The narrative of the Honourable John Byron (commodore in a late expedition round the world), containing an account of the great distresses suffered by himself and his companions on the coasts of Patagonia, from the year 1740 till their arrival in England, 1746; with a description of St. Jago de Chili, and the manners and customs of the inhabitants; also a relation of the loss of the Wager man of war, one of admiral Anson's squadron

by John Byron

London: S. Baker and G. Leich, and T. Davies, 1780

xii, 264 p. | 12mo | A-Z^6 | 159 x 90 mm

Perhaps the fifth edition of the British navy officer's account of his ill-fated expedition to Chile, a travelogue that likely influenced the shipwreck scene in his grandson's more famous work, Lord Byron's Don Juan. It was first published in 1768, and reprinted even into the 19th century. ¶ In an unusual contemporary painted leather binding, no doubt attributable the neoclassical craze that exerted such profound influence on European culture of the late 18th and early 19th century. "To us nowadays the antique seems something very hackneyed, but it was to the men of those days brilliantly and thrillingly new—a resurrection from the dead; and, by an association of ideas, antique art—and even sterile and frigid imitations of it—symbolized that private virtue and public wisdom which was then hopefully supposed to have made its home on earth" (Updike). The monochromatic urns are certainly charming, and duly represent one of the most iconic symbols of neoclassicism. But we're especially taken by the painted gold garland around the edges. It's a delicate approximation of more conventional gold tooling, and sympathetic with a roll we find on another English binding of the 1790s. This painted decoration must have been an original feature of the binding, provided in lieu of more traditional tooling in blind or gold. To be sure, we find not one speck of original tooling—no evidence of a single blind rule around the board edges, nor a filet across the spine. All visible tooling was added during a recent rebacking, the impressions seamlessly traversing both old and new leather. ¶ There's a long, rich tradition of painted miniatures on book covers, and one that indeed endured into the neoclassical period. See, for example, a 1793 edition of Aesop's fables from the Abbey sale, each cover bearing an oval miniature depicting a different Hellenic scene; or an 1805 edition of the Letters of Junius, bound in calf with a painted figure of Liberty dominating; or a ca. 1790 binding by Edwards of Halifax featuring a large monochromatic allegorical painting of Fame. An effect similar to painting was sometimes achieved with paper onlays. Frequently featured in the literature of English bookbinding is a late 18th-century edition of The Antiquities of Athens with a paper onlay of Athena. We find a still more striking complement—if somewhat more upscale—in an Edwards binding of ca. 1795, showcasing an engraved design with an urn as its focal point. Speaking of Edwards, we rather suspect our binding was influenced by that studio's eminently neoclassical Etruscan style: calf would be stained to achieve terracotta tones reminiscent of ancient vases, and a classical urn commonly deployed as the central decorative element. ¶ An arresting, unlikely contribution to the variety of finishing techniques in bookbinding.

PROVENANCE: Old signature of one Henry Bull on the front paste-down. Recent armorial bookplate of Colin Malcolm Paul on the front fly-leaf. Bookseller's label on front paste-down of G.T. Phillips, Hampstead, London.

CONDITION: Contemporary leather, as described above. ¶ Some mild foxing; first and last couple of leaves a little dirty. Recently rebacked, the corners likewise repaired; the painting generally scratched and rubbed, the spine especially, though the distressed appearance somehow enhances the neoclassical effect; rear endpapers soiled.

REFERENCES: Alan G. Jamieson, "Byron, John," Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (2023), online ("Many years later, in 1768, Byron was to publish a Narrative of the struggle for survival after the shipwreck, and it supplied some hints for the shipwreck scene in Don Juan, by George Byron, sixth Baron Byron, John Byron's grandson"); D.B. Updike, Printing Types (1962), v. 2, p. 161-162 (cited above; "By the year 1790, Greek and Roman antique art had completely captured public taste"); David Pearson, English Bookbinding Styles 1450-1800 (2005), p. 78, fig. 3.90 (for the similar garland border); Catalogue of the Celebrated Library...of Major J.R. Abbey; Part III (1967), p. 4, #1597, plate 90 (the 1793 Aesop); Howard M. Nixon and Mirjam M. Foot, The History of Decorated Bookbinding in England (1992), plate 93 (the Antiquities of Athens); Mirjam M. Foot, The Henry Davis Gift (1983), v. 2, p. 243-244, #201 (the Etruscan calf binding); John P. Harthan, Victoria & Albert Museum: Bookbindings (1961), #54 (the Edwards urn binding), #55 (the Edwards Fame binding)

Item #750