CHARLES

A significant letter, filling gaps in the provenance of Bellini's Crucifixion, now in the Louvre. All that has been known hitherto about the painting's provenance is that at the beginning of the twentieth century it was in the Paris collection of the banker Rodolphe Kann, and that before the Second World War it was owned by the Florentine dealer Alessandro Contini Bonacossi, from whose heirs it was acquired by the Louvre in 1970.

Eight items, in good condition on aged paper, with the three photographic illustrations darkened. In blue card folder. ONE: Mimeographed typed biography of 'Ronald Victor Brian Branston'. On BBC Press Service letterhead; May 1965. 1p., 4to. TWO: Mimeographed typed 'Who's Who'. 2pp., foolscap 8vo. With entries on nine balloonists (from Albert van den Bemden to Anthony Smith, and including Charles Dollfus, 'curator of France's air museum') and two passengers. THREE: Mimeographed typed 'Topographical Background'. 2pp., foolscap 8vo.

LETTER: 3pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, on aged and worn paper. Kitton writes that he has received two copies of the Book Buyer for March, and is 'much interested' in it for two reasons: 'Mrs. Garlands flattering comments upon myself and my work', and 'a very generous notice of my latest Dickens production'. He finds illustrations 'excellently reproduced', and praises 'the careful attention that has obviously been bestowed upon the preparation of both blocks and letterpress'. Turning to another matter, he notes 'a query (no.

A substantial letter, 3pp., foolscap 8vo. 100 lines of text. Bifolium. In very good condition, on aged paper, with one closed along crease line neatly repaired with archival tape. Addressed on reverse of second leaf, with Chatham postmark, frank, and black wax seal, to 'Viscount Ingestrie M:P. | 2 Wilton Crescent | Belgrave Square | London'. An interesting document, in which a distinguished Victorian naval architect makes detailed criticisms of an innovation in his field. (HMS Gorgon was designed by Sir William Symonds and launched in 1837.

99 + [3] pp., 4to, of which 31pp. are original photographs, on grey card mounts, each with tissue guard and manuscript caption in white ink. A further five small photographs laid down on pages of the typed text. In very good condition, on aged paper, in modern green leather quarter-binding with cloth boards and misleading title on spine 'THE BUDGET | CAMBRIDGE' In a contemporary hand on leaf preceding title-page: 'Please return to | Chas Nunneley | (Room 1, 3rd Floor) | A & R Branch | A. G. Dept | General Post Office (North) | (London) | E.C. | or to | C. O.

Both items in good condition, on lightly-aged paper. ONE (letter): 1p., 12mo. In a neat and elegant hand, it reads: 'Tuesday Night | Dear Laura | I send the tickets; as Goldsmith sent the portion of Lord Clare's haunch of venison to Sir Joshua - | "To paint it or eat it, whichever he pleased" | I am glad you like the Philharmonia | Your affecte. Friend | John Hullah'. TWO (cutting of sheet music): Written in pencil on one side of a 6.5 x 15 cm piece of paper, docketted 'Written by John Hullah 1861 | for

'. With a few words in Hullah's hand at head.

1p., 4to. Bifolium, addressed on reverse of second leaf to 'The Revd Mr Cory | Blithfield'. In good condition, on aged paper, with small closed tear in top left-hand corner. He informs Cory that Lord Bagot and his family will be visiting him, and playfully reminds him: 'You will recollect you owe me a Visit, at least you said you wd. favor me with your Company some day or another - I think you will never find us so pleasant as when surrounded by your excellent Blithfield friends.' He concludes by urging him to 'come & try our Air, which is said to be good'.

The two documents are on 33 x 24 cm pieces of vellum, and are pinned together. Both in very good condition. Both are printed forms, made out by the signatory. Bramwell's certificate begins (with the manuscript portions in square brackets): 'These are to Certify that on the [Twenty eighth] day of [March] in the year one thousand eight hundred and sixty-[one] before me the undersigned [Sir George William Wilshere Bramwell Knight one of the Barons of Her Majestys Court of Exchequer] Appeared personally [Catherine Stein] the Wife of [Peter Stein] and produced a certain Indenture marked [A]'.

