Structure, Verses, Agency Books: fine works about art, culture & history

09/18/2026

Good day, all.

An extremely fortunate trip to a Portland-area bookstore led me to purchase these six lovelies.

$420.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate.

https://www.svafinebooks.com/product/16979/Illustrierte-Sittengeschichte-vom-Mittelalter-bis-zur-Gegenwart-six-volumes-Erster-Band-Renaissance-plus-supplemental-volume-Erganzungsband-Zweiter-Band-Die-Galante-Zeit-plus-supplemental-volume-Erganzungsband-Das-Burgerliche-Zeitalter-Dritter-band-plus-supplemental-volume-Erganzungsband

I offer today, an uncommonly pretty set of the six volumes making up Eduard Fuchs' (1870-1940) magnum opus survey of European art history, erotica, morals, manners and social history.

Undated, but published in Munchen (Munich, Germany) by Albert Langen from 1910 on.

Quarto hardcover format, heavy, tank-like volumes that are profusely illustrated with monochrome and duotone and tritone and even full-color plates galore. Bound in crushed cloth over boards (tan to the main volumes, blue to the supplemental volumes but that whose spines have sunned to the same light tan.
Monochrome vignettes to all volumes, with 65 monochrome and colour plates to Die Galante Zeit; 59 to Renaissance; 63 to Das Burgerliche Zeitalter; then, as regards the supplemental volumes, 36 six to Geschichte de Erotischen Kunst; 37 to the supplement to Die Galante Zeit; 33 to Das Burgerliche Zeitalter.

Augmented with cameo cut-outs to front covers of the main volumes with pasted-on illustrations and with bound-in linen silk-ribbon book-marks. Six and four pages missing from the Renaissance supplemental volume. Bound quite handsomely in a tall quarto format, and quite heavy in toto (roughly 30 pounds). Still remarkably bright gilt-stamping including titles to covers and spines. Some scuffing to tips, bumping to spine heads and feet, mild shelf-wear and wear to extremities, including some very faint foxing and toning to interiors, else a remarkably handsome set. Decorated endpapers front and rear to each volume, and with hundreds of fine illustrations between the six volumes. Each volume stands solidly on its own on the shelf.

The compiler and author, Eduard Fuchs, was a scholar, historian, art collector, and a political activist of German Marxist stripe. He contributed biographies of Honore Daumier; he was a close confidante of Vladimir Lenin; and he was an enemy of both Kaiser Wilhelm and Adolf Hi**er. It would take a long winter to go through, look at and digest the scope, breadth and beauty of the images, most being in black-and-white, but many being in color, some being small, others full-page, and a few in double-page format, e.g., "Les Incroyables (from 1795). Supplemental volumes top-stained in blue.

The third volume and its supplementing companion feature some black-and-white photographs of nudes, nudists, and naturists (so there is some hubba-hubba factor), and all volumes feature vaginal and a**l fi***ng, defecation, urination, and copulation.

Volume I, Renaissance, clocks in at 500 pp. after extensive frontis matter, and features a color paper illustration set within a border, with gilt-stamped title on cover and spine and with publisher's logo in gilt. Each volume features an author/compiler Foreword and an extensive Table of Contents, and there are illustrations on virtually every page. Volume I's companion volume, "Erganzungsband," with 336 pp., has 265 "textillustrationen und 36 beilagen," again being gorgeously illustrated throughout.

The Zweiter Band, Volume II, Die Galante Zeit (The Age of Chivalry), has 484 pp. and its companion volume, 328 pp. ages, also features a pastel-toned paper illustration of an alluring woman with a partially bared breast.

Volume III, Das Burgerliche Zeitalter (The Bourgeois Age), is 496 pp. in length and features sharp black-and-white photographs or other kinds of reproductions of individual nudes, nudists, and mildly erotic scenes. The front cover's pasted-on illustration is of a coquettish woman pressing handkerchief to mouth and with fan between legs. This volume features photographs and reproductions of placards, posters, business cards, C.D.V.s and the like. The companion volume, "Erganzungsband," is 342 pp. also features top-stain all around, and provides a handy index to entries in each volume.

