Search preferences

Product Type

Condition

Binding

Collectible Attributes

Seller Location

Seller Rating

  • Seller image for MEMOIRS OF THE LIFE OF THE LATE JOHN MYTTON, ESQ.; of Halston, Shropshire.with notices of his hunting, shooting, driving racing, eccentric and extravagant exploits.reprinted with considerable additions from the New Sporting Magazine. for sale by Our Kind Of Books

    Hardcover. Condition: Good. No Jacket. This book is in very good condition. No publication date stated. Rubbing to the top and bottom of the spine as shown in the photo. Otherwise a very good clean copy free from inscriptions, markings or damage to the pages, which are in excellent condition for their age. We are very happy to provide additional photos. Please feel free to contact us.

  • Seller image for The Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq. of Halston, Shropshire . . . Reprinted (with considerable Additions) from the New Sporting Magazine for sale by White Fox Rare Books, ABAA/ILAB

    Three Quarters Morocco. Condition: Very Good Minus. Henry Alken and T. J. Rawlins (illustrator). N.d., circa 1900. 4to. 26 by 17 cm. xxvi, 234 pp. 20 color plates. Condition: leather rubbed, and somewhat raw along edges. Corner chip to leather on rear board. Slight drabness to leather besides. Interior: light foxing to prelims and fore-edge. Otherwise, clean and tight.

  • Nimrod. Charles James Apperley

    Published by Ackermann, London, 1851

    Seller: Neil Holliday, Dymock, United Kingdom

    Seller Rating: 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

    Contact seller

    Book

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    Hardcover. Condition: Generally V.good. Henry Alken and T.J.Rawlins (illustrator). Third Edition. The sought after third edition which contains the Brief Memoir of Nimrod. 18 hand coloured plates plus frontis by Alken and Rawlins. Later full red leather binding, gold rules to front and rear. Raised bands, gilt dec. panels and titles. Gilt dentelles. Slight wear to rebacked spine, rear cover detached but undamaged. Armorial ex-lib to front pastedown. Original gilt dec. cover bound in at rear. No advert pages. Tissue guards to all plates, one has some light ink tracing, not offensive. AEG. A generally very good copy of a sought after edition of this title.

  • Seller image for The Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq. of Halston, Shropshire . . . Reprinted (with considerable Additions) from the New Sporting Magazine for sale by White Fox Rare Books, ABAA/ILAB

    Condition: Very Good Plus. Henry Alken and T. J. Rawlins (illustrator). Third edition. 4to. 24.5 by 15.5 cm. ix, [1], 218, 8 pp. (Final 8 pages are publisher's catalogue list.) With18 magnificent hand-colored, aquatint plates by Alken. Full red calf binding by Bayntun. With original publisher's green pebbled cloth, stamped in gilt on front and spine, bound in. Modern custom slipcase and chemise, both with morocco trim and spine title label. Slipcase with plain paper pastedown, the chemise, with a marbled paper pastedown. This edition contains 6 plates more than first edition, and also has three replacement plates, for a total of 9 new plates. The title page is also engraved. Condition: spine sunned. Light rubbing of joints. Light scattered foxing, but overall, the interior reads clean. Slight soiling on the slipcase. Full Calf. Slipcase and chemise.

  • Hardcover. Condition: VG-. Dust Jacket Condition: No Dust Jacket. Illustrated by Henry Alken (illustrator). First Edition. Rare First Edition. Rebacked copy using original brown cloth, with bright gilt title on front cover. Light fading of color to edges of cloth. Previous owner's name label on pastedown. Bright, clean interior pages with 12 stunning, brightly colored, tissue guarded plates. ; 8vo; 110 pages; Glass case.