The certificate is 1p., 4to, on the recto of the first leaf of a bifolium. It reads: 'I hereby Certify that on the twenty-first day of April, One Thousand Eight hundred & sixty five, Walter Stevenson Davidson of No. 16 St. James's Street, Esquire, is a registered Proprietor in the Books of the Peel River Land & Mineral Company Limited of Sixty five thousand pounds (£65,000) Consolidated Stock. | C. A. Aylmer. | Secy.' The recto of the second leaf carries the following: '21st. Apl 1865 | Memo. | Mr.

2 vols: xix + [1] + 288; ix + 263. With frontispieces to both volumes (both with tissue guards) and the eleven other plates called for. First edition, first issue, with the plate facing p.238 of vol.2 in its first state (without the 'grotesque' border), and the 36-page undated publisher's catalogue bound-in at the end of vol.2. In primary binding of pink cloth with floral pattern, and the gilt titles on the spine held up by an image of a clown.

Both items in good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Purdie's letter: 4pp., 4to. Closely and neatly written on a bifolium, with the last page cross-written over the third. Addressed, with postmarks and red wax seal, to 'G. P. Nicholson Esqre. | Wath | nr Rotherham'.

1p., 4to. In very good condition, on lightly-aged paper. With envelope, addressed by Cubitt to 'C F Stuart Esqre | 20 New Norfolk Street | Park Lane', with red wax seal and postmarks, and docketted 'Mr Cubitt. Engineer'. He has received Stuart's letter of 17 May, and has 'since seen Mr. Buchanan with all the Reports Plans Instr[ucti]ons &c &c relative to the question of interference with Lord Blantyre's property', and he will 'more fully examine' them 'during the recess of Parliament'. He has 'also seen & consulted with Mr.

1p., 12mo. In very good condition, on lightly-aged paper. 'If you would ever care to look round King Edward's very archaic Oxford abode, I can shew you it, with engravings of its details in his day - coloured and otherwise. It is a nice old house - half Elizabethan, half Queen Anne.' He concludes by explaining that he is 'at Westminster all the middle days of the week, save in the recess', and so requires notice. From the H. E. Wortham papers.

[16]pp., 8vo, discreet stab-holes, good condition. Presumably this item was once bound in to an issue of a periodical. Four copies are listed on COPAC/WorldCat.

Printed in black on piece of purple paper, 27 x 14 cm. In good condition, laid down on a leaf removed from a contemporary album, with the date '1881' written beside it. The first paragraph sets the tone: 'LORD RANDOLPH CHURCHILL rose to ask Her Majesty's Government a question as to the state of Public Business, and the probable date of the Prorogation of Parliament.

1p., 12mo. Good, on lightly-aged paper. 'Allow me to thank you and through you the members of the Hertfordshire Arts Society for your kind congratulations upon the honour the King confers upon me and upon the Gallery in the work of which I am privileged to assist'.

1p., 12mo. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. He writes to apologise that he 'cannot get away to see the Holbein' at the previously arranged time, because he has a meeting with 'my accounting officer'. He suggests an alternative time, and apologises 'heartily for my mistake'.

On one side of slip of 6 x 18 cm paper. In fair condition, aged, and with traces of mount adhering to reverse. Apparently concerning an enormous sum of money, the receipt reads: 'Registered upon the Register appointed to be kept by the Act within mentioned & payable there upon of

The eight items show signs of damp damage, with flaking and some loss of text. Four of the eight are made out for specific individuals, and four for groups of persons, are each foolscap 8vo, with five of them 1p. long, and three of them 2pp. long. Each written on the first leaf of a bifolium, and each addressed on the reverse of the second leaf 'To the Honble: Charles Compton Esqr. Paymaster of His Majts: Pensions'. Seven of the receipts are signed (all from Treasury Chambers) by either 'J.

1p., 8vo. On bifolium. In fair condition, on aged paper with a few small closed tears to edges. Addressed on reverse of second leaf, with broken red wax seal, Penny Red stamp and postmarks, to: 'Revd. Dr. Wiseman, | St. Mary's College | Oscott | Nr. Birmingham'. 22 lines of text, closely and neatly written. Daly begins: 'I am sorry to trouble you by laying before you the Letters [not present] of a man of the name of Thomas Male - Bookseller & Bookbinder residing at St. Mary's, who has by representing himself as patronized by you got Credit from me to the Amount of £11 . 9 .