Frequently at odds with "the authorities" for, among other things, accusing the Kaiser of being a mass murderer, he turned to using art historical images to get his points across, e.g., Karikatur der Europäischen Völker (Caricatures of European Peoples, 1902).

All in this is a lovely set for the serious collector of art and erotica, of European history and morals, worthy of the title, magnum opus.

Thank you for looking.

Structure, Verses, Agency Books
Spray, Oregon 97874

09/10/2026

Good day, all.

Today, I offer The Legend of St Brendan: a critical biography,
Burgess, Glyn S. and Clara Strijbosch, published by Royal Irish Academy, 2000.

Fine-looking, structurally sound hardcover, little discernible wear to the black cloth over boards, bright interior, unmarked. Bright and shiny dust jacket, illustrated, little worn. From the publisher's blurb, "St Brendan, was an Irish monk who died c. 575. He wrote the eighth-century tale 'The Voyage of St. Brendan the Abbot', which describes a voyage undertaken by the saint in search of a wonderful island in the ocean, the 'Land of Promise' The tale catapulted him to cult status as 'Brendan the Navigator' It was a medieval bestseller which had an important influence on cartography and the discovery of the New World, as a source of inspiration for Christopher Columbus. There also survives a Life of St Brendan. This volume presents the surviving texts and scholarly works inspired by the real and the legendary St Brendan in the form of a critical bibliography. It accounts of the diverse and fascinating aspects of both the real and the legendary Brendan. Part One lists primary material, mainly manuscripts, editions and translations. Allusions to Brendan in a number of medieval texts are included, as are some examples of modern literary treatments of the legend. Part Two lists secondary material in the form of articles and chapters or sections of books. The volume represents a stately contribution to the scholarship of the Brendan legend and will be the standard biographical work on the subject for years to come."

Volume contains scholarly apparatus in the form of, e.g., notes, index, and bibliography.

xi, 287 pp.

$35.00, post-paid.

Thanks for looking.

Lawrence J. Hammar

09/10/2026

Good day, all.

$35.00, post-paid.

I offer today, Susan Tumarkin Goodman, ed., The Emergence of Jewish Artists in Nineteenth-Century Europe, published by Merrell Publishers Limited, 2001.

Sterling condition hardcover copy, with unbruised tips, tight binding, and clean internals, showing only very slight shelf- and edge-wear; not ex-library, with neither underlining nor highlighting anywhere. Bound handsomely in brown cloth clovers, with gilt lettering over spine. Bright and shiny dust jacket, illustrated, showing only very minor wear, protected by a plastic coat, dust jacket not being price-clipped. According to the publisher's blurb, this volume was published in conjunction with the 2001-2002 exhibition of the same name held at the Jewish Museum, New York.

From the publisher's blurb, "The Emergence of Jewish Artists in Nineteenth-Century Europe" is the first book to survey Jewish artists in Europe in the nineteenth century and examines a group of outstanding artists often ignored in standard art history texts."

Volume contains scholarly apparatus in the form of, e.g., notes, index, and bibliography.

[5], 6-191 pp.

$35.00, post-paid.

Thanks for looking.

Structure, Verses, Agency Books
Spray, Oregon 97874

09/08/2026

Good day, all.

I offer today, The Five Scrolls, Bronstein, Herbert N. and Albert H. Friedlander, eds., published by Central Conference of American Rabbis, 1984.

Hebrew texts and with English translations of a sumptuously produced exemplar, bound in tall, folio format, and with introductions and new liturgies, the former by Rabbi Albert H. Friedlander, the latter by Rabbi Herbert Bronstein. Illustrated and designed by the incomparable Leonard Baskin, who provides 37 full-page, full-color, quite arresting watercolor plates.