  • Seller image for The Chace, The Turf, and the Road for sale by Louis88Books (Members of the PBFA)

    Charles J. APPERLEY [NIMROD] Henry ALKEN, , illustrator

    Published by London: John Murray, 1837

    Seller: Louis88Books (Members of the PBFA), Andover, United Kingdom

    Association Member: PBFA

    Seller Rating: 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

    Contact seller

    Book First Edition Signed

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    Hardcover. Condition: Good. No Jacket. 1st Edition. London: John Murray, 1837. First Edition [ALKEN, Henry, illustrator]. NIMROD (pseud. of Charles J. Apperley). The Chace, The Turf, and the Road. With Illustrations by Henry Alken, and a Portrait by D. Maclise. First edition in book form, originally serially published in the Quarterly Review. Octavo (8 3/4 x 5 3/8 in; 223 x 135 mm). xx, 301pp, [1, printer's slug], [18, separately numbered publisher's catalogues] pp. Thirteen partially hand-coloured plates, some in aquatint, with tissue guards, and plain, stipple-engraved portrait frontispiece. Elegant half leather binding, green cloth boards, gilt titles and decoration. Gilt decorated spine. The signed page has been laid onto another page or rebacked. Plates heavily oxidised. Charles James Apperley (1777-1843), English sportsman and sporting writer, better known as Nimrod, the pseudonym under which he published his works on the chase and on the turf. A devoted fox-hunter, around 1821 Apperley began to contribute a series of articles to The Sporting Magazine, under the pseudonym of "Nimrod," that covered horse races, hunt meets and other sporting events. His references to the personalities of the people he knew or met at such events helped to double the circulation of the magazine within a few years. Mr. Pittman, the proprietor of The Sporting Magazine, gave Nimrod a handsome salary and defrayed all the expenses of his tours. He also gave Nimrod a stud of hunters. After Pittman's death, the proprietors of the magazine sued Apperley for the money that had been advanced. To avoid imprisonment, Apperley moved to Calais in 1830, where he supported himself by writing. Apperley is best known for his two books, The Life of a Sportsman, and Memoirs of the Life of John Mytton, both of which were illustrated with colored engravings by Henry Thomas Alken. Apperley eventually returned to England and died in Upper Belgrave Place, London, on 19 May 1843. The Plates: 1. Preparing to Start. 2. Getting Well Off. 3. The Race - Epsom. 4. The Melton Hunt. 5. Getting Away. 6. A Queerish Place. 7. A Pull Up. 8. The Lane. 9. Whissendine Brook. 10. The Death. 11. It's The Comet, &c. 12. The Regulator. 13. The Quicksilver Mail. Condition Report Externally Spine good condition gilt titles and decoration, raised bands. Joints good condition minor wear. Corners good condition. Boards good condition green cloth. Page edges good condition top edge gilt. See above and photos. Internally Hinges good condition good and solid. Paste downs good condition marbled. End papers good condition marbled. Title good condition heavily oxidised (foxed). Pages good condition some foxing, heavy to plates. Binding good condition attractive. See photos Publisher: see above. Publication Date: 1837. Inscribed by Author(s).

  • Seller image for Chace, The Turf, and the Road, The for sale by David Brass Rare Books, Inc.

    [ALKEN, Henry, illustrator]; NIMROD; APPERLEY, Charles J.

    Published by London: John Murray, 1837, 1837

    Seller: David Brass Rare Books, Inc., Calabasas, CA, U.S.A.

    Association Member: ABAA ILAB

    Seller Rating: 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

    Contact seller

    Art / Print / Poster First Edition

    US$ 10.00 Shipping

    Within U.S.A.

