Tarshish Second Book Chronicles (2 results)

Offprint (only edition). Original albumen print (by W.&D. Downey) as portrait frontis. 4to. Later half morocco, gilt, frontis. with some slight markings. 18pp. London, George Barclay, Rare; with a fine early photographic portrait by William & Daniel Downey of South Shields circa 1855. Attributed to Sir William Clavering, a Northumberland landlord, this work seeks to establish the location of Tarshish, from where Solomon's fleet returned bearing great riches. For centuries there had been much speculation as to its whereabouts and Spain, Tunisia and Asia Minor were all identified as possibilities. Clavering takes issue with James Bruce's account of Tarshish in his Travels, being based on many "groundless assumptions", and proceeds to argue that Tarshish was, in fact, in India.

Condition: Good. London 1849 George Barclay. 4to., 18pp., original full page mounted photograph (calotype?) presumably of Clavering , thin leather over flexible boards (bound with several blanks at the beginning and at the end). **Inscribed and signed presumably Clavering inside the front cover. There is no separate title page; the date of publication and the publisher are printed at the bottom of the final page, which ends with the single letter 'C.' (presumably referring to Clavering). The date of publication is also written in pencil on the front free blank, as is the identity of the author. Club stamp on the verso of the mounting for the photoghraph and on the top margin of the first page. Near Good, some scuffing on the covers, some stains at the inner margins of some blanks, hinges tender. Extremely scarce.