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A Way of Seeing. Photographs of New York -
Helen Levitt, James Agee
1965 - The Viking Press, New York - First Edition
A fine first edition, of this important photographic work.
In 1945 Photographer Levitt and Pulitzer Prize winning author James Agee worked together in 1945 on a documentary film shot in Harlem, these photographs were taken on the streets of Harlem and the Lower East Side in the late 1930’s and 1940s, but the project remained unpublished until ‘A Way of Seeing’ in 1965.
In James Agee's words, ‘‘Levitt’s photographs seem to me as beautiful, perceptive, satisfying, and enduring as any lyrical work that I know… an uninsistent but irrefutable manifesto of a way of seeing, and, in a gentle and wholly unpretentious way, a major poetic work’.
‘Since its first publication in 1965, Helen Levitt’s collection of photographs taken on the streets of New York in the 1940s has been a classic of its kind. Produced in collaboration with writer James Agee, who provided the book’s introduction. Levitt’s focus on marginalized children and communities offers a compassionate perspective. His work also set a new standard for authenticity and poetic storytelling in street photography. A Way of Seeing remains a benchmark for those seeking humanity in their images.’ – The 50 Most Influential Photobooks of All Time – Blind Magazine, January 2025.
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Price HK$ 10,000
1965 - The Viking Press, New York - First Edition
A fine first edition, of this important photographic work.In 1945 Photographer Levitt and Pulitzer Prize winning author James Agee worked together in 1945 on a documentary film shot in Harlem, these photographs were taken on the streets of Harlem and the Lower East Side in the late 1930’s and 1940s, but the project remained unpublished until ‘A Way of Seeing’ in 1965.
In James Agee's words, ‘‘Levitt’s photographs seem to me as beautiful, perceptive, satisfying, and enduring as any lyrical work that I know… an uninsistent but irrefutable manifesto of a way of seeing, and, in a gentle and wholly unpretentious way, a major poetic work’.
‘Since its first publication in 1965, Helen Levitt’s collection of photographs taken on the streets of New York in the 1940s has been a classic of its kind. Produced in collaboration with writer James Agee, who provided the book’s introduction. Levitt’s focus on marginalized children and communities offers a compassionate perspective. His work also set a new standard for authenticity and poetic storytelling in street photography. A Way of Seeing remains a benchmark for those seeking humanity in their images.’ – The 50 Most Influential Photobooks of All Time – Blind Magazine, January 2025.
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Price HK$ 10,000
Blondie Iscariot - James Cagney’s Copy -
Edgar Lustgarten
1948 - Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York - First Edition
Legendary crime actor James Cagney’s copy, donated to ‘The Motion Picture Country House’ of Mulholland Drive, Los Angeles. This was a retirement home and hospital set up in the 1940’s for those working in the film industry, it is still in operation today.
A fine copy with final few pages unopened and uncut, in a fine example of the graceful Gitanes’esque illustrated dust jacket.
‘A grim, sardonic story of London’s underworld, of gang rivalry for control of such profitable enterprises as dope-peddling, the dogs, and “protection“’.
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Price HK$ 3,000
1948 - Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York - First Edition
Legendary crime actor James Cagney’s copy, donated to ‘The Motion Picture Country House’ of Mulholland Drive, Los Angeles. This was a retirement home and hospital set up in the 1940’s for those working in the film industry, it is still in operation today.A fine copy with final few pages unopened and uncut, in a fine example of the graceful Gitanes’esque illustrated dust jacket.
‘A grim, sardonic story of London’s underworld, of gang rivalry for control of such profitable enterprises as dope-peddling, the dogs, and “protection“’.
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Price HK$ 3,000
Whisky Galore -
Compton MacKenzie
1947 - Chatto and Windus, London - First Edition
A finely bound first edition of this whisky highlight.
‘Love makes the world go round? Not at all. Whisky makes it go round twice as fast’
It's 1943, and the war has brought rationing to the Hebridean Islands of Great and Little Todday. When food is in short supply, it is bad enough, but when the whisky runs out, it looks like the end of the world. Morale is at rock bottom. George Campbell needs a wee dram to give him the courage to stand up to his mother and marry Catriona. The priest, the doctor, and, of course, the landlord at the inn are all having a very thin time of it. There's no conversation, no jollity, no fun, until a ship-wreck off the coast brings a piece of extraordinary good fortune.
‘The genre of Scotch whisky fiction is not an expansive one, and would barely make a credible Mastermind specialist subject, but one title stands out above all others in terms of its profile with both aficionados and the general public. That title is Whisky Galore’ – Gavin D. Smith, Famous Whisky Drinkers, (ScotchWhisky.com).
‘Compton Mackenzie's timeless text is a triumph. Inspired by the real events of 1941, when a cargo ship ran aground in the channel between Eriskay and South Uist, Whisky Galore is the gentle, comical story of how the booty on board became appropriated by a group of Scottish islanders. ‘ - 100 Best Scottish Books of All Time, The List.
