Search Results: Titles starting with N from Jonathan A. Hill, Bookseller, Inc.

Two double-page & three full-page woodcuts. 14.5 folding leaves (pagination irregular but complete). 8vo, orig. patterned orange wrappers (a little soiled & rubbed), orig. block-printed title label on upper cover, new stitching. Ushu [in today's Yamagata Prefecture], Naraya Ichibei, 1691. First edition of this very rare work on practical business mathematics and the use of the abacus by the wasan scholar, Nakamura Seiei (d. 1734). There is no copy of the first edition in WorldCat, which lists only the reprints of 1926 and 1935. The Mujin (or tanomoshi), a sort of rotating savings and credit cooperative association, has existed in Japan since the middle Kamakura period (1185-1333) and was only superseded by commercial banks in the Meiji period. Mujin ko "allowed individuals to predict with a degree of certitude what return to expect from deposits made to the cooperative fund...the structure allowed it to be used as an instrument for investment. The precision with which this rotation of funds was… Read More

24 illus. & 14 samples. Large 8vo, orig. red morocco spine & decorated Japanese paper sides, spine lettered in gilt. North Hills: Bird & Bull Press, 1979. Limited to 300 copies, composed in Van Dijck types and printed on paper handmade at the press. The text presents the most detailed description of the Japanese hand papermaking technique yet published. One of the finest books from this press and immediately sold out. Fine copy.

One finely hand-colored port. of the author & many full-page woodcuts (mostly hand-colored). 14 vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers, stitched. [Mito]: Jijuntei zo 自準亭藏 et al., 1867. First edition. Honma (1804-72), a member of a distinguished family of physicians, studied under Phillip Franz von Siebold, who had brought many printed Western works on medicine and surgery to Japan. Honma also learned anesthesia from Seishu Hanaoka, the first Japanese physician to master this specialty. In Nagasaki, Honma studied vaccination. Honma established his practice in Tokyo, was physician to the local aristocracy, and became a professor of medicine. Not only an accomplished surgeon, Honma was deeply knowledgeable about internal medicine. He was one of the first physicians in Japan to make public his techniques and procedures. Hitherto, medical knowledge was kept closely guarded as family secrets for successive generations of doctors. This is Honma's great work… Read More

Several black & white illus. [32] pp. & ads. 8vo, printed wrappers, staple-bound. Paris: 1937.<br /> <P> Scarce exhibition catalogue on Impressionism and its precursors. It is divided thematically and presents works by Bonington, Delacroix, Isabey, Courbet, Manet, Corot, Jongkind, Monet, Renoir, Pissarro, Sisley, Cézanne, Morisot, Cassatt, etc. Preface by André Joubin, director of the Bibliothèque d'Art et d'Archéologie de l'Université de Paris.<br /> <P> Fine copy.

40 pp. Small 4to, pictorial wrappers, staple-bound. Amsterdam: 1982.<br /> <P> Scarce bookseller catalogue, listing books on modern art, architecture, design, photography, music, and theater. Fine.

Many black & white illus. [15] leaves, printed on rectos only (except for one leaf). Small folio (295 x 210 mm.), pictorial wrappers, fastened with black plastic clasps. [From verso of the first leaf]: Amsterdam: Agora Studio, Sept. 1980. A rare exhibition catalogue, printed in an edition of 200. Carrión (1941-89) devised this as a retrospective of his works and communications with his collaborators, for which he investigated the use of names and addresses. This catalogue, with the introduction in parallel Dutch and English, is fully illustrated with reproductions of Carrión's earlier works and performances, including pieces such as Arguments (1973), Homage to Van Gogh (1975), and The Muxlows (1978). A near fine copy of this scarce catalogue; some sunning at the edges. WorldCat records just five examples in North America. ❧ Quant aux Livres / On Books (2008), p. 210.

