[Rarebooks] fs: April Fool!

Thu Apr 1 09:04:00 EST 2004

A few satirical items for APRIL FOOL'S DAY...

Born, Ignaz Edler von). MONACHOLOGIA: OR, HANDBOOK OF THE NATURAL HISTORY
OF MAONKS ARRANGED ACCORDING TO THE LINNAEAN SYSTEM. BY A NATURALIST.
Edinburgh; Johnstone and Hunter: 1852. A satire by a scientist and former
Jesuit, first published in 1783. Born (1742-1791) was Austrian by birth
and educated at a Jesuit college in Vienna. He spent 16 months as a member
of the order before leaving, eventually becoming a Freemason. Restless
after leaving the Jesuits he studied law for a time in Prague and then
toured Holland, France and Germany studying mineralogy.

He returned to Prague in 1770, and worked in the department of Mines and
the Mint. In 1776 he returned to Austria and wrote several books on
mineralogy, including a very influential study in 1786 dealing with
extracting precious metals through amalgamation. In addition to his
scientific work, Born was known for his satire, especially of the Jesuits.
In this work he studies the habits and habitats of that most pernicious of
species -the clerical Monk, in a clever send-up of the new Linnaean
system.

Hardcover. 6"x9", 77 pages, lithographed pictorial title page and 4
lithographed plates showing distinguishing characteristics of monks, plus
14 sepia plates of various types of monks in their natural habitats.
Original gilt-pictorial cloth with a gilt-stamped bat holding the title in
a banner; rebacked, with new endpapers and a new spine which matches the
original red cloth. [03639] $250.00

Illustration-
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<http://www.joslinhall.com/images/th-03639-a.jpg>

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Carelman, (Jacques). PETIT SUPPLEMENT A l'ENCYCLOPEDIE DE DIDEROT &
d'ALEMBERT... Paris; Chez Ballard, editeur: 1971. Master of the Absurd and
Silly, artist Jacques Carelman delights in creating objects and
"inventions" that are logical, but supremely over the top -like his radio
controlled iron... In this inventive romp he takes a look at some fairly
mundane 20th century objects and situations, but he does it through the
eyes, and in the graphic style of, the creators of the famous 18th century
"Encyclopedie", Diderot and d'Alembert. If you ever wondered how Diderot's
meticulous, step-by-step drawings would deal with a French 20th century
street riot, a striptease show, or a window washer, well... here is your
chance to find out. Hardcover. 10"x14.5", 161 pages, more or less; b/w
illustrations; light soil. [03988] $80.00

Illustration-<http://www.joslinhall.com/images/th-03988.jpg>

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Evarts, R.C. & E.L. Barron. ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN CAMBRIDGE. Cambridge;
The Harvard Lampoon: 1913. Genial hijinks from the staff of the Harvard
Lampoon using the popular theme of Alice in Wonderland, and illustrated
with amusing Tenniel-like pen and ink drawings. One might suppose that
such undergraduate buffoonery would be unintelligible to people unfamiliar
with Harvard or Cambridge, but, although there is certainly a certain
amount of humor pertaining to Harvard of the day, there is also quite a
bit which is applicable to college and scholarly life in general -the
chapter on the Student Council Meeting, for instance, will be readily
recognizable to almost everyone... Hardcover. 5.25"x6.75", 67 pages, b/w
illustrations; pictorial covers; front cover with a crease and it appears
a mend; a little internal soil and very light spotting to the
preliminaries. [03579] $100.00

Illustration-
<http://www.joslinhall.com/images/th-03579.jpg>

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Stevens, Geo[rge]. Alex[ander]. A LECTURE ON HEADS... with additions by
Mr. Pilon, as delivered by Mr. Charles Lee Lewis, to which is added an
Essay on Satire. With forty-seven heads by Nesbit, from designs by
Thurston. London; Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown: 1821. A New
Edition. Stevens' satiric lecture on heads, fashion, and the whims and
foibles of those who have heads was first performed in 1764, and met with
such popular acclaim that pirated editions soon began to surface. Lewes,
an actor who performed the lecture himself, describes these problems in
his "Address to the Public".

The lecture owes much to Stevens' observant wit, and its popularity into
the 19th century to the craze for physiognomy, which it parodies. Stevens
[1710-1784] was a poet and playwright, but nothing he did ever equaled the
popularity of this lecture. He also achieved some minor note as
(apparently) the person who coined the term "merry-go-round" for
carousels, in a 1729 poem. Hardcover. 4"x6.5", 110 [ii] pages, b/w
frontispiece and line illustrations in the text; nicely bound in dark
brown quarter leather with raised bands and gilt medallions; marbled
boards; slight wear, text a bit browned and with a little soil, but a nice
copy. Binding signed with an embossed "JB". [03580] $250.00

Illustration-
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