Orrin Schwab Books

To order, call 800-823-9124, or e-mail    osbooks@pcu.net    

Home       Main Inventory Page


World History-Rare List

Last Updated May13, 2008


1. [Bishop Thomas Ken]. THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND'S COMPLAINTS TO THE PARLIAMENT AND CLERGY AGAINST I. CARELESS NON-RESIDENTS; II. ENCROACHING PLURALITIES.. London, F. Torbuck: 1739. Contemporary hardcover binding with marbled paper boards. Shelf wear and rubbing to spine and corners. Some soiling to white spine. Spine appears to be vellum. Binding tight. This treatise was published twice before this edition under various titles. The first publication was in 1689 amd the second was 1711. The 5 complaints listed in the title that are addressed in the text are as follows: I. Careless Non-Residents; II. Encroaching Pluralities; III. Unconscionable Simony; IV. Loose Prohpaness; V. Undue Ordination. This publication is a rare and important Church of England imprint. $450.00

2. A'Beckett, Gilbert A. THE COMIC HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 2 volume set. Illustrated with hand-colored plates by John Leech. London, Bradbury, Agnew: ca. 1880's. This is a ca. 1880's edition published by Bradbury and Agnew of London. Some wear and rubbing to spine and corners, else G+. Fading & scuffing to bindings. Front hinges cracked on both volumes, & back hinge cracked on volume I, but bindings are tight. With numerous black-and-white woodcut illustrations and 17 hand-colored steel engraved plates. Beautiful illustrations to this classic publication. $75.00

3. Alcock, R.C. THE ALPHABETS OF THE BRITISH LINE ENGRAVED STAMPS. Bristol, England, Harvey Barton & Son Ltd.: 1936. 80 pages. Some discoloration and slight soiling to the light grey cloth binding. Corners are slightly bumped. The binding is tight. There are 45 fold-out plates protected by tissue guards. All plates are present and in very good condition. A rare and important British philatelic book. This one just does not show up very often. $650.00

4. Badley, B. H. THE INDIAN MISSIONARY DIRECTORY AND MEMORIAL VOLUME. Lucknow, Methodist Publishing House: 1892. . Wear to spine and extremities. Some fading to binding. Some soiling to binding. This book is a directory and history of Christian missionary efforts in India. Interesting content. $55.00

5. Bouvet, Francis. THE CZAR AND THE SULTAN; OR, NICHOLAS AND ABDUL MEDJID: THEIR PRIVATE LIVES AND PUBLIC ACTIONS. New York, Harper & Brothers: 1855. Some shelf wear. Corners bumped, else near VG. Binding tight. Rare. A few pages near the end of the book have a dampstain at the top corner of the pages, not serious. A rare and early publication on the Turks and Russia. $150.00

6. Collins, George R. & Christiane Crasemann Collins. CAMILLO SITTE AND THE BIRTH OF MODERN CITY PLANNING. New York, Random House: 1965. Ex-library, with internal stamps and label on spine. Corners slightly bumped. Overall light library wear. Some shelf wear to spine edges. Corners slightly bumped. Overall minimal library wear. Very scarce. $40.00

7. Conselman, William and Deirdre. KEEDLE. With drawings by Fred L. Fox. New York, Hillman-Curl, Inc.: 1940. Some wear and rubbing to spine and corners, else G+. Paper over board covers. Chipping to paper at spine edges, with some paper chipped away. Some soiling to covers. A caricature satire of the rise of Adolph Hitler in Germany in the years preceding World War II. The book views him as a buffoon and a minor nuisance on the world stage. At that time, it wold have been difficult to predict or understand Hitler's capacity for evil and atrocity. $80.00

8. Duyckinck, Evert A. HISTORY OF THE WORLD FROM THE EARLIEST PERIOD TO THE PRESENT TIME. Collected and Arranged From the Best Authorities. Complete set of 4 volumes. New York, Johnson, Wilson & Company: 1873. Complete set of 4 volumes. All volumes are beautifully bound in full black leather, with raised bands on the spine and gold-decorated borders and patterns on the front and back covers. There is some shelf wear to the spine edges and the corners, with a few scuffed spots to the leather, but overall this set is near very good condition. Bindings are tight and there are no tears or chips to the leather covers or spine. Beautifully illustrated with numerous steel engravings. A beautiful set. $300.00

9. E.R. Dumont. THE PEOPLE'S NATURAL HISTORY, EMBRACING LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD AND LIVING RACES OF MANKIND. Complete set of 5 volumes. E.R. Dumont: 1902. Complete set of 5 volumes. All volumes are bound in 3/4 red leather. Shelf wear to the spines and corners. Some discoloration and scuffing to spots on the bindings, but overall these are very nice. A few chips to the spine edges. Bindings are tight. With hundreds of photographs and illustrations of animals of the world, as well as the races of mankind, with photographs of many different peoples in many parts of the world. $150.00

