Ranelagh Gardens.

2 volumes, folio, a "grangerised" Victorian album containing material pertaining to Ranelagh Gardens including A Description of Ranelagh Rotundo and Gardens, 1762, window mounted, a watercolour of the rotunda, numerous engravings, portraits, views, clippings advertising concerts, sheet music, and so on, culminating with the sale catalogue of the contents of the Rotunda (1805), bound in nineteenth-century morocco elaborately gilt with wide foliate and vinous borders also incorporating musical instruments and with four roundels depicting Tragedy and Comedy, red morocco gilt doublures, silk endpapers

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A fascinating compendium of material, much of it ephemeral, relating to Ranelagh Gardens, one of the great pleasure gardens of the eighteenth century, and widely considered superior to the rival establishment over the river at Vauxhall. One of the clippings, dated 1764 in manuscript, previews a performance at the Rotunda by "the celebrated and astonishing Master MOZART, lately arrived, a Child of 7 Years of Age [who] will perform several fine select Pieces of his own Composition" (vol. 1, fol. 82).