Sotheby’s London To Offer A Magnificent Private Collection of Fine Travel and Illustrated Books

Assembled by a private collector who sought the best examples of travel and plate books in a variety of media including hand coloured prints, photography, watercolour and sketches - the collection contains a number of works that come from notable collections including 21 lots from Beriah Botfield’s library (Longleat) - one of the greatest book collectors of the 19th century - and 49 from the collection of Şefik Atabey -who formed one of the largest libraries on the Ottoman Empire*.

(*The Ottoman World: The Library of Şefik E. Atabey with a Supplement, Sotheby’s London, 28-30th May 2002)

Richard Fattorini, Director, Specialist Sotheby’s Department of Books and Manuscripts said, “This auction represents a wonderful opportunity to acquire some of the very best books in this field, since collections of this quality so rarely come to the market. Not only are there works regarded as the most desirable in their field, by the most historically significant artists and writers, but many are also magnificently bound, in superb condition and in many cases have significant provenances.”

INDIA & SRI LANKA

THOMAS AND WILLIAM DANIELL

Oriental Scenery, London, 1795-1807 / Est. £150,000 - £250,000

“The finest illustrated work ever published on India” (Tooley)

Daniell, Thomas and William, Oriental scenery, London, 1795-1807 [BUT 1808] / Courtesy of Sotheby's London

Of the spectacular range of books relating to India, a notable highlight is a rare, complete copy of Daniell’s Oriental Scenery, the greatest book of hand-coloured views of India ever produced. It was this important publication that was, in large measure, held responsible for the early nineteenth–century fashion for Indian-inspired architecture in England, reflected in the works of Humphry Repton and John Nash. Thomas Daniell and his nephew William spent some nine years from 1785 to 1794 in India making studies, sketches and drawings of the country’s scenery, architecture and antiquities. They then devoted a further thirteen years to publishing their remarkably accurate aquatints. Previously in the library of the Earl of Bradford, the work is estimated at £150,000 - £250,000.

PRINCE ALEXIS SOLTYKOFF

Voyage dans l’Inde pendant les années 1841-1842-1843, 1845-1846, Paris, 1850 / Est. £30,000 - £40,000

Prince Alexis Soltykoff, Voyage dans l’Inde pendant les années 1841-1842-1843, 1845-1846, Paris: Auguste Bry, c.1850 / Courtesy of Sotheby's London

This enormous book by the Russian traveller, writer and artist Prince Alexis Soltykoff shows views and ceremonial processions in India, the Himalayas and Sri Lanka in the nineteenth century. An especially fine copy, it shows his drawings at their most spectacular, with the fine tinted lithographed plates reproduced in massive folio format. Prince Alexis Soltykoff (1806–1859) made several journeys in the region between 1841 and 1846 where he produced wonderful drawings of the people, landscapes, processions, hunting scenes and ceremonies.

EGYPT

FRANCIS FRITH

Egypt, Sinai and Jerusalem: a series of twenty photographic views, c. 1858 / Est. £100,000 – £150,000

“The largest book with the biggest, unenlarged prints ever published… Few publications in the history of photography are its equal in either presentation or ambition.” (Gernsheim)

Francis Frith, Egypt, Sinai and Jerusalem: a series of twenty photographic views with descriptions by Mrs. Poole and Reginald Stuart Poole. London: James S., Virtue, c.1858 / Courtesy of Sotheby's London

The largest photographs of Egypt taken in the 19th century are presented in Francis Frith’s ambitious work Egypt, Sinai and Jerusalem. The negatives, which measured 16 x 20 inches, were developed on site in the soaring temperatures of the desert, and the large panels of glass transported through the desert by camels. Of all the photographs Frith produced, the twenty presented here include a panorama of Jerusalem and 19 views of Egypt, accompanied by descriptions composed by the mother and son duo, Sophia and Reginald Stuart Poole.

TURKEY

ATTRIBUTED TO CHARLES FREDERICK DE BROCKTORFF

Collection of 33 watercolour drawings depicting Turkish costume, Malta c.1840 / Est. £4,000 - £6,000

Attributed to Charles Frederick de Brocktorff, Collection of 33 watercolour drawings depicting Turkish costume, Malta c.1840 / Courtesy of Sotheby's London

Another highlight from the collection of Şefik E. Atabey, and attributed to Charles Frederick de Brocktorff, this collection of 33 watercolours depicts figures from the Ottoman court dressed in ‘contemporary costume’, as opposed to the traditional dress more commonly depicted in similar works. Each drawing is accompanied by a descriptive caption in English.

SPAIN

ALEXANDRE DE LABORDE

Voyage pittoresque et historique de l’Espagne, Paris, 1806-1820 / Est. £15,000 – £25,000

Alexandre de Laborde, Voyage pittoresque et historique de l’Espagne, Paris, 1806-1820 / Courtesy of Sotheby's London

A fine copy of Laborde’s magnificent work on Spain that was also in the collection of Beriah Botfield at Longleat will also be offered in the sale. As a member of Lucien Bonaparte’s embassy to Spain in 1800-1801, Laborde (1774-1842) was able to follow up his passionate interest in Spanish art and history. With the meticulous work of Choisel-Gouffier on Greece as his model, Laborde spent several years amassing information relative to Spanish art, architecture, archaeology and traditions, and aided by a team of highly talented artists assembled a huge portfolio of engravings which are presented here.