1p., 12mo. Good, on lightly-aged paper. Addressed to 'J. Sainsbury Esq'. The letter reads: 'Dear Sir | My friend, Mr Charles Smith, is engaged by Mr. Colborn to engrave the portraits of Sir Hudson Lowe, Madame Bertrand and M.

On a cut-down piece of 4 x 15 cm paper. Laid down on part of leaf from album. In fair condition, on aged paper. Reads 'Mr Townley. | with Mr Brand Hollis | compliments'.

2pp., 4to. 18 lines of text. In bifolium. Good, on aged and creased paper, with strip of page to which the letter was attached adhering. Addressed, with red wax seal, on reverse of second leaf, to 'R. Balmanno Esqre. | 3 Middle Temple Lane Temple'. He begins: 'Having some communication last week with Mr. Charles Heath in the course of conversation he was regretting that he could not procure any proofs of plates engaraved by Mr. Raimbach - now as your Kindness gained me what I wished of his performance with an obliging offer of something more it occurred to me to solicit fom Mr.

2pp., 4to. Bifolium. In good condition, on lightly aged and creased paper. The letter begins: 'For your letter of November you gave me to think that a Meeting of Adam Ogilvies Trustees would be after Martinmas. I now see that could not take place, but I want to see how his matters stand as your Rents and the Roup Bills will all be come in.

Both letters 1p., 4to, and both addressed, with two postmarks, on the reverse, to 'John Jackson Esqr. M.P. | New Broad Street | London'. Both are docketted by Jackson. ONE: Headed by accounts of payments by Sir William Forbes and Messrs Robert Stein & Co, totalling £4600 14s 3d, against the shares of Lord Keith and 'Miss Mercer Elphinstone'. In the letter Mercer explains that Stein's share is for 'his Rent to Lord Keith'.

Surprisingly little appears to have been written about the public baths at 12 Nicolson Square, Edinburgh; with no references to it on the Scottish Archives Network. There is however an informative reference to the subject in Francis H. Groome's 'Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland' (1884): 'Good public baths, of various kinds and various extent, for the upper and the middle classes, are in several parts both of the city and its environs. Public baths for the working classes were long a desideratum, though earnestly desired by many of the working classes themselves.

4pp., 16mo. Bifolium with mourning border. In fair condition, on aged paper. She begins by explaining the reasons for her silence, and apologising if she has 'seemed neglectful': 'the truth is that I quitted Chester Squr on Monday, for Miss Squire's of Blackheath [...] I return to London to morrow mg, to spend a few days with Mr. Murray's [publisher] family in Albemarle St. & then think of takg the railroad to Derby [opened in 1844] to fulfil a long promised visit.' The letter continues with references to 'Mrs Reese Sr.' of Chester Square, 'dear Kath:' and 'dear Matty'.

The three items are all in very good condition, on lightly-aged paper, with slight marking from rusty paperclips. Manuscript: 13pp., 4to. On 13 leaves, paginated 1-13. With a few emendations and corrections. The two typescripts, both well typed, have different layouts to one another. First (smaller) Typescript: 9pp., 4to. Second (larger) Typescript: Carbon copy. 9pp., 4to. The article begins: '"The iniquity of oblivion blindly scattereth her poppy . . .

1p., 4to. Very good, on lightly-aged paper. A letter of recommendation for 'Mr Svederus, Chapellain du Roy de Suede, qui va a Paris pour quelques mois, et qui est recommandé au Ministre Suedois'. Woide explains that he became acquainted with Svederus during his stay in London, which lasted almost a whole year. He concludes by sending his regards to six individuals, beginning with 'Mr de Guines'.

2pp., 12mo. In good condition, on aged paper, tipped in onto a card mount. He explains that he is 'obliged to return to London immediately after the delivery of my Lecture in Glasgow', and so will not be able 'to address the audience you bring together'. If he is 'asked to take part in the Glasgow Science Lectures' the following year, he will bear Hopps's wish in mind. Hopps was both an evolutionist and spiritualist, while Carpenter considered the claims of spiritualism 'epidemic delusions'.