AMERICAN PATENT MEDICINE: [Manuscript] Storer family common place album of drawings, watercolors, poetry, engravings [Cambridge, UK], np, ca. 1840, 4to., full contemp. crushed red morocco. Fifteen engravings, drawings, watercolors. Unique. See DNB for notices of James and Henry S Storer. A very good copy; binding somewhat rubbed; front hinge broken. An attractive and important example of a Victorian common place album (105 leaves) from a distinguished family that included topographical author and engraver James Sargent Storer (1771 - 1853) author of ' The Antiquarian Itinerary ' and other works, and his son Henry Sargant Storer (1795 - 1837) author of numerous topographical works, together with other relations Anne Storer, Selina Storer, and Ernest Storer all of whom were engravers. All are represented throughout the album with poems, watercolors, drawings, and engravings. Notable among these are: 1] a full length watercolor portrait of the American giant and patent - medicine street pedlar James Henry Lambier that is signed and dated by Lambier accompanied by his published autobiographical pamphlet; 2] ' Tom Thumb from America ' a watercolor to scale; 3] A finished portrait of the Rev. John Blackburn in his pulpit; 4] a dialog and watercolor ' Ghost of a spaniel appearing .... ' ; 5] a watercolor of the interior of a church; 6] three watercolor views of Cambridge; 7] full length watercolor portrait of an oriental man with a facing page of Tamil script; 8] two watercolor village scenes by Anne Storer; 9] watercolors and etching of an unusual rose by Anne Storer; 10] an impressive pencil sketch of a lion devouring a stag by Ernest Storer; 11] a watercolor rendering and account of the poisonous Upas tree; 12] engraved portrait of Rev. Dr. Medrehi (prof. of oriental languages) that is signed and inscribed; 13] at least one engaving from each of the family members. Accompanying the album is the contemporaneously published autobiographical pamphlet : The American, J H Lambier .... The NSTC lists only the BLC copy that is a much later printing; OCLC lists a single defective copy at the Wellcome.

$12,000.