Ten vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. stitching. [China]: Saoye shanfang 掃葉山房, [1798]. An edition of an abridgment of the History of the Song, with additions by the author. These additions provide a certain amount of information not found in the standard histories, but Qian's work has been criticized by some for lacking in detail (Lao, Zhonghua yeshi cidian, 315). Qian Shisheng (1575-1652), served as a compiler in the Hanlin Academy and later held other posts in the government in the Ming southern capital of Nanjing. Our edition was probably published as part of Song, Liao, Jin, Yuan si shi 宋遼金元四史 [Four Historiographical Works on the Song, Liao, Jin, and Yuan], but it does not have a title-page. The corporate entity of the publisher of our edition, Saoye shanfang, or the "Mountain dwelling of sweeping leaves," issued this series (Zhou, Tushuguan xue qingbao xue cidian, 370). Our work was published by Xi Shichen 席世臣 (b. ca. 1756, d. before 1814), who by some accounts… Read More

Four vols. Tall 8vo, orig. wrappers, orig. title-slips (first one not present), orig. stitching. Beijing: Zhongguo di xue hui 中國地學會, 1929. First edition of this collection of writings by one of the pioneers of Chinese geographical studies. Zhang Xiangwen (1867-1933) was from a poor family in Jiangsu and made a living as a teacher. One of the subjects Zhang taught was geography, and he did so at a time when this field of study did not have a formalized curriculum or established scholarly organizations in China. To bring disparate geographers like himself in contact with each other, Zhang in 1909 founded the "Chinese Society for the Study of the Earth" (Zhongguo dixue hui), which published our book. Zhang remained at the helm of the organization until 1930 (Wang, Zhongguo dizhi renming lu, 93). Meanwhile, Zhang was a member of parliament and itinerant geographer, conducting fieldwork in the northwest and the south. The contents of our book are varied and reflects Zhang's interests far… Read More

Five double-page & 10 single-page black & white woodcut illus. 21.5; 19.5; 18.5; 17.5; 22 folding leaves. Five vols. 8vo (259 x 179 mm.), orig. blue wrappers (rubbed); orig. printed title labels (partly perished), new stitching. [Kyoto]: Hishiya 菱屋, 1711. First edition, and very rare, of these 15 tales of homosexual love and desire between old and young samurai, many violent and accompanied by graphic scenes of murder and betrayal. Nanshoku is an understudied category of shunga, in which male-male romantic relationships (shudō), frequently involving an older man and a young boy, are hinted at in an array of visual cues, allusions, and innuendos. The earliest known examples of nanshoku were published in the mid-17th century, and very few original editions survive because of the controversial nature of homosexual relationships in Japanese society. The title of our book is a clear reference to Saikaku Ihara's 井原西鶴 extremely famous collection of short stories, Nanshoku okagami… Read More

2 p.l., 73 pp., one leaf of ads. 8vo, attractive antique calf-backed marbled boards, spine gilt, red morocco lettering piece on spine. London: W. Richardson, 1797. First edition, presentation copy, inscribed on the half-title: "From the Author." Young's trips to France were primarily to look at French farms and farming techniques. His trips also gave him an excellent perspective on the political upheavals of the country. "Young's experiences in France brought about a permanent change in his political views. From being a liberal and a reformer, by 1792 he had become an opponent of the revolution and a conservative in English matters. He was highly critical of the ancien régime but, equally, he attacked the excesses of the revolution, and now he was fearful of the consequences of reform in England, necessary though it was."-ODNB. This work deals with Young's proposal for the formation of a voluntary yeomanry to defend England from any possible French… Read More

8 p.l., 164, [12] pp. 8vo, 19th-cent. red pebbled morocco (minor foxing), a.e.g. London: W. Pearson for T. Osborne, 1730. First edition in English of Behrens' Hercynia Curiosa (1703). "Very scarce. A personal narrative of an excursion through northern Germany. The book is interesting for its account of the geology and fossils of the region, and also the author took a special interest in the mineral wealth of the region. Therefore, this work is principally a description of the various mines, quarries, and caves he chanced to visit. Of great value for reporting the state of the mining and metallurgy of the time."-Schuh, Mineralogy & Crystallography: A Biobibliography, 1469 to 1920, 463. Behrens (1662-1712), was a physician in Nordhausen. The translator was John Andree (1697/98-1785), was physician at the London Hospital (later Royal London Hospital). Fine copy.

