestries, portraits, prints, literary descriptions, etc. Lacking the list of subscribers, which contained only 171 names, and this must surely have been the extent of the entire issue since copies are extremely scarce.First published in 12 parts, it was published in 1840 in one volume after "obtaining the patronage of the highest rank and best taste in the United Kingdom."The anonymous author, a Lady, had originally collected and drawn the images over a period of more than twenty years without any view to publication. She was however, persuaded to publish in this age of illustrative drawings, as the "Public might not be altogether unwilling to receive them."In half green leather, five raised… Read More

London: Burberrys Limited, 1930. Important work on men's fashion. Presentation inscription by Burberry director, A. Ralph Burberry. "For Safety on Land, in the Air, or Afloat, There's nothing to equal THE BURBERRY COAT" Scarce book promoting the firm's association with pioneers, explorers and the sportsmen who wore Burberry apparel in all manner of climates and landscapes to accomplish great feats. Covers Artic and Antarctic expeditions, fishing, flying, motoring, mountaineering, travel, naval and military - with a focus on the classic gabardine Burberry trench coat. A well-put together volume amassing an abundance of first person testimonies. Also includes an appendix on Macintosh's method of rendering fabrics waterproof (Glasgow, 1823). Octavo, bound in original cloth made from Burberry gabadine with paper label, 248 pages, a fine copy.

New York: F. Quarré, 1843. First edition. General wear to edges; Corners worn through; External joints cracked at edges, though inner hinges intact; Contents very good with some toning, though most pages are quite clear, and a few pages creased at the corner.. First six issues of this short lived periodical, composing the Volume One, (there were only four more issues); 10" x 6.25" bound in red morocco with gilt fillet on the cover and spine and gilt ; name of James F. Smith and his name in pencil on recto of first cover plate; All page edges gilt; 288 pages Three illustrated plates per issue plus Volume cover which is an embossed plate, though this collection is missing the first plate of the second issue; One embossed flower plate appears hand-painted and the Contents description of it reads 'A Bouquet of Flowers, painted on an embossed ground; There is an embossed flower plate in issue six unpainted and its description does not state 'painted', so assume it was issued without color; All plates… Read More

Complete collection of 50 costume plates illustrating emperors, priests, soldiers, gladiators and officials of ancient Rome. Two handcoloured frontispieces and 50 handcoloured copperplates drawn and engraved by L. Labrousse, artist of Bordeaux, under the direction of Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur.The 50 vivid portraits illustrate all ranks of Roman society, from the Emperor or dictator to patrician, citizen and plebeian; civic officers such as senator, political candidate, praetor, orator, aedile, quaestor, tribune, censor, and magistrate's lictor; religious figures such as Rex sacrificulus (king of sacrifices), Ponitifex maximus (chief high priest), high priest, priestess, Luperci, fetialis and flamen priests, victimarius (executioner), haruspex and augur; military figures such as Praetorian guard, aquilifer (standard bearer), legionary, funditor (slinger), sagittarius (archer), hastatus (lancer) and buccinator (hornplayer); and circus athletes such as charioteer, gladiator, retiarius, secutor,… Read More

Suite of 109 fine plates illustrating native costumes from around the world, copied from 18th century travel books.All copperplates within gold-lined frames under tissue guards, engraved by J. Laroque after a design by Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur. This is an early prospectus with 36 parts and 109 plates showing samples from all volumes of the proposed set: Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. The prospectus or "Programme et Plan de l'Ouvrage" appears at the front, and the title page midway through the volume. The complete set was to comprise 48 parts with six plates each in four volumes (288 plates) beginning from 1 August 1792. It was eventually published in 1795-96 in Paris and included some 433 plates in four volumes.The literary part was to be written by Jean-Francois Cornu. The images were copied from 18th century travel books, most notably Captain James Cook's Voyages. There is an element of charming fantasy about many of the images along with the remarkably accurate details. The dancing… Read More

Complete suite of 380 fashion plates covering six centuries of French costume by the artist Hippolyte Lecomte. With lithographed title page in Volume 1 (Pl. 1), and 379 finely handcoloured plates of French male and female fashion from 1230 to 1820 in three volumes.Volume 1 with plates 1 to 127, 1230 to 1572.Volume 2 with plates 128 to 254, 1572 to 1723.Volume 3 with plates 255 to 380, 1723 to 1820.First Italian edition with the plates newly lithographed by Lorenzo Bianchi and Domenico Cuciniello. The handcolouring is regarded as superior to the original French edition Costumes civils et militaires de la monarchie française, Delpech, Paris 1820. This extensive and important collection testifies to the keen interest in the history of the kingdom of France during the period of the Bourbon Restoration. The plates document the history of French clothes from about 1230 to 1820. Civilian clothes of all social classes are shown together with military uniforms, starting with medieval crusaders in armour and… Read More

Very good copy of this rare suite of fashion plates by the prolific Louis-Marie Lanté
With 39 (of 47) hand-coloured fashion plates showing the elegant costumes of Parisian female workers and tradeswomen of the 1820s
No title page or text as usual.
It's likely that Lanté drew these women in the streets and stores of Paris as they went about their work. A student dancer strikes a pose, a presser irons lace cloth on a table, an art student carries a box of oil paints, and a sutler to the National Guard offers a dram. There is a maid, laundrywoman, chambermaid, servant and nanny. There are many modistes: a fashionable embroiderer, knitter, seamstress, straw-hat maker, dressmaker, milliner, cobbler, hair braider, cosmetic seller and a shopgirl. There are also many itinerant tradeswomen including a florist, crockery seller, oyster shucker, haberdasher, dairywoman and plaisir (sweet) seller offering their wares.
According to Rene Colas, "This is one of the most interesting series drawn by Lanté. The last… Read More

