BROCKEDON, William (1787-1854)

Illustrations of the Passes of the Alps

London: Printed for the Author, 1828. Royal quarto. (16 1/2 x 11 1/4 inches). 109 engraved plates and maps by E. Finden & others after Brockedon, all on india paper and mounted, the maps with the routes hand coloured in outline, each plate with publisher's small blind-stamp of artist's initials at edge of the plate as issued.

Contemporary red morocco by J. Wright, covers elaborately panelled in gilt, spines with raised bands in seven compartments, green and brown morocco lettering pieces in the second and third compartments, the others with an overall repeat decoration in gilt, marbled endpapers, gilt edges

Provenance: Peabody Institute (bookplate, inked stamp on titles and versos of plates)

A visually impressive and practical Alpine publication, combining Brockedon's carefully observed landscape views with route mapping intended to clarify the principal crossings from Italy to France, Switzerland, and Germany.

Brockedon was an accomplished painter who exhibited regularly at the Royal Academy, and was elected to the academies of Rome and Florence while also developing a parallel reputation as a prolific author and inventive experimenter. The present work grew directly from sustained travel. Brockedon first went into the Alps in 1824 to investigate Hannibal's route, then returned in the summers from 1825 to 1829, crossing the Alps fifty-eight times and passing into and out of Italy by more than forty different routes in the course of gathering material for these views and route maps. The set was dedicated to Brockedon's earliest patron, Archdeacon Froude, who supported his initial training at the Royal Academy, and the dedication anchors the book within the networks of patronage that made such an ambitious project possible. This work was published in a variety of formats: a regular issue in twelve parts at £10.10s, large paper £15, large paper with India proofs (as here) £20, larger paper with proofs before letters £30 and largest paper with the plates in a separate folio atlas £63 (only 12 published). This example in a lovely binding by Wright, among the most fashionable binders of the period.

Neate B170; Lowndes, p. 279.

Item #35111

Price: $3,500.00