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    Alken Off To The Races With Apperley In The Saddle First Edition [ALKEN, Henry, illustrator]. NIMROD (pseud. of Charles J. Apperley). The Chace, The Turf, and the Road. With Illustrations by Henry Alken, and a Portrait by D. Maclise. London: John Murray, 1837. First edition in book form, originally serially published in the Quarterly Review. Octavo (8 3/4 x 5 3/8 in; 223 x 135 mm). xx, 301, [1, printer's slug], [18, publisher's catalogs] pp. Thirteen hand-colored plates, some in aquatint, with tissue guards, and plain, stipple-engraved portrait frontispiece. Publisher's original pictorial green cloth with gilt vignette and borders blocked in blind, expertly recased. Gilt decorated spine. Spine very slightly faded, still an excellent copy. Housed in a later green cloth clamshell case. Charles James Apperley (1777-1843), English sportsman and sporting writer, better known as Nimrod, the pseudonym under which he published his works on the chase and on the turf. A devoted fox-hunter, around 1821 Apperley began to contribute a series of articles to The Sporting Magazine, under the pseudonym of "Nimrod," that covered horse races, hunt meets and other sporting events. His references to the personalities of the people he knew or met at such events helped to double the circulation of the magazine within a few years. Mr. Pittman, the proprietor of The Sporting Magazine, gave Nimrod a handsome salary and defrayed all the expenses of his tours. He also gave Nimrod a stud of hunters. After Pittman's death, the proprietors of the magazine sued Apperley for the money that had been advanced. To avoid imprisonment, Apperley moved to Calais in 1830, where he supported himself by writing. Apperley is best known for his two books, The Life of a Sportsman, and Memoirs of the Life of John Mytton, both of which were illustrated with colored engravings by Henry Thomas Alken. Apperley eventually returned to England and died in Upper Belgrave Place, London, on 19 May 1843. The Plates: 1. Preparing to Start. 2. Getting Well Off. 3. The Race - Epsom. 4. The Melton Hunt. 5. Getting Away. 6. A Queerish Place. 7. A Pull Up. 8. The Lane. 9. Whissendine Brook. 10. The Death. 11. It's The Comet, &c. 12. The Regulator. 13. The Quicksilver Mail. Podeschi 152. Siltzer. p. 73. Schwerdt I, p. 36.

  • Seller image for Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq for sale by David Brass Rare Books, Inc.

    ALKEN, Henry, illustrator -- [APPERLEY, Charles James] NIMROD; APPERLEY, C.J.

    Published by London: Rudolph Ackermann, 1851, 1851

    Seller: David Brass Rare Books, Inc., Calabasas, CA, U.S.A.

    Association Member: ABAA ILAB

    Seller Rating: 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

    Contact seller

    US$ 10.00 Shipping

    Within U.S.A.

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    "A Desirable Item" "A Most Valuable and Important Book" Third and Best Edition With Memoir of Nimrod [ALKEN, Henry, illustrator]. APPERLEY, C.J. Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq. of Halston, Shropshire, Formerly M.P. for Shrewsbury, High sheriff for the Counties of Salup & Merioneth, and Major of the North Stropshire Yeomanry Cavalry. With Notices of His Hunting, Shooting, Driving, Racing, Eccentric and Extravagant Exploits By Nimrod. With Numerous Illustrations by H. Alken and T.J. Rawlins. Third Edition, With a Brief Memoir of Nimrod by the Author of "Handley Cross" [i.e. Robert S. Surtees]. London: Rudolph Ackermann, 1851. Third edition, the first to contain the Memoir of Nimrod by Surtees and complete with the additional text and plates from the second edition of 1837, third issue (with extra title, title, and plates dated 1851) in 1850 issue binding (with "Ackermann" at spine foot). Octavo (9 1/4 x 5 3/4 in; 235 x 146 mm). ix, [1], 218, [8, catalog] pp. Extra engraved title with plain aquatint vignette, and eighteen hand-colored aquatint plates including frontispiece, with tissue guards. Publisher's original pictorially gilt cloth with blindstamped border to upper board, vignette blocked in blind to lower. All edges gilt. Westley's of London ticket on rear paste-down. Spine ends expertly strengthened. An excellent copy. Housed in a quarter green morocco clamshell case. "This Third Edition is a desirable item to add to any collection as it is the first to contain the Life of Nimrod. Published at 25s, 'handsomely bound in cloth' (Tooley) "A most valuable and important book for the sporting life of the period, aptly described by Newton as 'a biography of a man that reads like a work of fiction'" (Tooley). "This is not a work of fiction, for John Mytton, a rather inglorious character for a biography, was a hard-living, hard-drinking country squire of Halston, Shropshire, capable of the utmost physical endurance, and ready to accept any wager to walk, shoot or ride against any man. Many of his feats are recorded and graphically delineated, including the climax of his folly in setting his nightshirt on fire to cure a hiccough (Martin Hardie). The Plates: 1. Well done, Neck or Nothing. 2. A Nick, or the nearest way home. 3. Wild Duck Shooting. 4. What! Never upset in a gig? 5. I wonder whether he is a good timber jumper! 6. The Meet with Lord Derby's Stag Hounds. 7. Stand and deliver. 8. Tally ho! Tally ho! 9. The Oaks Filly. 10. Light come, light go. 11. On Baronet clears nine yards of water. 12. D--n this hiccup! 13. A h-ll of a row in a hell. 14. Swims the Severn at Uppington Ferry. 15. How to cross a country comfortably after dinner. 16. Heron shooting. 17. A Squire trap, by Jove! 18. Now for the honour of Stropshire. Tooley 68. Schwerdt 1, p. 39. Abbey, Life, 385 (2d ed.). Martin Hardie, pp. 185-186. Prideaux, p. 326.