323 pp.

The item provides new translations of Ecclesiastes, Esther, Song of Songs, Ruth and Lamentations, with explanatory notes. The paper is fine, the appearance is bright, the colors are vibrant.

$45.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate.

Thanks for looking.

Lawrence J. Hammar
Spray, Oregon 97874

09/08/2026

Good day, all.

$35.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate.

I offer today, Formation of a Folklorist: Sources Relating to the Visit of James Hamilton Delargy (Seamus O Duilearga) to Scandinavia, Finland, Estonia and Germany 1 April - 29 September 1928, by Seamas Cathain, published by Comhairle Bhealoideas Eireann / The Folklore of Ireland Council, 2008.

Another fine contribution to Scribhinni Bealoidis / Folklore Studies, Fine-looking, structurally sound hardcover, little discernible wear to the dark blue cloth over boards, sharp and distinct gilt lettering to spine, bright interior, unmarked. Map endpapers front and rear depicting Europe and the United Kingdom. Bright and shiny dust jacket, illustrated, slight wear along top edge. The book is tank-like, and the dust jacket is heavy and substantial.

From the publisher's blurb, "Formation of a Folklorist is the eighteenth volume to be published by Comhairle Bhéaloideas Éirann in its series Scríbhinní Béaloidis / Folklore Studies. This volume traces the process that saw the development of James Hamilton Delargy / Séamus Ó Duilearga (1899-1980), a promising, young Irish academic with a practical knowledge of aspects of folklore, into a formidable authority on that subject and likewise on the methods and stratagems best suited to its future documentation and study in Ireland. Delargy's trajectory from graduate student, university teacher and talented local collector to the luminary who masterminded the creation of one of the world's best folklore collections is revealed in diary and personal notes, and correspondence with leading experts in the field, other close advisors at home and abroad, and family members. The founding of the Folklore of Ireland Society in 1926 led to the establishment of the Irish Folklore Institute (1930-1935) . . . "

Volume contains scholarly apparatus in the form of, e.g., notes, index, and bibliography.

xiv [1], 1-363 pp.

$35.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate.

Thanks for looking.

Structure, Verses, Agency Books
Spray, Oregon 97874

09/07/2026

Good day, all.

$22.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate.

I offer today, Home Thoughts from Abroad: Distant Visions of Israel in Contemporary Hebrew Fiction, Risa Domb, published by Vallentine Mitchell, 1995.

Brand-new, still in shrink-wrap, neither shelf- nor edge-worn, neither sunned nor marked as a remainder.

From the publisher's blurb, "Here is the first critique of modern Hebrew literature to examine the vital concept of place through which we learn about some of the pressing concerns and issues of contemporary Israelis. The geographical shift in Jewish existence from west to east, culminating in the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, corresponded to a shift from an existence outside time and space to an existence within space. From that movement arose a dialectical tension between Israel and Europe, home and abroad. While the first generation of Hebrew writers in Israel looked inward to Israel, subsequent Israeli writers began to move their protagonists abroad, especially to Europe. The renewed encounter provoked admiration and attraction as well as hostility and repulsion. Some protagonists escaped to, others from, Europe; for both, Europe is not just a tourist site but a world of difference from Israel. Europe is also presented as a challenge to the culture of the Israeli-born Sabra. It is easier to ask fundamental questions about the nature of the whole Israeli national enterprise when the characters are moved away, to look back from afar. In many contemporary novels, Israeli protagonists go abroad, are displaced, away from the narrow confines of their existence at home. The issue of movement has become linked with that of identity. This book focuses on six novels in which characters leave Israel but then return, manifesting the tension between home and abroad in the dialectics of outside and inside. This allows the authors to use place on a thematic as well as a structural level. Thus, Europe often assumes a metaphoric, or, alternatively, a metonymic function. Places may also be presented by contrasting their a**logous descriptions or their social and cultural aspects. Finally, place may be used to a**lyse the soul, for external place images can reveal the inner reaches of the psyche."

