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LETTERS FROM EGYPT.: 1863-65.
by GORDON, [Lucie,] Lady Duff:
- Used
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
-
Sheffield, South Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: Macmillan and Co., 1865.. First edition. Octavo. Smartly rebound in modern half tan calf over marbled boards, the boards ruled in gilt, the spine with five raised bands, compartments ruled and decorated in gilt, and contrasting morocco title labels lettered in gilt. Marbling to page edges. Marbled endpapers. Contemporary engraved armorial bookplate for Arbuthnot Charles Guthrie re-laid to the front pastedown. Early twentieth-century ownership inscription in ink to the front pastedown. xii + 371pp. Lacking the half-title page. A very good copy, the binding square and tight. The contents with a small chip to the bottom corner of the front free endpaper, a few spots of light foxing to the preliminary pages, and the occasional spot of toning are otherwise in very good order. The best-known work by the author, translator and traveller Lucie, Lady Duff Gordon, née Austin (1821-1869), describing her experiences in Egypt during the early 1860s and providing a vivid account of Egyptian life, with a particular focus on domestic manners and customs as well as the lives of Egyptian women and those of the peasantry (fellahin). Beginning with a preface by her mother, Sarah Austin, the work collects together the letters sent home by Gordon to her family, with typical headings including "Nubian Women", "Visits to Hareems", "Muslim Equality", "Visit of the Sultan", "The Muslim Bridegroom", and "The Dancing Girl".
Prior to her departure for Egypt, where she ultimately spent the rest of her life, Gordon was at the heart of a London literary circle which included Charles Dickens, Caroline Norton, William Makepeace Thackeray, and Alfred Tennyson, amongst others. Whilst having originally journeyed to the country on account of her health, she quickly fell in love with its culture and people. Often displaying a great sympathy for the lower classes, she was frequently outspoken in her criticism of the British abroad, as well as the Egyptian government itself, and became a popular figure with the Egyptian people.
Her work on Egypt formed the first genuinely intimate picture written by a European of the country, which was newly in vogue in the West, and met with great public success, with a second edition quickly published in the same year as the first.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Sky Duthie Rare Books
(GB)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 1253
- Title
- LETTERS FROM EGYPT.
- Author
- GORDON, [Lucie,] Lady Duff:
- Book Condition
- Used
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Publisher
- London: Macmillan and Co.
- Date Published
- 1865.
- Keywords
- Travel & Exploration|Books By / About Women
Terms of Sale
Sky Duthie Rare Books
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About the Seller
Sky Duthie Rare Books
Biblio member since 2022
Sheffield, South Yorkshire
About Sky Duthie Rare Books
We carry a wide-ranging stock of fine and rare books, unique manuscripts, original artwork, photographs and ephemera. Placing a strong emphasis on the unusual and the visually stimulating, our areas of focus include travel and exploration; natural history; science and medicine; art and design; history; politics, philosophy and economics; literature and poetry; and children's and illustrated books.
Following a period in academia focusing on the history of ideas and after several years working for a prominent rare bookseller, the business was established in 2022 by Dr Sky Duthie.
Following a period in academia focusing on the history of ideas and after several years working for a prominent rare bookseller, the business was established in 2022 by Dr Sky Duthie.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- 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...
- Marbled boards
- ...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Bookplate
- Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
- 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...
- Tight
- Used to mean that the binding of a book has not been overly loosened by frequent use.
- Morocco
- Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...
- 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...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- 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....
- Rebound
- A book in which the pages have been bound into a covering replacing the original covering issued by the publisher.
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Collecting and identifying signed letters and holographic documents
Many authors and other famous literary figures wrote and signed letters by hand, and you can find a great collection of them in the Biblio rare book room. See our great collection of handwritten letters and holographic documents
