Scarce - A Memoir of Jane Austen, Plus Lady Susan and The Watsons (1882) - Illustrated Antique Book

Scarce, being one of only 375 copies published, here is a copy of A Memoir of Jane Austen by Her Nephew JE Austen Leigh - bound also with Lady Susan and The Watsons. (States only Lady Susan in gilt on the spine). Published in 1882 by Richard Bentley & Son, London. It was to be the publisher's final Austen publication. They produced only 375 sets (not numbered), and this copy would have been Volume VI from one of those sets. With two sepia illustrations, and a facsimile of an Austen letter. I have never had an 1882 Bentley copy before, they are hard to come by. Contents are excellent, with some wear to the spine ends and stains to the cream cloth. Condition in detail below.

Inside the pages are in top order being clean, bright and tightly bound. The hand-made paper, of different weights, has fore-edges uncut. There is dust-toning along the closed top edge. Printed in chocolate-brown, with the text pages in a border with small corner pieces. Has spotting to the endpapers and a few pages are loose from their binding cord at the bottom, but firmly attached at the top. Little-read I think, because one of the pages in the middle has never been cut open. Has an engraved portrait frontispiece, plus a woodcut of Stevenage Parsonage and one of Chawton Church - all in chocolate-brown. Also has part of a letter reproduced, and retains the original imprint page dated 1870.

Cream-white, fine-ribbed, cloth-backed boards have chocolate-brown bands as decoration. The bands are made up of ornamental lettering incorporating the author's name and volume title. The spine is lettered in gilt and as mentioned, only states Lady Susan and not the other titles present. The cloth has tanned and spotted, and has some brown blemishes to the front. The spine has tanned and has wear to the ends. These have some noticeable splits and chips to the cloth (see photos). Gilt lettering remains bright.

Your antique copy of A Memoir, Lady Susan and The Watsons will be wrapped with care in tissue and ribbon* and sent well packaged with tracking and insurance. I am always happy to add a gift card with a message to the parcel.

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H 21.5 cm x W 16 cm, (x) pp.364, 0.65 kg. I dispatch daily from the UK.

* If you would prefer for your book not to be decoratively wrapped but sent simply in the full protective packaging, please add a note to the order.

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