An Account of the Islands of Orkney. To which is Added, an Essay concerning the Thule of the Ancients
by James Wallace
- Used
- very good
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Very Good/N
- Seller
-
Birsay, Orkney, United Kingdom
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: Jacob Tonson, 1700 A very good copy of what is probably the earliest published account of the Orkney Islands, in contemporary full leather binding, with newer spine, and with folding map and plate. The work was originally written by James Wallace (1642-1688) who was a Minister - initially in Ladykirk and then Kirkwall. The manuscript, complete with his drawings, was prepared for publication after his death by one of his sons - also James - who was a botanist. It was published in 1693 under the title of 'A description of the Isles of Orkney', and included an essay on Thule credited to Sir Robert Sibbald. This account was published by James 7 years later, under his own name (and claiming the title of FRS - although he did not hold it). It is largely the same as the previous work, but it adds a section on plants and shells. It was dedicated to the Earl of Dorset and mentions neither his father, nor Sir Robert Sibbald. So this book, although the first to be called 'An Account' is largely a 2nd edition of the work. This copy is in a contemporary panelled calf binding with newer spine which has gilt-lined raised bands and blind stamped decoration and title label. The boards have some scuffing and wear to corners and edges. There is a small darker mark on the back board. The binding is sound and clean. Internally the endpapers have been replaced. Contents with folding map; title (small set of initials at the top); dedication 3 pp; contents list 4 pp; errata 1 p; text pp 1-147; Essay concerning Thule.. pp 148-182 Finis; plate bound at the rear. The contents are very clean with light toning towards page edges and occasional old annotation. On p 72 the word 'wrack' has been crossed out and 'seaweed' written in the margin. The map has a very small repair at the attachment and p 115/5 has lost the bottom corner tip.
Reviews
(Log in or Create an Account first!)
Details
- Bookseller
- E C Books (GB)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 032996
- Title
- An Account of the Islands of Orkney. To which is Added, an Essay concerning the Thule of the Ancients
- Author
- James Wallace
- Illustrator
- James Wallace
- Format/Binding
- Full-Leather
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Jacket Condition
- N
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Publisher
- Jacob Tonson
- Place of Publication
- London
- Date Published
- 1700
- Size
- 12mo - over 6� - 7�" tall
- Weight
- 0.00 lbs
- Keywords
- orkney; james wallace; seventeenth century orkney; thule
- Bookseller catalogs
- HISTORY; 17th century works;
Terms of Sale
E C Books
30 day return guarantee, with full refund including shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged.
About the Seller
E C Books
Biblio member since 2011
Birsay, Orkney
About E C Books
E C Books is a small online bookselling business, specialising in pre 20th century works:natural history, science, history, and travel, aiming for rarer and more unusual books. Our largest stock area is Natural History, where we have a good range of books from the 1700-1800's, many finely illustrated. Other areas include children's books, particularly late 1800's-early 1900's - again illustrated; and literature pre 1900.When you order books from us we ensure that they are properly packed to protect condition, and we always use recorded or 'signed for' postal services for more secure delivery. Please note that we have recently moved to the beautiful Orkney Islands, where we intend to open a bookshop over the next year. Because of our location we cannot guarantee 'next day' delivery but we will get your purchase to you as quickly and safely as we can.Please note that the buyer is responsible for the payment of any tax or duty on import.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Raised Band(s)
- Raised bands refer to the ridges that protrude slightly from the spine on leather bound books. The bands are created in the...
- Calf
- Calf or calf hide is a common form of leather binding. Calf binding is naturally a light brown but there are ways to treat the...
- Errata
- Errata: aka Errata Slip A piece of paper either laid in to the book correcting errors found in the printed text after being...
- Edges
- The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
- Plate
- Full page illustration or photograph. Plates are printed separately from the text of the book, and bound in at production. I.e.,...