Moïse

1824 · 55402 — London: Henry Moses 1824. First edition. Hardcover. Very good to fine condition. Oblong Octavo. 20 etchings plus original illustrated wrappers. Bound in Royal blue leather retaining original wraps; gilt lettering and ruling on leather label mounted to spine. Cream endpapers. Tan wrappers with etching and brown lettering on front back cover plain.<br /> <br /> Our collection of "Sketches of Shipping" on the River Thames appears to be the earliest state published by Henry Moses with front wrappers dated Dec. 1 1824 and all twenty etchings dated in plates Oct. 1 1824. An 1826 advertisement in the Quarterly Review indicated that six parts of the Sketches with five engravings each had been published up to that time and announces the publication of two additional issues. The front wrapper stating publication date as Dec. 1 1824 as in our copy appears to have been used in various editions including some containing eleven plates dated March 1 1825 in plates or lettered in ink "Nos. 5 & 6" corresponding to the 1826 Quarterly Review advertisement.<br /> <br /> The irregularities and/or contradictions in tracing the publication of these Moses etchings suggest that due to the constrictions of the medium these popular etchings were published in limited numbers in variant editions as identified by the dates in these plates to satisfy the public demand of the time. <br /> <br /> In our copy all 20 etchings are dated in plates Oct. 1 1824 with two of the plates containing additional dates etched into the plates as indicated below:<br /> <br /> 1. Sailing Match Aug. 16 1824<br /> 2. An Indianian in Barnard's Yard Deptford<br /> 3. Trafalgar 120 G 125<br /> 4. Midway<br /> 5. Midway Aug. 9 1824<br /> 6. Blackwall. Dutches of M.<br /> 7. Blackwall Basin<br /> 8. Trafalgar P - 120 Guns<br /> 9. Sheerness Yard from a Window of the Fountain Inn<br /> 10. Sheerness<br /> 11. Sheerness Yard from a window of the Fountain Inn variant motif<br /> 12. Trafalgar 120 Guns<br /> 13. Trafalgar in the Basin Sheerness<br /> 14. Hulks at Sheerness<br /> 15. Blackwall<br /> 16. Untitled<br /> 17. City Canal<br /> 18. Basin at Blackwall<br /> 19. Blackwall - Wellington Indiaman<br /> 20. Surat Castle<br /> <br /> All etchings but plate 12 with H. Moses printed to plate. Plate twelve with Henry Moses. Printed by Chatfield and Coleman. Inked name and date on front free endpaper. "12/." inked to upper foredge corner of cover; this with a few small damp stains on front and back covers. OCLC lists an 1837 copy with 57 plates incl. 2 engraved title pages published in London by Ackermann a 1824 copy with nineteen plates 1825 and 1837 copies with thirty plates the latter published by Ackermann an 1837 copy titled "The Marine Sketch Book" with twenty-eight plates an 1826 copy with nine plates titled Sketches of Shipping: View in Portsmouth Harbour" and an 1827 copy with thirty plates titled "Shipping at Portsmouth and Spithead" publisher W. B. Cooke. Henry Moses hardcover