Property of a LadyAlbert Millican AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT of 'Adventures, Travels and Experiences of an Orchid Collector in South America', c.1890 manuscript on paper, 4to (222 x 178mm.), 192 numbered leaves, mounted photograph portrait frontispiece signed by the author, 52 ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS, all mounted, 4 full-page watercolour drawings by botanical artist J.L. Macfarlane, a group of proof illustrations loosely inserted at end, contemporary calf lettered in gilt [Idem.] Travels and Adventures of an Orchid Hunter. London: Cassell & Company, 1891, FIRST EDITION, 8vo (213 x 133mm.), AUTHOR'S COPY, chromolithographed frontispiece, 21 plates, illustrations in the text, original pictorial blue cloth gilt, label removed from upper cover WITH: a collection of thirteen letters (including 3 AUTOGRAPH LETTERS SIGNED from Millican in Colombia) relating to plant hunting (“I have been 2 months seeking Mendelli & have only got 14 cases – it is almost impossible to find plants in all the old districts, they have been taken”), the publication and distribution of the book, and a receipt for 452 copies of the book “The life of the orchid-hunter is a hard and a dangerous one. He has to journey vast distances, and to endure great fatigue and tribulation,—in fact, he takes his life in his hand. Mr. Millican and his party met with dangers of a very real kind, from malaria, wild beasts, and the attacks of hostile Indians, whose poisoned arrows slew one of his comrades at his side” (The Spectator, 6 August 1892). A FASCINATING ARCHIVE OF MATERIAL DESCRIBING SOUTH AMERICAN ORCHID HUNTING AT ITS HEIGHT, including the illustrated autograph manuscript of Millican’s colourful memoir. Millican was one of the orchid hunters who fuelled orchidelirium, the extraordinary Victorian passion for these exotic plants. He scoured the jungles of Latin America for rare and new species, which were then shipped back to Europe. Millican was a sharp and lively witness to this strange trade and was conscious of its devastating environmental impact, describing the widespread destruction of local habitats as orchids were systematically rooted out of vast areas and noting how orchids did not return to the areas which had been stripped. Orchid hunting was also a notoriously dangerous business: Millican was stabbed to death on his final expedition. PROVENANCE: By family descent from the author to the present ownerCondition reportCondition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The
Property of a LadyAlbert Millican AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT of 'Adventures, Travels and Experiences of an Orchid Collector in South America', c.1890 manuscript on paper, 4to (222 x 178mm.), 192 numbered leaves, mounted photograph portrait frontispiece signed by the author, 52 ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS, all mounted, 4 full-page watercolour drawings by botanical artist J.L. Macfarlane, a group of proof illustrations loosely inserted at end, contemporary calf lettered in gilt [Idem.] Travels and Adventures of an Orchid Hunter. London: Cassell & Company, 1891, FIRST EDITION, 8vo (213 x 133mm.), AUTHOR'S COPY, chromolithographed frontispiece, 21 plates, illustrations in the text, original pictorial blue cloth gilt, label removed from upper cover WITH: a collection of thirteen letters (including 3 AUTOGRAPH LETTERS SIGNED from Millican in Colombia) relating to plant hunting (“I have been 2 months seeking Mendelli & have only got 14 cases – it is almost impossible to find plants in all the old districts, they have been taken”), the publication and distribution of the book, and a receipt for 452 copies of the book “The life of the orchid-hunter is a hard and a dangerous one. He has to journey vast distances, and to endure great fatigue and tribulation,—in fact, he takes his life in his hand. Mr. Millican and his party met with dangers of a very real kind, from malaria, wild beasts, and the attacks of hostile Indians, whose poisoned arrows slew one of his comrades at his side” (The Spectator, 6 August 1892). A FASCINATING ARCHIVE OF MATERIAL DESCRIBING SOUTH AMERICAN ORCHID HUNTING AT ITS HEIGHT, including the illustrated autograph manuscript of Millican’s colourful memoir. Millican was one of the orchid hunters who fuelled orchidelirium, the extraordinary Victorian passion for these exotic plants. He scoured the jungles of Latin America for rare and new species, which were then shipped back to Europe. Millican was a sharp and lively witness to this strange trade and was conscious of its devastating environmental impact, describing the widespread destruction of local habitats as orchids were systematically rooted out of vast areas and noting how orchids did not return to the areas which had been stripped. Orchid hunting was also a notoriously dangerous business: Millican was stabbed to death on his final expedition. PROVENANCE: By family descent from the author to the present ownerCondition reportCondition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The
Try LotSearch and its premium features for 7 days - without any costs!
Be notified automatically about new items in upcoming auctions.
Create an alert
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
