William Harrison Ainsworth - William Harrison Ainsworth - 11 volumes de romans historiques avec provenance historique documentée - 1890-1904

Beautiful uniform set of 11 volumes regrouping the famous historical novels by the Victorian author William Harrison Ainsworth. An edition published at the end of the 19th century by the prestigious London publishing house George Routledge and Sons. These works are particularly sought after for their wonderful full-page illustrations of the period, engraved by renowned artists such as George Cruikshank, Hablot K. Browne (Phiz) or Sir John Gilbert. Exceptional provenance (Included): This lot has a fascinating and fully documented origin story. The books belonged to a certain Mr. Ernest Williams, whose ownership stamp is printed on the endpaper (see photos). Hidden inside the Jack Sheppard volume, an authentic Swiss postcard dated July 2, 1904 was discovered. The postcard, handwritten in French by the director of the prestigious Villa Engiadina (Vulpera, Switzerland), was addressed to this same Mr. Ernest Williams while he was staying in Lucerne. The back of the card shows a captivating postal journey: as the recipient had left his hotel, the card was redirected to Clermont-Ferrand in France, bearing multiple transit postmarks as well as a rare French Chiffre-Taxe stamp. A remarkable time capsule that unites the postcard and this library indissolubly! List of the 11 volumes included: Jack Sheppard (containing the postcard) Crichton The Spendthrift The Flitch of Bacon Auriol (The Elixir of Life) The Miser's Daughter Rookwood Saint James's (The Court of Queen Anne) James the Second (The Revolution of 1688) Mervyn Clitheroe The Star-Chamber. Condition & State: Binding: Publisher's red cloth, richly decorated with black motifs on the boards. Spines feature elegant gilt and black decorations. Top edges gilt. Condition: Good overall antiquarian condition. Bindings remain tight and firm. Clean interiors with some typical age-related foxing. Note: a classic sunning on the spines which have faded to a lighter pink/beige tone, very common for this specific red cloth edition.