Skip to content

OBSERVATIONS ON THE STATE OF IRELAND, PRINCIPALLY DIRECTED TO THE AGRICULTURE AND RURAL POPULATION IN A SERIES OF LETTERS, WRITTEN ON A TOUR THROUGH THAT COUNTRY (TWO VOLUMES)

OBSERVATIONS ON THE STATE OF IRELAND, PRINCIPALLY DIRECTED TO THE AGRICULTURE AND RURAL POPULATION IN A SERIES OF LETTERS, WRITTEN ON A TOUR THROUGH THAT COUNTRY (TWO VOLUMES)

Click for full-size.

OBSERVATIONS ON THE STATE OF IRELAND, PRINCIPALLY DIRECTED TO THE AGRICULTURE AND RURAL POPULATION IN A SERIES OF LETTERS, WRITTEN ON A TOUR THROUGH THAT COUNTRY (TWO VOLUMES)

by Curwen, J.C

  • Used
  • very good
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Very Good
Seller
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Eugene, Oregon, United States
Item Price
A$682.75
Or just A$651.71 with a
Bibliophiles Club Membership
FREE Shipping to USA Standard delivery: 7 to 14 days
More Shipping Options

Payment Methods Accepted

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • American Express
  • Discover
  • PayPal

About This Item

London, England: Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, 1818. First Edition. Leather-bound. Very Good. Matching set of two volumes: Octavo, 8.7 in. x 5.5 in. Volume I: pp. xix, [1] (errata), 435. Volume II: pp. xii, 355. Handsomely rebacked in full smooth calf; fine gilt frame to boards. Gilt titles on red and black panels with gilt and decorative bandlines in blind to spine. Marbled edges. Light rubbing to board edges. Marbled endpapers, with cloth tape to front and rear hinges. Previous owner's bookplate to front pastedowns. Additional 1 in. x 2 in. sticker below bookplates. Light foxing to preliminary pages. Bookplate reads: "John Waldie." Additional sticker reads in elaborate script: "Topography, Travels, &c, No. 106" with the number handwritten.

Observations On The State Of Ireland by John Christian Curwen (1756-1828), was published in two volumes in 1818. It was the result of John Christian Curwen's comprehensive study of the social and economic conditions pertaining in Ireland in the early 19th century. An elite of Anglo-Irish Protestant gentry landowners dominated the social, political and economic life of the island of Ireland while the majority of the Irish peasants especially Catholics lived in dire poverty surviving on a diet of potatoes while subject to enormous rents. This state of affairs came about following the Cromwellian and Williamite wars of the 17th century which saw mass land confiscations and penal laws reducing Catholics to paupery. Whig liberals such as Curwen campaigned for social and agrarian reforms. Curwen campaigned against the Corn Laws which reinforced British merchantilism and prohibited free trade and was an ally of William Wilberforce a fellow MP who campaigned successfully for the abolition of the African slave trade. Curwen helped to put into law the Rome Catholic Relief Act 1791 which reformed the regime of the penal laws and laid the ground work for the future Catholic Emancipation movement of Daniel O'Connell. A major influence was Curwen's avowed atheist beliefs and opposition to religious bigotry.

Curwen was enchanted by the beauty of Ireland but shocked at the what he saw as farcical economic mismanagement, injustices and the poverty he witnessed. His knowledge of the country was minimal before he arrived in country as he freely admitted: "The prospect of visiting a country, which, although almost within our view, and daily in our contemplation, is as little known to me, comparatively speaking, as if it were an island in the remotest part of the globe, necessarily produces a high degree of interest. " Curwen empathised with the plight of the ordinary people and came to understand the history of repeated Irish rebellion was due to oppression and injustice although he disagreed with violence as a means of redress for these wrongs. Curwen was fascinated by agriculture and he saw a solution in the development of the agricultural economy of Ireland. (from Ask About Ireland).

Reviews

(Log in or Create an Account first!)

You’re rating the book as a work, not the seller or the specific copy you purchased!

Details

Bookseller
Aardvark Rare Books US (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #
87126
Title
OBSERVATIONS ON THE STATE OF IRELAND, PRINCIPALLY DIRECTED TO THE AGRICULTURE AND RURAL POPULATION IN A SERIES OF LETTERS, WRITTEN ON A TOUR THROUGH THAT COUNTRY (TWO VOLUMES)
Author
Curwen, J.C
Format/Binding
Leather-bound
Book Condition
Used - Very Good
Quantity Available
1
Edition
First Edition
Binding
Hardcover
Publisher
Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy
Place of Publication
London, England
Date Published
1818
Keywords
Irish agriculture

Terms of Sale

Aardvark Rare Books

Returns Policy: 30 Day Returns, with prior approval, in same condition as when shipped.

About the Seller

Aardvark Rare Books

Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Biblio member since 2004
Eugene, Oregon

About Aardvark Rare Books

Member of ABAA, ILAB, & IOBA: Continuously in business since 1995.USPAP-COMPLIANT APPRAISALS of rare books, manuscripts, collections and archives. Accredited Member AMERICAN SOCIETY OF APPRAISERS (ASA)Toll-Free Order Line: 1-800-434-6033.

Glossary

Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

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...
Octavo
Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
Cloth
"Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
Rubbing
Abrasion or wear to the surface. Usually used in reference to a book's boards or dust-jacket.
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...
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....
Bookplate
Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
Rebacked
having had the material covering the spine replaced. ...
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...
Fine
A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...

Frequently asked questions

This Book’s Categories

tracking-