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Price HK$ 4,500
1947 - Chatto and Windus, London - First Edition
A finely bound first edition of this whisky highlight. ‘Love makes the world go round? Not at all. Whisky makes it go round twice as fast’
It's 1943, and the war has brought rationing to the Hebridean Islands of Great and Little Todday. When food is in short supply, it is bad enough, but when the whisky runs out, it looks like the end of the world. Morale is at rock bottom. George Campbell needs a wee dram to give him the courage to stand up to his mother and marry Catriona. The priest, the doctor, and, of course, the landlord at the inn are all having a very thin time of it. There's no conversation, no jollity, no fun, until a ship-wreck off the coast brings a piece of extraordinary good fortune.
‘The genre of Scotch whisky fiction is not an expansive one, and would barely make a credible Mastermind specialist subject, but one title stands out above all others in terms of its profile with both aficionados and the general public. That title is Whisky Galore’ – Gavin D. Smith, Famous Whisky Drinkers, (ScotchWhisky.com).
‘Compton Mackenzie's timeless text is a triumph. Inspired by the real events of 1941, when a cargo ship ran aground in the channel between Eriskay and South Uist, Whisky Galore is the gentle, comical story of how the booty on board became appropriated by a group of Scottish islanders. ‘ - 100 Best Scottish Books of All Time, The List.
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Price HK$ 4,500
The Lady's Assistant for Regulating and Supplying her Table, Being a Complete System of Cookery -
Charlotte Mason
1777 - J. Walter, London - Third Edition
A particularly clean copy of this important but much neglected eighteenth century cookery book. Unusually, the table settings show layouts for more ordinary households as well as affluent ones, and the recipes follow this pattern. Scarce in any early editions.
‘Mrs Mason's lucidly composed English makes her delightful recipes as easy to follow today as they were in the eighteenth century, enabling the adventurous modern cook to re-create the extraordinary food of the Age of George III without a great deal of difficulty. Her fascinating bills of fare are invaluable to historians of food and dining for the insight they afford into the mores of Georgian table service.'
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Price HK$ 8,000
1777 - J. Walter, London - Third Edition
A particularly clean copy of this important but much neglected eighteenth century cookery book. Unusually, the table settings show layouts for more ordinary households as well as affluent ones, and the recipes follow this pattern. Scarce in any early editions.‘Mrs Mason's lucidly composed English makes her delightful recipes as easy to follow today as they were in the eighteenth century, enabling the adventurous modern cook to re-create the extraordinary food of the Age of George III without a great deal of difficulty. Her fascinating bills of fare are invaluable to historians of food and dining for the insight they afford into the mores of Georgian table service.'
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Price HK$ 8,000
Traite Theorique et Pratique du Travail des Vins. Leurs proprietes, leur fabrication, leurs maladies. Fabrication des Vins Mousseux -
Edme-Jules Maumene
1874 - G. Masson, Paris - Deuxieme Edition, Entierement Refondue.
An influential and fundamental work in the history of Champagne production, with text in French, by a pioneering industry chemist and Professor at Reims. In addition to the production of sparkling wines, and a lengthy study on the affects of sugar, this work deals with the properties of wine, manufacture, and their diseases. Also included are descriptions of the efforts made by other chemists, and a bibliography. This work appeared for the first time in 1858 under the title ‘Indications Théoriques et Pratiques sur le Travail des Vins’.
An internally fine unopened and uncut copy with illustrations and tables throughout.
Maumene was intrigued by the large number of exploding bottles, a problem that in some years affected over 60% of bottles in the mid-nineteenth century as Champagne houses battled to produce sufficient mousse to produce a good champagne. It had been supposed that the excess CO2 produced by the addition of too much sugar was the culprit, however Maumene, evaluating this ‘mousse-power’ by measuring the pressure of the CO2 inside the bottle, discovered that different wines produced different amounts of CO2 despite having the same amounts of sugar added.
Building on this work, by the end of the 19th century, Emile Manceau of Moet et Chandon, successfully reduced the breakage of 8-10 percent to 1 percent, and produced some pretty good Champagne to boot.
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Price HK$ 3,500
1874 - G. Masson, Paris - Deuxieme Edition, Entierement Refondue.
An influential and fundamental work in the history of Champagne production, with text in French, by a pioneering industry chemist and Professor at Reims. In addition to the production of sparkling wines, and a lengthy study on the affects of sugar, this work deals with the properties of wine, manufacture, and their diseases. Also included are descriptions of the efforts made by other chemists, and a bibliography. This work appeared for the first time in 1858 under the title ‘Indications Théoriques et Pratiques sur le Travail des Vins’.An internally fine unopened and uncut copy with illustrations and tables throughout.
Maumene was intrigued by the large number of exploding bottles, a problem that in some years affected over 60% of bottles in the mid-nineteenth century as Champagne houses battled to produce sufficient mousse to produce a good champagne. It had been supposed that the excess CO2 produced by the addition of too much sugar was the culprit, however Maumene, evaluating this ‘mousse-power’ by measuring the pressure of the CO2 inside the bottle, discovered that different wines produced different amounts of CO2 despite having the same amounts of sugar added.
