SONGS FOR THE PHILOLOGISTS (1936)

The first edition of the rarest book in Tolkien collecting, in a previously unrecorded state unknown to Tolkien's bibliographer. Privately printed. This copy is in an unrecorded state, with a mistake in the imposition: p. 28 is printed on the verso of p. iii and p.29 is printed on the recto of p.2. Correspondingly, p. iv is printed on the verso of p.27 and p.1 is printed of the recto of p. 30.

BOOK OF HOURS, (c. 1475-1500.)

Finely illuminated in Lyon. Twenty-six miniatures from the workshops of the Rosenburg Master, the Master Of Guillaume Lambert and the Master Of Alarmes De Mars. An attractively decorated Book of Hours, written and illuminated in Lyon by three major Lyonnais workshops in the late fifteenth century.

THE J.R.R. TOLKIEN - H.N. SWANSON ARCHIVE (1959-91)

The exceptional Tolkien archive of his Hollywood agent, H.N. Swanson, who first sold the screen rights for J.R.R. Tolkien's work, and laid the foundation for the landmark Peter Jackson adaptations. Including the original signed contracts for the rights to The Hobbit and The Lord Of The Rings.

THE HOBBIT (1937)

First edition. Octavo. Publisher's green cloth, lettered and decorated in blue. Top edge green. The first edition of The Hobbit, one of the most influential works of imaginative literature of the twentieth century, one of only 1500 copies printed on 21st September 1937.

MAUD (1855)

A stunning jewelled binding by Sangorski and Sutcliffe. First edition. Octavo. In a fine jewelled binding with five rubies, four amethysts, seven moonstones, seven topazes and mother of pearl dragonfly wings. Bound in green levant morocco, with leather joints, mauve morocco doublures and white silk fly-leaves, all elaborately inlaid and gold-tooled.

SMITH OF WOOTTON MAJOR (1967)

First edition. Small octavo. Publisher's original black pictorial boards. Inscribed by Tolkien for John Ezard to a card pasted on the front free endpaper, "John Ezard from J.R.R. Tolkien".

THE WASTE LAND (1923)

The first UK edition of The Waste Land, handset and printed by Virginia Woolf at the Hogarth Press. Octavo. Bound in the original blue marbled paper covered boards, with the title label to the upper cover printed in black surrounded with a border of asterisks.

AN IDEAL HUSBAND (1899)

First edition. Number 20 of 100 large paper copies, signed by Oscar Wilde. Publisher's original pink cloth, lettered and decorated in gilt.

PIO IX PONTIFICI MAXIMO (1847)

Manuscript presented to Pope Pius IX by the Collegio Romano after his election to the Papacy. 210pp. Folio. Handwritten in Latin, Greek, Hebrew and English, each page with elaborate decorative Papal borders printed in gilt or black. With a framed original illustration of a dedication to Pope Pius IX, hand-painted and illuminated on vellum by Hercule Louis Catenacci, signed and dated 1867.

THE RUBAIYAT OF OMAR KHAYYAM (1899)

An exceptional moulded calf bookbinding by the firm of Cedric Chivers, designed by H. Granville Fell and executed by Alice Shepherd. Large octavo. Tooled and worked in relief and gilt with an image of a young woman holding a vase against an Art Nouveau vineyard background on the front board; on the rear board a design incorporating a tree, bird, book and pot.

RATTY WARMING HIS HANDS BY THE FIRE (1953)

An original sketch by E.H. Shepard of Ratty from The Wind In The Willows. Signed "EHS". 150mm x 104mm. The image shows Ratty sat in an armchair, warming his hands by the fire. On the rear of the sketch is a letter to the artist Harold Riley, "Harold, here's Ratty that you love so much, warming his hands by the fire. Please come next weekend! I promise some Rhubarb pie. Love, Uncle Ernest."

SPATHA IRON SWORD WITH INLAID GARNETS (Fifth Century)

A magnificent Byzantine double-edged iron sword from the Migration Period with beautiful heart-shaped garnets. The top of the blade has sloped shoulders where a heart, triangle and rectangle shaped garnet decorated guard rests. This sword has a short tang and a rounded pommel with four inlaid garnets. (84.5 cm)

"THE COMMON SEAL OF GRIMSBY" MS LIEGE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 2275 (1963)

Inscribed for J.R.R. Tolkien by Simonne D'Ardenne, "Ronald from Simonne". First separate edition. 4pp. and one plate. Bound in the original paper wrappers.

MINIATURE QURAN (c. 1898)

A very rare example of David Bryce's 'Mite Quran' printed in gold. 64mo (26 x 18 mm). Original richly gilt decorated black morocco. Printed in gold on fine India paper. Housed in the original locket, with inset magnifying glass.

THE HAPPY PRINCE AND OTHER TALES (1888)

First edition. Octavo. Bound in the original publisher's boards of Japanese vellum, lettered and decorated in red and black. Upper cover design, head- and tailpieces by Jacomb Hood, three full-page plates by Walter Crane. Housed in a black cloth slipcase with a red morocco title label by the Dragonfly Bindery.

THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK (1876)

First edition, inscribed by Lewis Carroll for Blanche Louisa Cecil. Octavo. One of 100 copies bound in the deluxe binding of red cloth, lettered and decorated gilt. All edges gilt. Inscribed by Lewis Carroll to the half-title page, "Blanche Louisa Cecil from the Author. Mar. 29. 1876".

MINIATURE OF A MEDIEVAL JOUSTING TOURNAMENT (c. 1900)

A large miniature of a medieval jousting tournament completed in tempera on avoriolina by the infamous Spanish Forger (c. 144 x 132 mm). The scene shows two jousting knights in the foreground. The red knight appears to pierce the knight in blue, whose lance has snapped in the joust, as two crowds of soldiers watch from the side.

THE KORAN (1734)

The first translation of the Quran directly from Arabic into English. First edition. Quarto (248 x 199mm). Bound in contemporary English calf, gilt rules to covers and spine, five raised bands to the spine, with a red morocco title label. All edges speckled red. There is a large folding map of Arabia, a fold-out plan of Mecca, and three genealogical plates showing Arab tribes.

COLLECTION OF DEVOTIONAL WORKS (1793-1800)

An extraordinary survival: a suite of late eighteenth-century bibles and prayer books, in fine contemporary bindings, preserved by an original presentation box, and originally given as a wedding present in 1798.

THE FIRST AND SECOND WORLD WAR DIARIES OF MAJOR WILLIAM HENRY TAPP (1912-1958)

An extraordinary record: the personal pocket diaries of a mapmaker who served on the Western Front in the First World War, and manned a small boat at Dunkirk in the Second, nearly dying on his return to England. William Henry Tapp MC was a mapmaker and surveyor who spent his early career in the East Indies and Canada.

TWO PRESENTATION BINDINGS FOR NELL FISON (1910-1912)

Two fine presentation bindings, made by a bookbinder for the woman he should have married. Eleanor Fison and Arthur John Gray were from Cambridge and began courting around 1910, eventually becoming engaged. Arthur was a bookbinder at the family firm of J.P. Gray and Son on Green Street; Nell was training to be a nurse. When war came in 1914 Arthur joined the 1/1st Battalion, Cambridgeshire Regiment, rising to the rank of captain. On 31st July 1917 he was killed on the first day of the Battle of Passchendaele at Ypres.