Vyfde Stuck der Aerdrycksbeschryving, welck vervat Schotlandt en Yrlandt. Amsterdam: Joan Blaeu, 1654, large folio.
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A magnificent fine binding bound for the famed Dutch collector Paulo van Uchelen with his gilt crown in the four corners, by the most important Dutch bookbinder of the period, Albertus Magnus, the binder intimately associated with the Blaeu Atlas sets. This is a large paper copy of the first edition of the first national atlas of Scotland, together with the atlas of Ireland, the text only, lacking all of the maps.
Paulo van Uchelen (1641-1702), the original owner, according to H. de la Fontaine Verwey, deserves an important place in Dutch bibliographical history. He had all of his books bound in an almost identical manner, as with this binding. They are very scarcely encountered, and are magnificent. This binding was part of his complete 9 volume set of the Atlas Major, described in his 1703 sale catalogue under number one which has clearly since been broken up. This copy sold for £21,625 by Antiquariaat Forum BV in circa 2010 in the Netherlands, but unfortunately has since had the maps excised. It is, nonetheless, highly significant as an important Dutch binding and with the text of the first national atlas of Scotland. It would be a very noble task of a prospective buyer to reintroduce the 55 maps to this book which can regularly be obtained for £100-£200 per map if desired.
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Size: 360 x 540 mm (approx.)
*note, very large
Condition:
Contemporary very fine full vellum finely decorated in gold tooling, bound for Paulo van Uchelen by Albertus Magnus. Very clean and much better than typical for the period. Structurally secure with both boards securely attached. All edges gilt. pp.128-129 loose but present. Several gaps visible at the page block edges due to the unfortunate excision of all of the maps. Lacks title page, as often. Internally very clean through the text, large paper copy. An exceptionally fine example of the text block and binding, but lacking the maps and thus necessarily substantially defective. Uncollated.
H. de la Fontaine Verwey ‘The binder Albert Magnus and the collectors of his age’, in Quaerendo, vol I, no 3 July 1971, pp.158-178
