Miniature Painters British and Foreign
Lot 74

Miniature Painters British and Foreign

Cosway binding with 18 miniatures

Closed6 October 2022

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USD 23,940

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Miniature Painters British and Foreign
Cosway binding with 18 miniatures
FOSTER, Joshua James. Miniature Painters British and Foreign. London and New York: Dickensons and E.P. Dutton, 1903.

Sumptuous Cosway binding on Fosters study of European and American painters of miniatures; deluxe limited edition. No. 149 of 175 “edition de Luxe” copies from a total edition of 570, signed by the author on the limitation page. There are 18 miniature portraits inset in the upper covers, nine on each volume: a slightly larger oval miniature is wreathed by eight others. The ivory miniatures are after illustrations of the miniatures of the most beautiful young people from within the volumes and very probably accomplished by C.B. Currie. The two central miniatures depict Lady Hargreaves by H. Millet, then in the collection of J. Whitehead; and Caroline Buonaparte, probably by F. Quaglia, from the Wallace Collection. All the miniatures depict ladies except a portrait of Napoleon Buonaparte as a child.

Two volumes, folio (349 x 251mm). Half-titles. Title-pages printed in red and black, half-titles. 220 gravure and half-tone reproductions of portrait miniatures—on plates and as headpieces, the frontispieces in color. Full crushed levant morocco by Rivière & Son, the upper covers with elaborate gilt-stamping of roses and rose branches amidst a double-rule arabesque gilt frame for the nine portrait miniatures, on ivory and glazed; lower covers with triple-fillet gilt frame and rose cornerpieces; spines richly gilt in seven compartments with raised bands; board edges gilt-ruled, turn-ins with three gilt-rules and corner pieces; dark green moiré silk endleaves (slightest fraying at fore-edge), top edge gilt, others uncut, stamp-signed by the binders on the upper turn-ins (a few very tiny nicks to board edges, area of sunning to lower cover of vol. 2). Full morocco fleece-lined, dual-compartment pull-off case. Provenance: Sotheby's New York, 2 June 1995, lot 130.