  • Seller image for The Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq. of Halston, Shropshire . . . Reprinted (with considerable Additions) from the New Sporting Magazine for sale by White Fox Rare Books, ABAA/ILAB

    Condition: Very Good. Henry Alken and T. J. Rawlins (illustrator). 2nd Edition. 4to. 24.5 by 15.5 cm. xii, 206, [10] pp. (Final 8 pages are publisher's catalogue list.) With18 magnificent hand-colored, aquatint plates by Alken. Original publisher's green pebbled cloth stamped in gilt on front and spine. Custom full red morocco pull off case, with five raised bands, gilt lettering and ruling, the latter on both the spine and the boards. First state of the binding with the date at foot of spine. This edition contains 6 plates more than first edition, and also has three replacement plates, for a total of 9 new plates. The title page is also engraved. Tooley 67. Abbey Life 385. Schwerdt I 38. Condition: cloth binding soiled, with restoration by spine extremities yet still some roughness (blistering, rub spots) to spine generally. Scattered light foxing and soiling within. FFEP has long inscription, and the leaf is detached. The custom case has light wear but overall is near fine. Cloth. Full morocco pull-off case.

  • Seller image for The Life of a Sportsman by Nimrod. With Thirty-Six Coloured Illustrations By Henry Alken. for sale by Offa's Dyke Books

    [Apperley, Charles J.] Nimrod; Henry Alken.

    Published by London: Rudolph Ackermann, Eclipse Sporting Gallery, 1842., 1842

    Seller: Offa's Dyke Books, LUDLOW, SALOP, United Kingdom

    Seller Rating: 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

    Contact seller

    First Edition

    US$ 1,274.75

    Convert currency

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    First Edition, first issue with 4 plates on india paper mounted on plate paper, 36 coloured illustrations (including frontispiece), printed & engraved coloured title pages, pp: viii+[1]-402,[10], publisher's adverts at end, original covers bound in on 3 leaves at end with adverts for Ackermann's Sporting Library & engravings. Bound by Hatchards, 187 Piccadilly in full red crushed morocco, gilt, spine with gilt ruled raised bands, with gilt sporting motifs in compartments, lettered direct, boards double gilt ruled & gilt ruled inner dentelles, all edges gilt, an excellent & handsome copy with both the text & plates very good indeed. Tooley states: "Considered by many to be the premier coloured plate sporting book in the 19th century, by others as sharing this honour with Jorrock's Jaunts." Tooley 65. Charles J Apperley, at one time a failed farmer in Shropshire, was possibly the first person to report hunting in a journalistic vein.

  • Seller image for Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq. of Halston, Shropshire for sale by David Brass Rare Books, Inc.

    US$ 1,500.00

    Convert currency
    US$ 10.00 Shipping

    Within U.S.A.

