The Complete Angler or the Contemplative Man's Recreation. Being a Discourse of Rivers, Fish-Ponds, Fish and Fishing. and Instructions How to Angle for a Trout or Grayling in a Clear Stream. With Original memoirs and Notes by Sir Harris Nicolas.

WALTON, Izaak, & Charles Cotton.

Published by London: William Pickering, 1836

About this Item

First of this edition, edited by the antiquary Sir Harris Nicolas (1799-1848); a lovely set of one of the most desirable editions of Walton and Cotton's piscatorial masterpiece. "One of the best, possibly the very best, of these [editions of The Compleat Angler] was the superb edition edited by Sir Harris Nicolas for Pickering with engravings after Stothard, Inskipp and others. It was printed by Whittingham. and was one of Pickering's most profitable ventures" (Muir, p. 21). The publisher, William Pickering, was himself a keen angler and for this edition commissioned the artist Thomas Stothard to visit Dovedale in the Peak District to make sketches. Percy Muir, Victorian Illustrated Books. Keynes, Pickering Checklist, p. 94. 2 vols, quarto. Portrait frontispiece of Walton, 60 engraved plates or illustrations in the text, headpieces; title pages printed in red and black. Contemporary reddish-brown pebble-grain morocco, richly gilt spines, broad ornamental gilt tooled border on sides, all edges gilt, two line gilt rule turn-ins, yellow coated endpapers. A few light marks to covers, sporadic light foxing. An excellent set.

Seller Inventory # 105534

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Complete Angler or the Contemplative Man's Recreation. Being a Discourse of Rivers, Fish-Ponds, Fish and Fishing. and Instructions How to Angle for a Trout or Grayling in a Clear Stream. With Original memoirs and Notes by Sir Harris Nicolas.
• Publisher: London: William Pickering, 1836