BIBLIOGRAPHY. - Samuel Leigh SOTHEBY & John WILKINSON Auctioneers Catalogue of the Principal Portion

BIBLIOGRAPHY. - Samuel Leigh SOTHEBY & John WILKINSON Auctioneers.

Catalogue of the Principal Portion of the Valuable Library of John Dunn Gardner, Esq. of Chatteris, Cambridgeshire, removed from his late residence, Bottisham Hall, near Newmarket. Which will be sold by auction by Messrs. S. Leigh Sotheby & John Wilkinson.

[London: J. Davy & Sons, printers, 1854].

Octavo.  Text listing 2457 lots ruled in red, manuscript pricing throughout, manuscript listing of daily totals and grand total of £8171 for all 11 days.

Contents condition: light toning, otherwise excellent.

Contemporary green half morocco over green marbled paper-covered boards, simple gilt rules and roll tools, spine lettered in gilt, marbled endpapers, original upper and lower wrapper bound in, top edges gilt

Condition of binding: light scuffing, otherwise excellent.

A nice copy of quite an important collection: Seymour de Ricci noted that the "valuable library ... contained some fine Caxtons and other English books, among which were some splendid early English Bibles" (English Collectors, p.140).

At the time of this sale, John Dunn Gardner (1811-1903), was living in Chatteris House, Isle of Ely, in the county of Cambridge. Interest in the tortuous and tabloid-worthy life of John Dunn Gardner (and of his mother, his father and his siblings) was probably greater than any interest that this sale managed to garner at the time from amongst the general public: see wikipedia for more details. 

Ref.: 17.056b