The Natural History of Man: Being an Account of the Manners and Customs of the Uncivilized Races of Men. Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Polynesia, America, Asia and Ancient Europe. Complete in 2 vols. Full leather - 1874

London, England: George Routledge and Sons, 1874. Full-Leather. Very Good/No Jacket. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. Brothers Dalziel. Apparently first issued in 1868 [Vol. 1] and 1870 [Vol. 2], the present copy of Vol. 1 is the 1874 edition and Vol. 2 the 1880 edition. All the same a matched pair. R. Clay, Sons, and Taylor, printers. 10.25 x 7.25 inches. Original [?] full brown calf. Gilt spines with contrasting title-labels, decorative panels and raised bands. Gilt rules to the boards. Virtually unbumped spine heads and tails, and sharp corners. Very light wear and minor rubbing to the bindings. Marbled edges and matching endpapers. Vol. 1, Africa, vi & 774 pp.; Vol. 2, Australia, New Zealand, Polynesia, America, Asia and ancient Europe, viii & 864 pp. Vol. 2 with two purple ribbon page markers. Each volume with engraved frontispiece, several 3/4 page plates, and numerous text illustrations engraved by the Brothers Dalziel. All pages with very moderate and even age toning. On the back pastedown of each volume is what appears to have been a library card-slip pocket. At the base of the spine of each volume is a very small white label with a call number neatly typed on. There are no other markings in the book set that indicate it was ex library. Evidently only very lightly read. A very handsome and sturdy set of two volumes. Fine and complete. Rated Very Good Plus. 9 lbs. 4 oz. weight. Full leather binding in the style of Robert Rivière and, later, George Bayntun. Bindings from these two fine binderies working in the classic English tradition are highly sought-after by collectors. With two large and detailed armorial bookplates of previous owners. Sir Andrew Barclay Walker [1824-1893] and by descent to his son, William Hall, Baron Wavertree [1856-1933]. On the latter's death, the barony became extinct. The Barclay family pedigree can be traced back to Scotland shortly after the Norman Conquest. "John G. Wood's landmark work, 'The Uncivilized Races of Men,' was an important, illustrated work describing the human races that were unknown to most Western cultures. Wood details the lives and cultures of people groups such as the Hottentots, Kaffir, Bosjesman, Bechuana, Ovambo, Fiji and Australian people, Eskimos, Guiana, and many more lesser-known groups. This work gives special attention to hunting and military practices such as choice weapons, human sacrifice and torture, magic spells and prophecy rituals, tobacco and pipes, and costumes and clothing".