China: Its History, Arts And Literature
Merchant: Oxfam
Merchant's Category: Media> Books
'China: its History, Arts and Literature' by Captain F. Brinkley. J. B. Millet, 1902. Hardback, 273 pp. Oriental Series, vol. X. "Artists' Edition, limited to 500 numbered and registered copies, of which this is number 212". PS19.99 An admittedly rather grubby copy of this beautifully printed volume. A spillage of some sort has stained the top of the last fifty or so pages. The (luxuriously decorated) binding is scuffed and blotched, and the leather spine has dried out and is beginning to split and flake. But the text is clear and legible, and the both the coloured photographic plates and the exquisite Chinese-style line drawings are in very good condition. At first sight, the title appears to be a bit of a misnomer. One looks in vain for any mention of the glories of Chinese literature or of the country's rich tradition of the visual arts (painting and calligraphy, for instance, or sculpture and ceramics). One is almost inclined to believe that this is a clear case of the Trade Description Act being infringed (except that no such Act existed in 1902). But then one discovers that this is just one of four volumes (volumes 9, 10, 11 and 12) all of which share the same title. To own the compete set of all four would be a real coup; but it would also cost you an arm and a leg. There is to be found here, however, a wealth of historical, geographical and financial information. The author's account of the Opium Wars, for example, is surprisingly balanced for the time. It seems to have belonged to at least two American bibliophiles: Nathan S. Bronson (its original owner) and Seymour Galland. Who it then passed to is unknown, but they don't seem to have treated it with the care and reverence that it deserved. Useless Information (free of charge): the author, who lived much of his adult life in Japan, was Cyril Connolly's great-uncle.
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