Antique Brass Three-Draw Telescope, 19th Century

By Andrew Ellicott (1754-1820) and Pierre Charles L'Enfant (1754-1825). Plan of the City of Washington. Published by Thackara & Vallance, Philadelphia, 1792. Later impression printed on 19th century wove paper. This is a fine 19th century printing of the "official" plan of Washington, D.C. First printed in 1792 by the original publishers, Thackara & Vallance in Philadelphia, this is a later 19th century printing of the fifth recorded engraving of the L’Enfant / Ellicott city plan. The first three issues of this city plan were in published in periodicals, making the fifth edition only the second separately-issued engraving of the plan. In full, the title reads, “Plan of the City of Washington in the Territory of Columbia, ceded by the States of Virginia and Maryland to the United States of America and by them established as the Seat of their Government after the year 1800.” The national capital city is laid out according to a plan originally proposed by Pierre Charles L'Enfant and modified by Andrew Ellicott. L'Enfant was born in Paris, where he trained to be an architect. He came to America in 1777, and served under George Washington as an engineer during the Revolutionary War. In 1791, Washington asked L'Enfant to design the new capital city in the District of Columbia. However, trouble arose between the city and L'Enfant. The City Commissioner needed a finished, printed copy of the plan in order to sell building lots but L'Enfant worked slowly and released only incomplete plans, and proved to be quite obstinate. On instruction from President Washington...

This is an original 46-star American parade flag, printed on silk. Each star represents a state in the Union at the time. The official flag design would update every July 4th, to inc...

Presented is an original patriotic sash from the early 20th century, featuring 13 stars against a bright blue field. This sash features appliqued silver stars on a blue canton, red a...

Presented is a rare, platinum Master Exhibition Print of Edward Curtis’ The Three Chiefs. Typical of Curtis’ Master Exhibition Prints, this platinum print is double-mounted, signed, with an embossed copyright credit and date stamp. His numeric notation “52-00” is in the photographic negative. Curtis photographed The Three Chiefs during his two weeks on a Blackfoot reservation in the summer of 1900. The photograph depicts three Piegan men in traditional dress on horseback, situated next to a small stream with an expansive cloud-filled sky behind them. The Piegans were the largest group in the Blackfoot Confederacy and still retained a majority of their original culture when Curtis visited the tribe. It reportedly took Curtis several days to find the perfect prairie backdrop and riders for this photo, yet his patience paid off. The image was pivotal in enabling Curtis to form his vision for his next project - his ambitious 20 volumes “North American Indian”publication. This print is believed to be one of only three oversized, platinum Master Exhibition Prints of this image in existence. It was printed by Curtis specifically for his East Coast exhibition tour of 1905-1906. Curtis chose only a small number of what he believed to be his finest negatives to produce prints for the show. He never again mounted an exhibition of his work, nor produced such distinctive, large-format platinum prints. “The extraordinary rarity of The Three Chiefs becomes clearer when viewed in the context of other Master Exhibition Prints, principally the 108 in the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, the largest collection in existence. The Museum, however, is missing a number of early, iconic images, including The Three Chiefs. It has long been assumed that these missing prints were held elsewhere, possibly in the collection of The New York Public Library. This theory has been substantiated by the Curtis scholar, Bruce Kapson, who unearthed a cache of letters from Curtis to J.P. Morgan and to Morgan's librarian, Ms. Bella da Costa Greene in the Pierpont Morgan Library archives in 2007. The correspondence establishes that 58 of the 100 prints in The New York Public Library's collection are actually Master Exhibition Prints, specifically selected by Curtis for J.P. Morgan as the best examples of his work. A typed letter, dated March 1907, from Ms. Greene to Curtis states: 'I enclose herewith a list of Indian photographs which you sent to Mr. J.P. Morgan'. The letter is accompanied by a handwritten list of 58 photographs, including The Three Chiefs (print number 52.) Morgan donated this group of prints to The New York Public Library in 1912.” (Christie’s Live Auction 1893 Catalog, 2007). Curtis’ platinum prints make up less than 1/2 of 1% of all of the work he created. Curtis’ platinum prints were created only for exhibition or direct sales to patrons and they were always made by Curtis himself. One significant dealer in Curtis prints...

Freeman, Douglas Southall. Lee’s Lieutenants: A Study in Command. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1942. First edition. Three volume set. Rebound in ¼ black leather and cloth, with raised bands, gilt tooling and titles to the spine, and an archival slipcase. Presented is a first edition, three volume set of Lee’s Lieutenants by Douglas Southall Freeman...

Bryce, James. The American Commonwealth. London: Macmillian and Co., 1888. First edition three volume set. Three-quarter morocco leather boards with deckled edges. Presented in custo...

Late 19th century French brass and leather 3 draw telescope spyglass. The spyglass is made from brass. The base is wrapped with leather. Comes with the...

This is an antique three draw telescope. An English, brass terrestrial refractor by Ross of London, dating to the Edwardian period, circa 1910. Perfe...

Vintage brass 5 draw extendable hand telescope. Comes with original cap to cover glass end and brass eyepiece cover that slides in and out of place. Unusually long telescope at just ...

A fine example of a early 19th century pocket spy glass telescope signed by Ebsworth, London.

This is an antique 2 draw telescope. An English, chromed brass terrestrial or astronomical refractor, dating to the late Victorian period, circa 1900. Perfect for bird watching, landscape appreciation, wildlife, or maritime observation. Equally suitable for observing the night sky. Supplied with a London Fine oak and brass 'Captain's Stand' for display. Of generous proportion when fully drawn, and neatly stowed in its own case Displaying a desirable aged patina, some light marks commensurate with use Leather covered primary barrel tanned in dark green with some light colour wear Polished draw tubes show bright silvered tones, lightly marked from gentle use Presenting a clear optical performance, with a 34mm (1.25") primary objective lens Lift-off dust cap to the objective, the flared eye cup...

This is an antique 3 draw telescope. An English, brass terrestrial or astronomical refractor, dating to the late Victorian period, circa 1900. Perfec...