Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft, Addressed to J.G. Lockhart by Sir Walter Scott. London: John Murray, 1830.
FIRST EDITION OF PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT WORK ON WITCHCRAFT, DEMONOLOGY, FAIRIES, ELVES, ASTROLOGY, GHOSTS, AND MAGIC OF THE 19TH CENTURY. COMPLETE WITH THE VERY RARE ILLUSTRATED PLATES!
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H.P. Lovecraft once described this book as "one of the best compendiums on European witchcraft." It is a very rare work, especially with the illustrated plates. It was first oublished on the 14th of September 1830 but only copies sold after November came with the extra-illustrated 12 engravings by George Cruikshank. Here we have all 12 of Cruikshank's plates separately bound which are very scarcely encountered.
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Size: 106 x 154 mm (approx.) - book.
Condition:
[half title, frontis, t.p., i-ix, 402pp.]
Half brown calf over marbled paper backed boards with a black tooled label in a compartment to the spine between raised bands. Binding rubbed and scuffed. Both boards detached. Small dent with minor loss to one board. Shelf and edge wear. Top page edge gilt. Page edges toned. Small tear with loss to the ffep and a creased corner which is fragile. Crease to the frontispiece top corner, thus fragile. Text block extremely clean with light toning. Ownership inscription to the front blank. No attached bookplates.
Case for the plates lightly worn with the "letters" crossed out with a pen. The ties are worn and fraying. Plates with edge toning. Plate one with ink stains to edges.
