Rare Book Monthly
Book Catalogue Reviews - July - 2010 Issue
Art and Architecture from Sotheran's
An illustration from the memoir of the Croton Aqueduct.
Item 123 is A Memoir Of The Construction, Cost And Capacity Of The Croton Aqueduct...Together With An Account Of The Civic Celebration Of The Fourteenth October, 1842, On The Occasion Of The Completion Of The Great Work... published in 1843. By the 1830s, New York City, Manhattan Island in particular, had experienced enormous growth. Wells were no longer sufficient to provide water, and local rivers had become increasingly polluted. The city desperately needed water from rural areas to the north. A decision was made to tap the Croton River, 41 miles away, to provide water for the city. Construction began in 1837, and five years later, water began to flow. The author of this account of the planning, construction, and later celebrations of the completion of the aqueduct is Charles King, New York politician, journalist, and later President of Columbia University. £355 (US $514).
One doesn't usually think of Britain as a location for Roman ruins, but the isles were for several centuries under Roman rule, and occasionally they do show up. Such was the case for farmer George Tupper, who happened upon part of an old Roman fountain while plowing his fields. Tupper called in people more expert in the field, including antiquary Samuel Lysons. After four years of excavations, Lysons published this book to help explain what had been found to the scores of visitors who regularly came to view the ancient ruins: An Account Of The Remains Of A Roman Villa Discovered At Bignor In The County Of Sussex, In The Year 1811, And Four Following Years, published in 1815. Item 134. £225 (US $325).
Item 221 is an account of another architectural wonder, though a much later one: The Cathedral of Commerce, published in 1921. This is a souvenir brochure from New York's Woolworth Building, at the time the tallest building in the world. Construction began in 1910 and completed in 1913. It was owned by the Woolworth Company, the one-time huge "five and dime" variety retailer (the last Woolworth's closed in the 1990s though the firm survives today as Foot Locker). The structure is 58 stories tall, and remained the world's tallest building until 1930. £65 (US $94).
Sotheran's may be reached at 020 7439 6151 or cjc@sotherans.co.uk. Their website is found at www.sotherans.co.uk.
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