This very scarce first edition of The Language of Flowers or The Pilgrimage of Love by Thomas Miller was published by David Bogue in 1847. It is in the original gilt decorated Morocco binding. The book presents 'a resemblance between the flower and the emblem it represents' through short stories, creating 'legends' to demonstrate the way in which individual flowers represent their meanings.
The book is in very good condition but there are some condition points to be aware of. There is some tarnishing and dulling to the gilt in places; the corners and board edges show wear with minor loss to the surface of the leather. The boards show minor scuffing and chipping. There is sunning and rubbing to the spine, with some loss to the surface of the leather in places (particularly the spine edges).
Inside, there is a name plate glued to the front pastedown and a neatly written name and date on one of the preliminary blank pages. Sadly the top of the title page has been snipped where a name has been removed - the person did attach some plain paper to the top of the page to try and disguise the removal. There is age toning and sporadic foxing to the pages but otherwise the pages are remarkably clean and bright.
The illustrations have been collated and book is complete - there are twelve hand coloured plates.
Dimensions approximately 17cm x 11.5cm x 2.6cm.
The book will arrive hand wrapped in bubble wrap, patterned wallpaper and ribbon.
I use a range of eco friendly, 100% recyclable jiffy bags and boxes, and whenever possible I use brown paper tape. The green bubble wrap is oxo-degradable and the clear bubble wrap is 100% recyclable. I also reuse boxes when I feel it's appropriate (if the boxes are sturdy enough).