Engraved frontis., two engraved plates, & several engravings in the text. 12 p.l., 456 pp. Folio, cont. panelled calf (head of spine & corners a little worn, upper joint a little cracked at head & tail), red morocco lettering piece on spine. London: T. Woodward, 1726. First edition. The Rev. Laurence (1668-1732), Prebendary of Salisbury, devoted all his spare time to his garden and became very knowledgeable on gardening matters. We learn from ODNB that he was especially successful with pears. He wrote a series of noteworthy books on the subject, this being his most ambitious. Fine and crisp copy. Armorial bookplate. &#10087; Fussell, I, pp. 100-02. Henrey, II, pp. 415-24 & no. 945.

One folding engraved plate. [6] pp. Small 4to, attractive modern marbled boards, leather lettering-piece on spine. Augsburg: D. Francken, 1610. First edition and very rare. Faulhaber (1580-1635), a teacher of mathematics at Ulm and a friend of Kepler, made his most lasting accomplishments in the dissemination and explanation of the logarithmic method of calculation. This is Faulhaber's second book and caused him considerable problems with the city's municipal council, as it was published without the permission of the office responsible for supervision of the schools. This book describes a surveying instrument invented by Daniel Speckle in the Netherlands. The fine plate depicts the semicircular instrument, which is divided into 220 parts. Fine copy, preserved in a box. &#10087; D.S.B., IV, pp. 549-53. Poggendorff, I, 725. Tomash & Williams F23.

Two parts in one vol. 60 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. aubergine patterned wrappers (covers a little defective), orig. block-printed title label on upper cover (label soiled & rubbed), new stitching. Osaka: Harimaya Risuke, 1843 [colophon of the first part is dated 1667; the second part is dated 1816; & the colophon on the rear pastedown is dated 1843]. Second edition of two classic works of Japanese bibliography; the texts were essential guides. Razan Hayashi (1583-1657), was a Japanese neo-Confucian scholar, diplomat, translator of Sinitic texts, and shogunal adviser. He, and his third son Gaho, wrote and edited a number of important chronicles and histories of Japan. One of Razan's descendants, Akira Hayashi, was the chief Japanese negotiator in dealing with Admiral Perry and signed the Treaty of Kanagawa. Both of these works were jointly written by Razan and Gaho (who uses the pen name "Koyorinshi"in the first part). "The earliest published books about books were Hayashi Razan's Keiten daisetsu… Read More

Color and black & white illus. [11] leaves. Large 4to, printed pink wrappers, staple-bound. Prague: Galerie Hlavního Mešta, 1992. An excellent copy of this very rare Martin Kippenberger (1953-97) exhibition catalogue. "Das gute muß gut sein [What is good must be good] was published to accompany an exhibition at the Galerie Hlavního Mešta, Prague, from 20 October to 19 November 1992, organized on the initiative of Jörg Schlick... "The catalogue shows works from the period 1989-1992 and includes a text by Jana Ševcíková and Jirí Ševcík in Czech and German. Martin Kippenberger is represented by colour illustrations of three 'Frog' pictures from 1990 and two rubber reliefs from 1991. Main catalogue design and concept by Jörg Schlick."-Koch. In fine condition. ❧ Uwe Koch, Annotated Catalogue Raisonné of the books by Martin Kippenberger, 1977-1997 (2003) 113.

