Newcastle, William Cavendish, duke of

LARGE PAPER COPY, folio (442 x 306mm.), bifolia all mounted on guards, woodcut initials, woodcut diagrams, double-page additional engraved title-page dated 1658, 42 double-page engraved plates, eighteenth-century blue morocco in the style of Derome, triple gilt fillet border, spine gilt à la grotesque, gilt edges, some browning, title-leaf slightly torn and creased, a few marginal paper repairs, extremities slightly rubbed, spine slightly faded, joints creased, a few small scrapes on covers

"Ex. provenant des bibliothèques: Gaignat, Huzard et Pichon", manuscript note on verso of flyleaf, i.e.:
Louis-Jean Gaignat (1697-1768), sale, Paris, de Bure, 1769, lot 1330, for £156-19, "G[rand.P[apier]. fig. mar. bl."
Jean-Baptiste Huzard (1755-1838), sale, Paris, Leblanc, 1843, lot 4711 (with his stamp on verso of title-page)
Baron Jerome Frédéric Pichon (1812-1896), sale, Paris, L. Potier, 1869, lot 289, "bonne reliure ancienne"
Baron de La Roche Lacarelle (1816-1887), morocco booklabel (but not found in the catalogue of his sale, Paris, Porquet, April 1888)
Bibliothèque du Duc de Chartres, Pierre Berès label on inside front cover
Purchased from Berès in 1951

Mellon 26

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."

FIRST EDITION IN A FINE BINDING WITH A DISTINGUISHED PROVENANCE. William Cavendish (1593-1676) was a patron of the arts and an accomplished horseman, having received his first training in manège from St Antoine alongside Prince Henry. He followed Queen Henrietta Maria into exile in the 1640s, and this detailed treatise on horse training, though written in English, was first published in French in Antwerp, where he had converted a room in Rubens's house into a riding school. He became the first duke of Newcastle in 1665, following the Restoration, and his expertise with horses was recorded in verse by Ben Jonson.