Costume (William Miller, publisher).

Costume (William Miller, publisher). photo Sotheby's

A fine group of seven beautifully illustrated works published by William Miller and reprinted by Thomas McLean, in folio (14 x 10 in.; 355 x 255 mm) and uniformly bound, as follows: Est. 7,000—10,000 USD - Hammer Price with Buyer's Premium:  10,625 USD

[Mason, George Henry]. The Punishments of China. London: William Bulmer & Co. for Miller, 1804 [but after 1819]. Titles and text in English and French, 22 handcolored stipple-engraved plates by Dadley (with watermark "J. Whatman 1819"); offsetting. Abbey Travel 532 — Mason, George Henry. The Costume of China. London: William Bulmer & Co. for Miller, 1804. Titles and text in English and French, 60 hand-colored stipple-engraved plates by Dadley after Pu-Quá of Canton; light offsetting. Abbey Travel 533 — Pyne, W.H. The Costume of Great Britain. London: 1808 [but after 1819]. Handcolored engraved vignette on title, 60 handcolored aquatint plates (text watermarked "Charles Wise 1818," plates watermarked "J. Whatman 1819"); offsetting. Abbey Life 430 — Dalvimart, Octavien. The Costume of Turkey. London: 1804 [but after 1819]. English and French titles, handcolored engraved vignette on English title, 60 handcolored stipple-engraved plates by Dadley after Dalvimart (watermarked "J. Whatman 1819"); light offsetting. Abbey Travel 370 — Wageman, Thomas Charles. The Military Costume of Turkey. London: Howlett for Thomas McLean, 1818 [but after 1819]. Handcolored etched title vignette and letterpress title, 30 hand-colored aquatint plates by and after Wageman by Clark (watermarked "J. Whatman 1819"); light offsetting. Abbey Travel 373 — The Costume of the Russian Empire. London: William Bulmer & Co. for Miller, 1804 [but after 1819]. English and French titles and text, 73 handcolored stipple-engraved plates by Dadley (watermarked "J. Whatman 1819"); light offsetting. Abbey Travel 246 — Moleville, [Antoine François] Bertrand de. The Costume of the Hereditary States of the House of Austria. London: William Bulmer & Co. for Miller, 1804 [but after 1819]. English and French text and titles, 50 handcolored stipple-engraved aquatint plates by William Ellis and William Poole (watermarked "J. Whatman 1819"); light offsetting. Abbey Travel 71.

In all, 7 volumes, contemporary red straight-grain morocco, blindstamped leafy ornament in borders and gilt roll-tooled flower and acanthys interlace in frame, spines richly gilt, edges gilt; a few unobtrusive mends in some scuffs, joints, corners and heads or feet of backstrips.

NOTE: William Miller published six costume books in the first decade of the nineteenth century, the first appearing in 1800. Thomas McLean reprinted Miller's volumes without altering the title pages, the watermarks in the paper of both text and plates identifying the reprints. McLean added his own volume on The Military Costume of Turkey in 1818.

Sotheby's. Fine Books and Manuscripts. 11 Dec 09. New York www.sothebys.com