The Honours of the Table, or, Rules for Behaviour During Meals; with the whole art of carving, illustrated by a variety of cuts. Together with directions for going to market... by the author of Principles of politeness, &c. For the use of young people. Second Edition.
London: Printed for the author at the Literary-Press, No. 62 Wardour Street, Soho, and all Book-sellers in Town and Country, 1791.
Duodecimo (16 x 10.5 cm.), 120, [4-12] pages. Illustrated with twenty-one wood engravings. Publisher's advertisements at rear. ~ Second Edition. First issued in 1788, this juvenile etiquette manual for mealtime is best known for its extensive section on carving, well-illustrated with nineteen handsome woodcuts of carving instruction for different cuts of meat, in addition to an image of the author's coat of arms on the verso of the title page, and an illustration within the publisher's advertisements. Oxford points out that the book contains "curious information as to the habits of the day. For example the custom of 'a gentleman and a lady sitting alternately around the table' had only been lately introduced." Trusler (1735-1820) was the editor of Lord Chesterfield's Principles of Politeness (1785), and has been described as an "eccentric divine, literary compiler, and medical empiric" (DNB). Some soiling throughout, and a number of closed tears; lower corner of one leaf (pages 119/120) torn off, effecting one line of text on each page. In early marbled boards over half-calf with the spine now mostly perished, with the structure now visible. Some signatures loose, but all is present, and still well-contained despite the spine. Now housed in an attractive custom clamshell box from Town's End Bindery. With the ownership signature of American historian Wilfrid Harold Munro. [OCLC locates twenty-five copies of this London printing (and ten of the Dublin issue of the same year); Bitting 466; Cagle 1026; Maclean, page 142; Oxford, page 117; Pennell, page 163; Schraemli 485; Simon BG 1476].
Price: $1,500.00