Susanne Schulz-Falster Rare Books
LYSONS, Samuel. 
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LYSONS, Samuel. An Account of Roman Antiquities discoverd at Woodchester in the County of Gloucester. London, Sold by Cadell & Davies, B.& J. White, Edwards, Payne, Robson, Nicol, Elmsley, and Leigh & Sotheby. 1797. Large Elephant folio, with text in English and French; pp. [vi] including decorative hand-coloured aquatint title and dedication plate to King George III, and list of plates, 20; [iv] separate French title-page and list of plates, 21, [1] blank; with two large stipple engraved head and tail vignettes on p. 1 and 20 of English section, 35 finely finished hand-coloured, etched and/or aquatinted plates, (including 9 double-page), and 5 uncoloured engraved plates, 40 plates in total; plate 40 misbound between plates 10 and 11; both letterpress text sections somewhat browned and foxed, with quite prominent dampstaining affecting upper margins; some staining to plate edges of plate 10, and with some occasional faint dampstaining affecting outer lower margins of later plates, but otherwise plates clean and bright; in contemporary red half morocco over marbled boards, neatly rebacked preserving original spine, spine tooled and lettered in gilt, covers a little scratched and scuffed with later repair to upper outer margin replacing some of the marbling, extremities bumped and rubbed; with the signature of ‘C.P. Mather? Woodchester’ and ‘J.D. Bestwick, 1981’ on front free endpaper, together with Bestwick’s small book-plate; a good copy.
LYSONS, Samuel. An Account of Roman Antiquities discoverd at Woodchester in the County of Gloucester. London, Sold by Cadell & Davies, B.& J. White, Edwards, Payne, Robson, Nicol, Elmsley, and Leigh & Sotheby. 1797. Large Elephant folio, with text in English and French; pp. [vi] including decorative hand-coloured aquatint title and dedication plate to King George III, and list of plates, 20; [iv] separate French title-page and list of plates, 21, [1] blank; with two large stipple engraved head and tail vignettes on p. 1 and 20 of English section, 35 finely finished hand-coloured, etched and/or aquatinted plates, (including 9 double-page), and 5 uncoloured engraved plates, 40 plates in total; plate 40 misbound between plates 10 and 11; both letterpress text sections somewhat browned and foxed, with quite prominent dampstaining affecting upper margins; some staining to plate edges of plate 10, and with some occasional faint dampstaining affecting outer lower margins of later plates, but otherwise plates clean and bright; in contemporary red half morocco over marbled boards, neatly rebacked preserving original spine, spine tooled and lettered in gilt, covers a little scratched and scuffed with later repair to upper outer margin replacing some of the marbling, extremities bumped and rubbed; with the signature of ‘C.P. Mather? Woodchester’ and ‘J.D. Bestwick, 1981’ on front free endpaper, together with Bestwick’s small book-plate; a good copy. First edition of this magnificent and lavishly produced account of the important archaeological discovery made in 1793 by the noted antiquary Samuel Lysons, of a luxurious Roman Villa at Woodchester in Gloucestershire and notable for the famous Orpheus pavement mosaic which dates back to 325 AD. With text in both English and French, this substantial work is accompanied by 40 beautifully executed engravings and aquatints (of which 35 are hand-coloured), including maps of the area, views of the surrounding countryside, and most importantly many of the mosaics discovered. One of the first archaeologists to study Roman sites in Britain, Lysons began excavating the site in 1793. Whilst little remained visible above-ground, during his extensive excavations over three years, Lyson was to unearth a substantial Roman Villa, buried in front of Woodchester’s church, discovering a sizable mosaic together with some fine marble sculptural fragments, all indicating the luxurious nature of the villa. Depicting Orpheus charming all forms of life with his lyre, the mosaic remains as one of the most beautiful ever unearthed, and the second largest of its kind in Europe. Whilst he donated the sculptural pieces to the British Museum, Lysons opted to leave the mosaic in situ. It has only been uncovered seven times since 1880 and remains covered today, although an exact replica was made by two brothers during the 1980s, made up of 1.6 million pieces, and which was subsequently sold to a private buyer. As the present work so vividly highlights, Lysons was a skilled artist, (indeed he was an occasional exhibitor at the Royal Academy) and the very fine aquatint illustrations include three coloured aquatint views of Woodchester, two of which are double-page, as well as several double-page images of the mosaic. Born in 1763, Samuel Lysons (1763-1819), was drawn to antiquarian studies from an early age. Initially studying law in London, he quickly entered London society, becoming acquainted with Horace Walpole, Samuel Johnson, and Sir Joseph Banks, who introduced him to George III and the royal family. He eventually abandoned law and was appointed keeper of records in the Tower of London in 1803, and was elected a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries at the age of only 23 in 1786. In November 1812 he was nominated one of the vice-presidents of the society, and from 1798 to 1809 he held the honorary office of director. He was elected fellow of the Royal Society in February 1797, and was appointed vice-president and treasurer of the society in 1810. He is also remembered for this equally lavish two volume Reliquiae Britannico-Romanae (1801-1817) and his collaboration with his brother Daniel (1762-1834) on Magna Britannia (1806-1822), though this ambitious project was curtailed by Samuel’s death. Abbey Scenery 143; Clarke, Giles, Valerie Rigby, and John D. Shepherd. “The Roman Villa at Woodchester.” Britannia 13 (1982): 197–228. https://doi.org/10.2307/526494.
9950,- EUR Sachgebiete: Altertum, Antike, Archäologie, Kunstgeschichte Kontakt zum
Differenzbesteuert/Subject to margin taxation
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