Picture scroll entitled, on manuscript paper label on outside, "Baō kusōshi emaki" 坡翁九想詩画巻 ["Mr. Su's Poem on the Nine Stages of a Decaying Corpse, Illustrated Scroll"]. Ten narrative paintings, in brilliant & sometimes lurid color. Scroll (370 x 12,070 mm.), front outer endpaper of worn blue silk brocade, gold-speckled inner endpaper. [Japan]: late Edo. Originating in China, the "nine stages of a decaying corpse" is a subject long popular in Buddhist art and poetry in Japan, where many scrolls and woodcut books have been executed on the subject, from about the 13th century until the present day. The rather shocking depiction of the bodily decay of an anonymous noblewoman's corpse is a provocative theme that has shown remarkable vitality over the centuries, used as visual agents for various purposes and target audiences, from religious meditation on impermanence to the teaching of precepts of feminine morality, both in daily life (proper conduct and etiquette) and as correct… Read More

17 folding leaves. 8vo, orig. printed wrappers, orig. block-printed title label on upper cover, new stitching. [Japan]: Rekijuen [Ishizaka Sotetsu], first preface, by Sokei Ishizaka, dated 1830. First edition, a variant issue with a three-page second preface at end and no addenda (our copy agrees with a copy at Kyoto University). Tang was a physician who lived and practiced near Suzhou, a major market for the trade in ginseng. His Ren Shen Kao (Ch.), here in the first edition published in Japan, is a practical guide to the medicinal uses of ginseng and gives valuable insights into the massive trade in ginseng during the 18th-century Qing dynasty. Fine copy.

66; 45 folding leaves. Two vols. Large 8vo, orig. pale blue wrappers, orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers, new stitching. [Aizu Fiefdom]: Preface & Afterword dated 1803. First edition and very rare; WorldCat lists only one copy, at Harvard. Matsudaira (1744-1805), fifth in the daimyo line of the Aizu domain (now in parts of the Fukushima and Niigata Prefectures), was imbued with Neo-Confucian idealism. The Aizu domain "used this text as a primer [consisting of 53 injunctions] in ethics and etiquette at its official domain school the Nisshinkan...to prepare boys for future careers serving Aizu as samurai-administrators. Enrollment at the Nisshinkan, founded in 1801, remained constant at about 1000 students until Aizu's defeat and liquidation by Satsuma and Choshu in 1868 during the Boshin Restoration wars. Samurai boys aged ten to fifteen read this textbook in class. The domain also distributed a copy to all samurai households in Aizu, so girls as well received instruction in Katanobu's… Read More

73; 60 folding leaves (pagination in Vol. II continued from Vol. I). Two vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers (wrappers rather worn), orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers (frayed), new stitching. Kyoto: Hayashi Kuhei & Takemura Shinbei, 1699. First edition of this valuable bibliography of Chinese encyclopedias or lei-shu (classified books); this is an important guide to the corpus of lei-shu. The term "encyclopedia" is not used in the Western sense. Lei-shu "is the name given a genre of collectanea of literary and non-literary materials compiled in pre-modern Chinese history. Commonly translated 'encyclopedia,' lei-shu is more accurately rendered 'classified book,' from the categories of topic, genre, or rhyme that were typically used to organize the contents. Lei-shu are properly regarded as encyclopedias in that they were intended to encompass and present synoptically the total of either existing knowledge or a specified field of knowledge. However, they did so in a characteristically Chinese… Read More

Numerous woodcut illus. in the text. 24; 27; 23 folding leaves. Three vols. 8vo, orig. patterned wrappers (cover of Vol. II a little stained), orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers, new stitching. Osaka, Kyoto, & Edo: Prefaces & Afterword dated 1802. [with]: -. Nōkaeki kohen 農家益後篇 [Sequel to For the Farmer's Benefit]. Numerous woodcut illus. in the text. 30; 35 folding leaves. Two vols. 8vo, orig. patterned wrappers (bindings a little soiled), orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers, new stitching. Osaka, Kyoto, & Edo: Prefaces dated 1810 & Afterword dated 1802. [with]: -. Nōkaeki zokuhen 農家益続篇 [A Second Sequel to For the Farmer's Benefit]. Numerous woodcut illus. in the text. 28; 25 folding leaves. Two vols. 8vo, orig. patterned wrappers, orig. block-printed title labels on upper covers, new stitching. Osaka & other cities: Preface dated 1818, colophon dated 1854. First edition and a complete set of the author's first book. Okura (1768-1856?), was one of… Read More