(Automata) | Six works on "Superb and Magnificent Pieces of Mechanism"

(Automata)
A group of six works

[Cox, James]. A Descriptive Catalogue of the … Pieces of Mechanism and Jewellery, exhibited in the Museum, at Spring-Gardens, Charing-Cross. London: [James Cox], 1772. 18mo (175 x 111 mm). Title, folding frontispiece; stray spots, handwritten marginalia. Later grey boards; small tear to spine foot. — [Cox, James]. A Descriptive Catalogue of the … Pieces of Mechanism and Jewellery, exhibited in Mr. Cox’s Museum. London: [James Cox], 1772. 8vo (220 x 170 mm). Title; browning and soiling to title, small marginal tears, long closed tear to one page affecting text. Later grey boards, spine lettered “Mr. Cox’s Museum—1772,” a little sunning to hinges. [With]: photocopies of titles and contents of other printings [and] ephemera. — [Rackstrow, Benjamin]. A Descriptive Catalogue … of Rackstrow’s Museum. [London]: np, 1787. 8vo (220 x 140 mm). Title; soiling to title, foxed especially at initial and terminal pages, terminal page with paper flaw affecting text. Later grey boards, paper label to spine; spine a little faded, a little fingersoiling to boards. [With]: photocopied letter to Ricky Jay pertaining to Rackstrow [and] note in Ricky Jay’s hand on Jay’s Journal of Anomalies letterhead. — Weeks, Thomas. Le prix fix … Weeks’s Museum. [London]: Henry Reynell, [ca. 1806]. Pamphlet of bifolia (120 x 80 mm). Stray spots. Disbound, loosely inserted in green wrapper; stray stains to wrapper. In folding chemise inside linen-backed boards, “Week’s” to spine and “Week’s Museum” to upper board in pencil. — Tietz, Georges. Description du Musée Mécanique. Np, [ca. 1853]. Pamphlet of bifolia, sewn (200 x 133 mm). Folding frontispiece, nine full-page plates, one folding; one or two stray spots, light offsetting from plates to text on some pages. In original printed wrappers; a little browned, tear to upper wrapper at spine head. In folding chemise with magnetic closure. — [Droz, Pierre-Jacquet, Henri-Louis Droz]. Np, [ca. 1853]. Pamphlet of bifolia, sewn (170 x 108 mm). Blue wrappers; wrapper with a few creases. [With]: Printed translation.

A collection of scarce early works on automata, including thorough, descriptive catalogues of automata held at museums, and accounts of exhibitions on view.

"The beauty of the scenes, the variety of the figures, and the multiplicity of the motions, it is hoped will yield that satisfaction which the generous breast can only feel, on viewing the humblest efforts of the imitative arts."

Sold as group lot, not subject to return.

Condition Report:
Condition as described in catalogue entry.

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