10. Earee, Rev. R.B.. ALBUM WEEDS, OR HOW TO DETECT FORGED STAMPS. Complete in 8 parts, bound in two volumes. London, Stanley Gibbons, Limited: 1906. This is a 1906 printing. A complete set of the 8 parts, bound in two green cloth bindings with gold titles on front cover and spine. Slight wear to the spine edges and the corners. Binding are tight. A beautiful set in near very good condition. Rare and important publication. Often reprinted in parts, this complete set is a most desirable philatelic collectible. $750.00

11. Fox, Rev. George Townshend. A MEMOIR OF THE REV. HENRY WATSON FOX. London, Religious Tract Society: ca. 1850's. This edition is published by the Religious Tract Society in London. No date of publication is listed, but probably printed in the 1850's or 1860's. Spine and edges shelf-worn, with some fraying to edges. Fox spent much time in India as a Christian missionary. $50.00

12. Frejaville, Gustave. AU MUSIC HALL. Paris, France, Aux Editions duMonde Nouveau: 1923. Full black leather binding with raised bands. Slight shelf wear to spine edges and corners. Overall VG. Beautiful binding. This is a signed, limited edition. This copy is part of an edition of the first 70 copies, of which sixty are bound in deluxe black leather. This copy is numbered 37. Frejaville was a famous French entertainer of the time. The book examines Parisian attractions from 1918 to 1922. Includes a section on the French illusionists and some on the circus. A most interesting book. Rare in this deluxe leather, limited and signed edition. $250.00

13. Jarrold & Sons, Ltd. PICTURES IN COLOUR OF THE NORFOLK BROADS. WITH DESCRIPTIVE NOTES. London, Jarrold & Sons, Ltd: [n.d., ca.1890]. Some wear and rubbing to spine and corners, else G+. Contains 50 color engravings. A beautiful book. $75.00

14. Old Mortality. QUAINT LONDON: DESCRIBING A NUMBER OF INTERESTING RELICS OF OLD LONDON. London, Truslove & Shirley: [n.d., ca.1890]. Small flexible card covers with color illustration on cover. Some wear, soiling and scuffing to covers. This is a serie of views in and around London, with accompanying descriptive text. $35.00

15. Overs, Walter Henry. STORIES OF AFRICAN LIFE. New York, Edwin S. Gorham: 1924. Shelf wear, else near VG in dust jacket with chips & tears to edges. Some soiling to d.j. Signed by author. Good photos of Africa landscapes and people. Very scarce African narrative. $100.00

16. Ross, John D. CELEBRATED SONGS OF SCOTLAND. New York, William Pagan: 1887. 1887 edition. Shelf wear, bumped corners, and fading to spine. $75.00

17. Salignac, Francois. LES AVENTURES DE TELEMAQUE, FILS D'ULYSSE. Par Francois Salignac de la Mothe-Fenelon. Paris, Chez Bossange: 1807. Bound in half leather with marbled paper covers. Wear & rubbing to spine and corners. Some scuffing to binding. Original leather and boards. Binding tight. Text in French. $75.00

18. Spears, John R. THE GOLD DIGGINGS OF CAPE HORN A STUDY OF LIFE IN TIERRA DEL FUEGO AND PATAGONIA. New York, G. P. Putnam's Sons: 1895. 319 pages. Front hinge just starting, but holding fine. Some wear and rubbing to spine and corners. Binding tight and pages clean. A rare first edition. Overall a very nice copy. $225.00

19. Van Antwerp, Bragg & Co. THE ECLECTIC HISTORICAL ATLAS: A HAND-BOOK FOR STUDENTS AND GENERAL READERS.k New York, Van Antwerp, Bragg: 1874. Some wear and rubbing to spine and corners. This is the 1874 edition. Beautiful atlas and maps. Scarce map atlas. Inludes 25 double-page maps of the world. Bound in red leather spine. Maps pages measure 10" across both pages by 8.5" high. $100.00

20. Wheeler, W. Reginald and Webster E. Browning. MODERN MISSIONS ON THE SPANISH MAIN: IMPRESSIONS OF PROTESTANT WORK IN COLUMBIA AND VENEZUELA. Philadelphia, Westminister: 1925. Shelf wear, else near VG in dust jacket with chips and tears to edges. D.j. also has some soiling. Includes photographs of schoools, missions, and missionary work in many South American countries. $22.50

21. Willis, N. P. CANADIAN SCENERY. Two volumes in one edition. London, James S. Virtue: ca. 1842. 114 pages. Bound in original black 1/2 leather binding. Shelf wear to the spine edges and the corners, with corners rubbed. The top right-hand corner of most of the pages have a circular dampstain about the size of a silver dollar, slightly larger in some places. Binding is tight. The final text page is missing from the back of the book. The front endpaper is missing, so the book opens up to the title page. This book contains many beautiful full-page steel engravings. The engravings are all present. A couple of the engravings at the back of the book has small tears to the page edges and heavier wear. There is no date of publication listed on this two-volumes-in-one edition, but it looks to be around the time period of the first edition, which was published in 1842. I'd put this one at somewhere between 1842-1850. Truly a beautifully illustrated and monumental publication. $500.00

Home       Main Inventory Page