Catalogue Seven

Various . From late 1970s.Description:A small collection of books and manuscripts belonging to David Kirke, the founder of The Dangerous Sports Club (DSC). Starting with a bungee jump on April Fool's Day 1979, the DSC went on, over the next decade or so, to embark on high profile, hazardous acts such as skiing down a mountain on a grand piano (an attempt to do the same with a double-decker London bus was banned), hang-gliding from active volcanoes and early BASE jumping. The collection is as follows: 1. Notebook (196x128mm). Bound in quarter leatherette and red cloth. 316pp of manuscript.

New York: The Publishers' Printing Company. 1901.First edition. 175x120mm. pp. xviii, 138. Original red cloth, lettered in gilt to upper cover. Some marking and soiling to boards, rubbing to edges and slight fraying to head and foot of spine. Internally very good and overall a nice copy of a book which is rare in commerce, no copies appearing in the auction records. Eleanor Kirk (1831-1908) was an extraordinary woman who wrote curious books.

n.p. [Trevecca?] . 1780.  First edition. 8vo in 4s. 188x117mm. pp. viii, 134, [2]. Nineteenth century half calf, marbled paper covered boards, slightly bumped and rubbed. Internally a little browned but overall a very good copy of a rare book. We have traced only two at auction, eight copies on JISC Library Hub, and a further five in Worldcat. Tipped in are two manuscript documents (seven pages in total) by Jones himself.

Penrith: Printed and published by J. Brown.. 1809-10.First edition. 8vo. 255x160mm. pp. 448. Contemporary blue-grey boards, grey paper backstrip, pages uncut. Protected by a loose buckram cover and housed in a slipcase. Repair to spine, joints and to hinges at the gutter. Surface crack to spine, corners slightly worn. Internally very good but with some marking and foxing and a little crinkling to the edges of some leaves. Each issue has the revenue duty stamp. Front pastedown has book label of Mary Elizabeth Hudson and the very discreet label W.A.S. which is William A.

London: George Routledge and Sons. 1873.First edition. 8vo. 160x100mm. pp. [2 adverts], viii, 184, [2, adverts]. Pastedowns are publisher's adverts. Original illustrated paper covered board with an image of the Union Flag and the Stars and Stripes. Edges and corners worn, paper on spine is torn with loss. Hinges cracked but holding and would benefit from a little repair. Rare, JISC Library Hub locating four copies in UK institutions (BL, NLS, Oxford and Cambridge) with Worldcat adding two more (NYPL and Australian National University) and no copies in the auction records.

London: The Mitre Press. n.d. [1957/8].First edition. 8vo 183x122mm. pp. 64. Original bright blue cloth lettered in gilt with original illustrated dust jacket. Some very minor marking and rubbing to the jacket and slight soiling to the spine. Internally there is some mild foxing in one or two places but overall a very good copy. Rare in commerce and with eight copies recorded institutionally. Frieda Harris was, in the words of her husband "an artist and a good one.

Fair Oak, near Kingsclere: Privately published by the author. 1931.Limited edition. Number two of thirty copies, this is one of the twenty four uncoloured copies, printed on Hollingworth paper, the first page printed in red. 385x275mm. pp. [10], 16, [8]. Seven full-page lithographed plates and other illustrations in the text. Original tan half morocco, cloth covered boards. Upper cover stamped in gilt with a figure of nude boy and lettered in gilt. Spine lettered in gilt. Rubbing to head and foot of spine and to joints.