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    "A Most Valuable and Important Book" Second and Enlarged Edition With Additional Text and Six Extra Hand-Colored Plates [ALKEN, Henry, illustrator]. NIMROD (pseud. of C.J. Apperley). Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq. of Halston, Shropshire, Formerly M.P. for Shrewsbury, High sheriff for the Counties of Salup & Merioneth, and Major of the North Stropshire Yeomanry Cavalry. With Notices of His Hunting, Shooting, Driving, Racing, Eccentric and Extravagant Exploits By Nimrod. With Numerous Illustrations by H. Alken and T.J. Rawlins. London: Rudolph Ackermann, 1837. Second and enlarged edition, with additions to the text, six extra hand-colored plates and with three new plates replacing three from the first edition. Octavo (9 1/2 x 5 3/4 in; 241 x 146 mm). ix, [3], 206, [1, printer's slug], [1] pp. Additional engraved title in aquatint and eighteen hand-colored aquatint plates, including frontispiece, with tissue guards. Publisher's original pictorially gilt green cloth, expertly recased. All edges gilt. With the ownership stamp of William K. Dick of Islip, Long Island (NY) to front pastedown endpaper. Some rubbing, a few bubbles to upper board cloth, soiling to endpapers. Hinges starting yet remain firm. Withal, a very good copy. Housed in a full crimson hard-grained morocco pull-off case by the Scroll Club Bindery of New York City. "A most valuable and important book for the sporting life of the period, aptly described by Newton as 'a biography of a man that reads like a work of fiction'" (Tooley). "This is not a work of fiction, for John Mytton, a rather inglorious character for a biography, was a hard-living, hard-drinking country squire of Halston, Shropshire, capable of the utmost physical endurance, and ready to accept any wager to walk, shoot or ride against any man. Many of his feats are recorded and graphically delineated, including the climax of his folly in setting his nightshirt on fire to cure a hiccough (Martin Hardie). The Plates: 1. Well done, Neck or Nothing. 2. A Nick, or the nearest way home. 3. Wild Duck Shooting. 4. What! Never upset in a gig? 5. I wonder whether he is a good timber jumper! 6. The Meet with Lord Derby's Stag Hounds. 7. Stand and deliver. 8. Tally ho! Tally ho! 9. The Oaks Filly. 10. Light come, light go. 11. On Baronet clears nine yards of water. 12. D--n this hiccup! 13. A h-ll of a row in a hell. 14. Swims the Severn at Uppington Ferry. 15. How to cross a country comfortably after dinner. 16. Heron shooting. 17. A Squire trap, by Jove! 18. Now for the honour of Shropshire. At his death, industrialist and banker William K. Dick (1888-1953) was a director of Best Foods, Inc., president and director of the Dick Securities Corporation; and a director of Douglas Gibbons & Co., Inc.; the Eastern States Corporation; the Irving Trust Company, the National Sugar Refining Company, the Norwood and St. Lawrence Railroad, the St. Regis Paper Company, St. Regis Company, Ltd., of Canada, and the St. Regis Timber Company. His clubs included the Brook, Racquet and Tennis, Southside, National Golf Links, New York Yacht, and the Turf and Field. Tooley 67. Schwerdt 1, p. 38. Abbey, Life, 385. Martin Hardie, pp. 185-186. Prideaux, p. 326.

  • Seller image for Life of a Sportsman, The for sale by David Brass Rare Books, Inc.

    ALKEN, Henry; NIMROD; APPERLEY, Charles J.

    Published by London: Rudolph Ackermann, Eclipse Sporting Gallery, 1842, 1842

    Seller: David Brass Rare Books, Inc., Calabasas, CA, U.S.A.

    Association Member: ABAA ILAB

    Seller Rating: 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

    Contact seller

    Art / Print / Poster First Edition

    US$ 1,850.00

    Convert currency
    US$ 10.00 Shipping

    Within U.S.A.

