ALTHORP: THE STORY OF AN ENGLISH HOUSE.**

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.[Complete number line 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2. Though this is the true UK 1st edn by VIKING,1998,there is another particular SIGNED edn/issue that has no credited/listed publisher and no ISBN and is the author's first reissue,in 2001.Believed to be reissued and have been sold exclusively through or at Althorp House, where the author signed bought copes,when he was in residence - see my book ID rja498214 - with included provenance.] FINE/FINE.No owner inscrptn,no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright,crisp,clean,glossy laminated,scenic colour photographic illustrated dw/dj with white+gilt lettering to upper panel+ spine/backstrip; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no nicks or tears present.Head spine/backstrip of dw/dj minisculely bumped with reciprocal creasing. Top+fore-edges bright and clean; contents bright,tight,clean,solid and sound - virtually pristine - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners - possibly unread - apart from my own collation? Bright,crisp, clean,sharp-cornered,publisher's original plain dark green cloth boards with bright,crisp,blocked gilt letters to spine/backstrip,yellow+ gold striped headband and immaculate plain pale grey endpapers.UK, 8vo HB+ dw/dj,1st edn,1-167pp [paginated] includes 24 distinct,though not numbered, chapters/sections,profuse contemporary b/w+colour illustrations and contemporary b/w+colour photographs also, interspersed throughout the text and the book.Plus [unpaginated] a black ink printed printer's device to foot of blank half-title page,title-page illustrated with family's coat of arms colour vignette below the book's title,a familial dedication (to his Grandfather),2 genealogical family trees: owners of Althorp [1500's to 1783] and [1765 to date] and b/w ground and first-floor plans of Althorp. The great house and grounds of Althorp in Northamptonshire have been home to the Spencer family for nearly 500 years.They first leased farm land in the area for grazing in 1486,and in 1508 Sir John Spencer acquired the 300-acre estate on which he built the first house. ince then,Spencers have lived and died at Althorp for twenty generations,and the Park has now taken on an added significance as the burial place of the most loved princess of the 20thC. Charles Spencer,who became the ninth Earl in 1992,has a deep love and knowledge of the house,reflected in the fact that he acted as a guide there when he was just twelve years old and in the tremendous redecorative work he has undertaken in recent years to restore it to its former glories.In 1998 there was further major work with the adapting of the quite beautiful Stable Block - once home to 100 horses and forty grooms - into a centre for visitors incorporating an exhibition celebrating the life of Diana. Earl Spencer has written a fascinating account of the house that combines the details of art and architecture (Althorp has one of the greatest private art collections in the country,including paintings by Van Dyck,Rubens,Reynolds,Stubbs and Gainsborough) with a personal appreciation of all its qualities.He also provides a first-hand description of the many changes that have occurred in recent years. With splendid photography,some of it from Althorp's archives and some of it specially commissioned,this new book offers the perfect guide to one of England's greatest houses. Please contact seller @ rpaxtonden@blueyonder.co.uk ,because of the value of this item,for correct,insured shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! ** N.B. ALL buyers please note,stocks' actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order's receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if the item(s) are offered either P+p included/FREE. ** N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: Standard AIRMAIL postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of the book! If speed is not of the essence,then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. anything from a 1/3rd to 1/2 of the standard AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving sooner than the 42 days - but not always.