$22.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate.

Thanks for looking.

Lawrence J. Hammar
Structure, Verses, Agency Books
Spray, Oregon 97874

09/07/2026

Good day, all.

I offer today, Irish Fairs and Markets: Studies in Local History, by Denis Cronin, Jim Gilligan and Karina Holton, eds., published by Four Courts Press, Dublin, Ireland and Portland, Oregon, 2000.

$25.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate

Fine-looking, structurally sound hardcover, little discernible wear, bright interior, unmarked. Bright and shiny dust jacket, illustrated, little worn. A fine work edited by Denis Cronin, Jim Gilligan and Karina Holton, a study of Irish Fairs and Markets and local History, with contributions by them and by Brian O' Dalaigh, Patrick Cassidy, William Gacquin, Paul Connell, Seamas O' Maitiu, Liam Clare and Miriam Lambe. Illustrations and tables galore.

Volume contains scholarly apparatus in the form of, e.g., notes, index, and bibliography.

[6], 7-256 pp.

$25.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate

Thanks for looking.

Lawrence J. Hammar
Structure, Verses, Agency Books
Spray, Oregon 97874

09/04/2026

Good day, all.

I specialize in the study of Ireland, Irish history, Irish culture, and the like.

I offer today,

Second Edition. - Hardcover - Bryan Robinson - 1743 - Condition: Good - Extremely scarce in the trade, there being only a single additional copy available on-line. Stated Second Edition, bound in calf leather, gilt lettered title over red Morocco leather in one spine compartment. Richard Helsham, M....

09/04/2026

Good day, all.

I offer today, the following tom, in As New condition.

Fine-looking, structurally sound hardcover, little discernible wear to the black cloth over boards, ding to front bottom edge, sharp and distinct gilt lettering

08/24/2026

Good day, all.

$55.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate.

I offer today, His Majesty's Loyal Internee: Fred Uhlman in Captivity
Brinson, Charmian, Anna Müller-Härlin and Julia Winckler, published by Vallentine Mitchell, London, England, 2009.

Uber-scarce in the trade, there being only one additional bookseller selling copies on-line currently. Fine-looking, structurally sound hardcover, little discernible wear, bright interior, unmarked. Bright and shiny dust jacket, illustrated, little worn.

From the publisher's blurb, "In May and June 1940, when the war seemed to be going badly for Britain, thousands of German and Austrian refugees from N**i oppression were rounded up and put into internment camps on the Isle of Man and elsewhere. Fred Uhlman, a Jewish refugee from Stuttgart, a lawyer and an artist, was one of them. Uhlman, who was deeply affected by the experience, set out to record it in word and image. This volume reproduces his original internment diary from 1940 alongside another version of the same text from 1979, compiled retrospectively. These texts are complemented by sixteen haunting drawings and linocuts that Uhlman produced during internment. The volume also contains the letters, highly moving personal documents, exchanged to and from the internment camp between Uhlman and his wife Diana; correspondence between Uhlman and his disapproving aristocratic father-in-law Lord Croft; and documents from the daily life of Hutchinson Camp, Douglas, Isle of Man, where Uhlman was held for seven months. Chapters on Uhlman's biography and on his artistic and literary output set his writings and drawings within the wider context of his life and work. In addition, a chapter outlining the internment crisis of 1940 also sets out to recreate the extraordinary cultural and intellectual life that the internees managed to make for themselves in Hutchinson Camp, in particular the activities of the sizeable group of artists, such as Kurt Schwitters, who happened to find themselves there." Augmented with a long range of black-and-white illustrations and photographs, printed on high-gloss paper.

Volume contains scholarly apparatus in the form of, e.g., notes, index, and bibliography.

xvi [2], 2-167 pp.

$55.00, post-paid via Domestic Media Mail rate.

Thanks for looking.

Lawrence J. Hammar
Spray, Oregon 97874