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    First Issue The "Rich In Interest" Classic With 36 Hand-Colored Aquatints and Bound by Zaehsndorf [ALKEN, Henry, illustrator]. NIMROD (pseud. of Charles J. Apperley). The Life of a Sportsman. By Nimrod. With Thirty-Six Coloured Illustrations by Henry Alken. London: Rudolph Ackermann, Eclipse Sporting Gallery, 1842. First edition, first issue with four plates on India paper mounted on plate paper, and plate at p. 348 in first state. Octavo (9 1/4 x 6 inches; 235 x 152 mm). vi, [2, contents], 402, pp. Thirty-four hand-colored aquatint plates. Extra engraved aquatint title page, vignettes and portrait. Bound ca. 1900 by Zaehsndorf - stamp-signed in gilt on front turn-in. Full dark blue crushed levant morocco, covers triple-ruled in gilt surrounding a blind-tooled rule. Spine with five raised bands decoratively ruled and lettered in gilt in compartments, double-ruled board edges, wide elaborate gilt turn-ins, cream watered silk liners and endleaves, all edges gilt. Spine very slightly faded, small chip on headband, otherwise near fine. "When Lockhart said of 'Nimrod' that he could 'hunt like Hugo Meynell and write like Walter Scott,' he was doubtless excited into exaggeration by the pleasure of having hit upon a man who could write of sport without the vulgarity of Egan.The Life of a Sportsman, published in 1842, contains a very pleasant account of country life in days when sport was no longer confused with debauchery; while its descriptions of runs to hounds, its lore of hunting and of four-in-hand driving, and its variety of incident and anecdote make it still both valuable and agreeable. Apperley, though not a Walter Scott, was a good writer; he knew his subject thoroughly, on both the scientific and the personal sides, and this work of fiction, though poor in plot, is rich in interest" (Cambridge History of English and American Literature, Volume XIV. The Victorian Age, Part Two. Ch. 15, Nimrod). Charles J. Apperley (1778-1843) "began writing for the Sporting Magazine. From his boyhood his ruling passions had been hunting, horse-riding, and horse management.Apperley's expert knowledge and social status made him an invaluable recruit to the sporting press of the time, and he may even be said to have created the role of gentleman hunting correspondent. Writing at first under various pseudonyms (Acastus, Eques, and A), he published his first article for the Sporting Magazine as Nimrod in January 1822 and he subsequently usually used that nom de plume. For five seasons, from 1824 to 1828, he was the magazine's official representative.Many of his articles were in serial form and were subsequently published as books, notably his Memoirs of the Life of John Mytton (1837) and The Life of a Sportsman (1842). his ability and authority were unquestioned. He earned the respect of sportsmen everywhere not only for his skillful and fearless riding but also for the knowledge and judgment he displayed in his writings and for his unrivaled experience of the hunting world. As Nimrod he held a unique position in his day and left an imperishable memory in sporting history" (Oxford DNB). Podeschi 167. Siltzer, p. 73. Schwerdt I, p. 36. Tooley, 65.

  • Seller image for Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq. of Halston, Shropshire for sale by David Brass Rare Books, Inc.

    US$ 1,950.00

    Convert currency
    US$ 10.00 Shipping

    Within U.S.A.

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    Alken Off To The Races With Apperley In The Saddle Second Edition With the Six Extra Plates in a Fine Contemporary Binding [ALKEN, Henry, illustrator]. NIMROD (pseud. of C.J. Apperley). Memoirs of the Life of the Late John Mytton, Esq. of Halston, Shropshire. Formerly M.P. for Shrewsbury, High sheriff for the Counties of Salup & Merioneth, and Major of the North Stropshire Yeomanry Cavalry. With Notices of His Hunting, Shooting, Driving, Racing, Eccentric and Extravagant Exploits By Nimrod. With Numerous Illustrations by H. Alken and T.J. Rawlins. Second Edition. Reprinted with considerable Additions from the New Sporting Magazine. London: Rudolph Ackermann, 1837. Second and enlarged edition, with additions to the text and six extra hand-colored plates. Tall octavo. ix, [3], 206, [2], pp. Extra-engraved title-page with aquatint vignette. Eighteen hand-colored aquatint plates with tissue guards. Bound in contemporary full hard-grain crimson morocco featuring a single gilt fillet border enclosing floral and foliate gilt tooling with arabesque gilt stems surrounding a gilt vase on pedestal, to both covers. Gilt tooled and lettered spine. Silver clasp engraved "Mr. E. Whittingham / Ellenhall / Nov. 2 1844." Gilt-rolled edges. Wide gilt dentelles with elaborate border and corner-pieces, green moire silk endpapers. All edges gilt. A fine copy in a really fine silver clasped binding. "A most valuable and important book for the sporting life of the period, aptly described by Newton as 'a biography of a man that reads like a work of fiction'" (Tooley). "This is not a work of fiction, for John Mytton, a rather inglorious character for a biography, was a hard-living, hard-drinking country squire of Halston, Shropshire, capable of the utmost physical endurance, and ready to accept any wager to walk, shoot or ride against any man. Many of his feats are recorded and graphically delineated, including the climax of his folly in setting his nightshirt on fire to cure a hiccough (Martin Hardie). The Plates: 1. Well done, Neck or Nothing. 2. A Nick, or the nearest way home. 3. Wild Duck Shooting. 4. What! Never upset in a gig? 5. I wonder whether he is a good timber jumper! 6. The Meet with Lord Derby's Stag Hounds. 7. Stand and deliver. 8. Tally ho! Tally ho! 9. The Oaks Filly. 10. Light come, light go. 11. On Baronet clears nine yards of water. 12. D--n this hiccup! 13. A h-ll of a row in a hell. 14. Swims the Severn at Uppington Ferry. 15. How to cross a country comfortably after dinner. 16. Heron shooting. 17. A Squire trap, by Jove! 18. Now for the honour of Shropshire. Abbey, Life, 385. Tooley 67. Schwerdt 1, p. 38. Martin Hardie, pp. 185-186. Prideaux, p. 326.