Building on this work, by the end of the 19th century, Emile Manceau of Moet et Chandon, successfully reduced the breakage of 8-10 percent to 1 percent, and produced some pretty good Champagne to boot.
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Price HK$ 3,500
Haraszthy at the Mint - Famous Californian Trials, Volume 10 -
Brian McGinty
1975 - Printed by Richard J. Hoffman, Los Angeles - First Edition, limited to 300 copies
Agoston Haraszthy, the ‘father of Californian wine’, best known for his pioneering work in the vineyards of Sonoma, was indicted in 1857 for alleged embezzlement of gold from the San Francisco Mint. He was acquitted of all charges after a four year trial. This is the story of this early adventure in Haraszthy’s colourful and fascinating life.
One of only 300 copies printed, a lovely private press presentation with ten illustrations, and the original advertisement/flier loosely inserted.
‘Decorated initials went out of fashion in the late 18th century as book design became more austere. They returned in modern times with the fine printing renaissance. Brian McGinty’s Haraszthy at the Mint (Los Angeles: Dawson’s Book Shop, 1975), also from the “Law Books Bright and Beautiful” exhibit, is an example.’ – Yale Law School, Lillian Goldman Law Library.
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Price HK$ 2,000
1975 - Printed by Richard J. Hoffman, Los Angeles - First Edition, limited to 300 copies
Agoston Haraszthy, the ‘father of Californian wine’, best known for his pioneering work in the vineyards of Sonoma, was indicted in 1857 for alleged embezzlement of gold from the San Francisco Mint. He was acquitted of all charges after a four year trial. This is the story of this early adventure in Haraszthy’s colourful and fascinating life.One of only 300 copies printed, a lovely private press presentation with ten illustrations, and the original advertisement/flier loosely inserted.
‘Decorated initials went out of fashion in the late 18th century as book design became more austere. They returned in modern times with the fine printing renaissance. Brian McGinty’s Haraszthy at the Mint (Los Angeles: Dawson’s Book Shop, 1975), also from the “Law Books Bright and Beautiful” exhibit, is an example.’ – Yale Law School, Lillian Goldman Law Library.
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Price HK$ 2,000
Statistique de la vigne dans le département de la Côte-d'Or -
Dr. Denis Morelot
1831 - Victor Lagier, Dijon - First Edition
Rare first edition, uncut and unopened, of the first work to attempt any form of classification of vineyards in Burgundy, described by Jancis Robinson as a classic book on Burgundy.
‘Morelot covered the whole of the département, but especially ‘La Côte’, with recognisable descriptions of each village, commending individual vineuard sites as Têtes de Cuvée.The next important work on Burgundy would be that of Dr. Jules Lavallé in 1855 [Histoire et Statistique de la Vigne et des Grands Vins de la Côte-d'Or] - Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy.
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Price HK$ 60,000
1831 - Victor Lagier, Dijon - First Edition
Rare first edition, uncut and unopened, of the first work to attempt any form of classification of vineyards in Burgundy, described by Jancis Robinson as a classic book on Burgundy.‘Morelot covered the whole of the département, but especially ‘La Côte’, with recognisable descriptions of each village, commending individual vineuard sites as Têtes de Cuvée.The next important work on Burgundy would be that of Dr. Jules Lavallé in 1855 [Histoire et Statistique de la Vigne et des Grands Vins de la Côte-d'Or] - Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy.
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Price HK$ 60,000
Boogie-Woogie - Signed -
Danny Moynihan, Damien Hirst
2000 - Duck Editions, London - First Edition, One of 500.
A fine first and limited edition signed by Damian Hirst who designed the dust jacket and by the author Danny Moynihan, art dealer and gallery manager.
‘Art is about life; the art world is about money. Boogie Woogie is where the two collide’ - Damian Hirst.
‘Boogie Woogie is a fast-paced satirical novel that dives into the dark excesses of the international art scene of the 1990s. The movement within the book has a constant beat. Driven by the pursuit of fame, fortune and the 20th century masterpiece, Boogie Woogie reveals the inner workings of these circles through ambition and borderline obsession, sex, money, and drugs’ – Aesthetica.
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Price HK$ 4,000
2000 - Duck Editions, London - First Edition, One of 500.
A fine first and limited edition signed by Damian Hirst who designed the dust jacket and by the author Danny Moynihan, art dealer and gallery manager.‘Art is about life; the art world is about money. Boogie Woogie is where the two collide’ - Damian Hirst.
‘Boogie Woogie is a fast-paced satirical novel that dives into the dark excesses of the international art scene of the 1990s. The movement within the book has a constant beat. Driven by the pursuit of fame, fortune and the 20th century masterpiece, Boogie Woogie reveals the inner workings of these circles through ambition and borderline obsession, sex, money, and drugs’ – Aesthetica.
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Price HK$ 4,000