Portraits of the Spruggins Family. [SNEYD (Walter) and PARKER (Frances, Countess of Morley)].

ARRANGED BY RICHARD SUCKLETHUMKIN SPRUGGINS ESQ

Portraits of the Spruggins Family, Arranged by Richard Sucklethumkin Spruggins, Esq.

46 lithograph plates, including two facsimiles and a printed genealogical table.

First Edition. 4to. [292 x 228 x 23 mm]. [76] pp. Bound c.1960 in green calf, the covers with a border of a double gilt fillet, a gilt roll, and a blind dotted fillet. The spine divided into six fillets with gilt tooled raised bands, lettered in the second and dated at the foot, the others with centres and corners, green endleaves, uncut edges. (Slightly rubbed).

1829

Upper outer corner of the title neatly replaced, one plate with neatly repaired tear, short tear at foot of frontispiece, some minor spotting and a little dust soiling. A good copy.

Privately printed and recorded in John Martin's Bibliographical Catalogue of Privately Printed Books (1854), p.374, with a note: "The authorship of this clever volume has been erroneously attributed to the Dowager Countess of Morely. Her Ladyship's share consisted in lithographing the drawings, but the text was by a writer unknown to the editor". The writer turned out to be a young Walter Sneyd (1809-1888) of Keele Hall.

The Portraits self-mockingly illustrate the fictitious Spruggins family who are about to enter the Age of Reform. The work is styled on the more pompous genealogical works printed at the dawn of the century.

Stock no. ebc9016