Very good copy of this rare suite of fashion plates by the prolific Louis-Marie Lanté
With all hand-coloured engraved frontispiece and 105 hand-coloured fashion plates showing the elegant costumes of the women of Caux, Normandy, in the 1820s
With printed half-title and title in red and black, and eight pages of explanatory text by Pierre de la Mésangère.
The fashion plates engraved by Georges-Jacques Gatine after original watercolours by Louis-Marie Lanté and Benoit Pécheux
The women of the region famously wore tall lace bonnets that dated back to the middle ages. The frontis depicts many of the headdresses that are worn by the women in the plates.
"Benoit Pécheux, a renowned painter, a specialist in Italian frescoes had worked in France since the Italian campaign and ran a workshop of itinerant Italian painters. In 1811, the church of Yvetot contacted him to decorate the chapel of the Virgin. The same year, he decorated the dome of Saint-Romain in Rouen. He was also called to Limpiville,… Read More

Very good copy of one of Louis-Marie Lanté's most popular costume books
First edition from 1827. (It was re-issued in 1832 and 1841.)
Complete with all 70 fine fashion plates of the French women from history known for their talents, rank or beauty
There are queens, princesses, duchesses, mistresses, muses, fictional characters, salon hostesses, maids of honour and even witches from the 13th to the 18th century. The elegant full-length portraits show the rich costumes of the subjects and include armorial gowns, fancy dress costume for a masked ball, opera and ballet costumes, etc.
Among the celebrities are soprano singer Sophie Arnould, ballet dancer La Camargo, writer Madame de Sevigne, Louis XIV's mistresses Duchess de la Valliere and Mlle. de Fontagnes and his queen Maria Theresa of Spain, Mary Stuart of Scotland, Henry VIII's second wife Anne Boleyn, fictional heroine Euriant of Savoy, Petrarch's muse Laure de Noves, famous beauty La Belle Paule, famale scholar nun Heloise d'Argenteuil, royal spy… Read More

Very good copy of this rare book of Indian costume by Captain Robert Smith, 44th Regiment
Complete with 44 finely hand-coloured engravings of Indian men and women of all castes
Captain Robert Smith (1792-1882), was a soldier in the British line regiment H.M. 44th (East Essex) Foot, and served in India from 1825-33. He prepared an illustrated diary of Indian views from 1828-33 and drew various panoramas of Indian cities, all now in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
"The representations of Asiatic Costumes composing this collection are engraved from drawings taken during a short residence in India. Most of them were sketched from life; but, to make the series more complate, a few have been copied from drawings by a native artist. The short descriptions annexed to the several figures are chiefly from notes taken on the spot."
Includes a dozen fascinating depictions of dancing girls and boys and musicians from a Nautch party. Girls dance and sing to music from sarangi and tabla drums. The frontispiece shows… Read More

This item is currently on reserve; please contact dealer for more details.
4° (mm 200x150); ll. 30. At the back of the volume, traces of the original decorated wrappers. A very fine copy, in a modern sleep case.
First edition, very rare, of a detailed description of the ceremonies of the profession of faith, which includes copious details on the clothing, ornaments, orations and participants of the significant moment of the Nun´s life.
BNE, R/2324 and R.MICRO/38997 ("reproduccion de R/2324").
The Trinitarians, formally known as the Order of the Most Holy Trinity and of the Captives (Latin: Ordo Sanctissimae Trinitatis et Captivorum; abbreviated OSsT), is a mendicant order of the Catholic Church for men founded in Cerfroid, outside Paris, in the late 12th century. From the very outset, a special dedication to the mystery of the Holy Trinity has been a constitutive element of the order's life.
"From the fourteenth century the Trinitarians had lay assistants, i.e., charitable collectors, authorised by… Read More

Cairo, Egypt :: Islam Aly,, 2023.. Edition of 30 + 5 proofs. Talismanic shirt 39 x 33 inches. Laid in a cloth-covered box 12 x12 x 2 inches. Cyanotypes on fabric, paper, and maps sewn on cotton cloth. Signed, numbered, and dated by the artist. Islam Aly: "'The Tapestry of Dreamweaver' is an artist's book that delves into the realm of dreams and the transformative power of talismanic shirts and constellations. It serves as a visual exploration of the interplay between the ethereal world of dreams and the tangible symbols of protection and empowerment found in talismans. "The work takes the form of a talismanic shirt, crafted using a collage of cloth and paper adorned with imagery of shirts, constellations, and their mystical beliefs. The shirt showcases a unique collection of cyanotype prints on both paper and fabric, featuring a distinctive array of texts, sacred invocations, symbols, magic squares, and seal markings. The incorporation of cyanotype prints imbues the… Read More

One of only 25 copies published in folio size with hand-coloured etchings on papier de Hollande
According to the publisher's catalog, this edition comprised "200 exemplaires sur papier de Hollande au format in-folio, dont 25 avec les planches coloriées."
The etchings by A. Guillaumot Fils (Auguste Etienne Guillaumot Jr.) were made from theatrical costume designs by Eugene Lacoste and Draner for productions of the comic opera Les Merveilleuses (The Lady Dandies) (1873) by Sardou. The costumes were based on contemporary prints from the Revolutionary era.
Second edition with 30 plates plus portrait, following the first with only 20 plates in 1874. The Merveilleuses is set in Revolutionary France during the period of the Directoire, 1789-1804, where Royalist Parisian society is led by the Incroyables and Muscadins, ridiculous fops and dandies, and Merveilleuses, outrageous women wearing classical Roman- and Greek-inspired robes in see-through fabrics. Engraved portrait of Sardou (by Guillaumot Sr.) as… Read More