Description
[Drummond, Henry]
Histories of noble British families with biographical notices of the most distinguished individuals in each: illustrated by their armorial bearings portraits monuments seals, etc. London: Pickering, 1846-1852. First edition, 2 volumes in 1, folio, with numerous hand coloured coats of arms, illustrated (with many coloured), 81 plates (of which 41 are hand coloured) corrigenda slip in volume 2, contemporary half red morocco, cloth boards, spine decorated gilt in compartments, a.e.g., rubbed, occasional offsetting and spotting.
Note: Keynes Pickering p. 52 with 72 plates and noting that only a small number were produced. Keynes attributes the printing to Whittingham at Chiswick.
Commenting on Pickering's involvement with works elaborately illustrated with engravings coloured by hand or produced in colours from stone, Keynes rather discouragingly observes "These somewhat repellent books culminate in the pretentious splendour of Drummond's Histories. Their production must have entailed an immense output of effort by their authors, and some volumes doubtless made a great advance in the craft of printing in colour, but they do not seem to carry much weight at the present time as works of authority on the subjects with which they deal, and typographically they are of small account."
The families are: Ashburnham, Arden, Crompton, Cecil, Harley, Bruce, Perceval, Dunbar, Hume, Dundas, Drummond & Neville.
Provenance: With the book-plate of Thomas Brooke, FSA, of Armitage Bridge.