  • Seller image for LIfe of a Sportsman, The for sale by David Brass Rare Books, Inc.

    ALKEN, Henry; NIMROD; APPERLEY, Charles J.

    Published by London: Rudolph Ackermann, Eclipse Sporting Gallery, 1842, 1842

    Seller: David Brass Rare Books, Inc., Calabasas, CA, U.S.A.

    Association Member: ABAA ILAB

    Seller Rating: 5-star rating, Learn more about seller ratings

    Contact seller

    First Edition

    US$ 2,250.00

    Convert currency
    US$ 10.00 Shipping

    Within U.S.A.

    Quantity: 1

    Add to Basket

    First Issue The "Rich In Interest" Classic With 36 Hand-Colored Aquatints in the Original Cloth [ALKEN, Henry, illustrator]. NIMROD (pseud. of Charles J. Apperley). The Life of a Sportsman. With Thirty-Six Coloured Illustrations by Henry Alken. London: R. Ackermann, Eclipse Sporting Gallery, 1842. First edition, first issue with four plates on India paper mounted on plate paper, and plate at p. 348 in first state. Octavo (9 1/2 x 5 3/4 in; 243 x 145 mm). vi, [2, contents], 402, [10, catalog] pp. Thirty-four hand-colored aquatint plates. Extra engraved aquatint title page, vignettes and portrait. Publisher's original blue cloth with gilt vignette and border blocked in blind, expertly recased. Gilt decorated spine. All edges gilt. New endpapers in pale yellow as original. A fine copy. Housed in a quarter blue morocco drop-front clamshell box. "When Lockhart said of 'Nimrod' that he could 'hunt like Hugo Meynell and write like Walter Scott,' he was doubtless excited into exaggeration by the pleasure of having hit upon a man who could write of sport without the vulgarity of Egan.The Life of a Sportsman, published in 1842, contains a very pleasant account of country life in days when sport was no longer confused with debauchery; while its descriptions of runs to hounds, its lore of hunting and of four-in-hand driving, and its variety of incident and anecdote make it still both valuable and agreeable. Apperley, though not a Walter Scott, was a good writer; he knew his subject thoroughly, on both the scientific and the personal sides, and this work of fiction, though poor in plot, is rich in interest" (Cambridge History of English and American Literature, Volume XIV. The Victorian Age, Part Two. Ch. 15, Nimrod). Charles J. Apperley (1778-1843) "began writing for the Sporting Magazine. From his boyhood his ruling passions had been hunting, horse-riding, and horse management.Apperley's expert knowledge and social status made him an invaluable recruit to the sporting press of the time, and he may even be said to have created the role of gentleman hunting correspondent. Writing at first under various pseudonyms (Acastus, Eques, and A), he published his first article for the Sporting Magazine as Nimrod in January 1822 and he subsequently usually used that nom de plume. For five seasons, from 1824 to 1828, he was the magazine's official representative.Many of his articles were in serial form and were subsequently published as books, notably his Memoirs of the Life of John Mytton (1837) and The Life of a Sportsman (1842). his ability and authority were unquestioned. He earned the respect of sportsmen everywhere not only for his skillful and fearless riding but also for the knowledge and judgment he displayed in his writings and for his unrivaled experience of the hunting world. As Nimrod he held a unique position in his day and left an imperishable memory in sporting history" (Oxford DNB). Podeschi 167. Siltzer, p. 73. Schwerdt I, p. 36. Tooley, 65.