Object details
Object number
8.a.2.48
Creator(s)
Title
Travels Into Several Remote Nations of the World, in Four Parts: By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and Then a Captain of Several Ships
Date
1726
Medium
Printed ink on paper
Language
English
Publication Place
London
Binding Description
Full red crushed levant morocco; tooled backs; inside borders; gilt edges
Description
1 vol. : paper ; ill. ; 20 cm. (8°)
Dimensions
19.37 x 12.38 cm (7 5/8 x 4 7/8 in.)
Provenance
Collection of the book collector Dr. David Hunt, Boston.
Purchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner at the Hunt sale from the auctioneers and appraisers Charles F. Libbie & Co., Boston for $50 on 20 November 1891, lot 2799.
Commentary
Much of Jonathan Swift's lampoon was of contemporary 18th century English politics and behavior, but young readers could enjoy this book as a fanciful traveler’s tale and were enchanted by the descriptions of "littleness."
Isabella Stewart Gardner was a voracious reader, and books were the first objects that she collected. About 120 of the 2700 books she acquired for her museum can be considered children's books.
Bibliography
Known Boston Collector, Forming a Magnificent Collection of Rarities in All Departments of Literature (Boston, 17-21 November 1891), p. 253, lot 2799.
Isabella Stewart Gardner. A Choice of Books from the Library of Isabella Stewart Gardner, Fenway Court (Boston, 1906), p. 65.
Isabella Stewart Gardner. A Choice of Manuscripts and Bookbindings from the Library of Isabella Stewart Gardner, Fenway Court. (Boston, 1922), pp. 90-91.
Susan Sinclair and Philip B. Eppard. Catalogue of Children’s Books from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Collection and the Personal Libraries of John Lowell and Isabella Stewart Gardner (Boston, 1988), p. 12, no. 1.
Gallery
Long Gallery
Rights and reproductions
The use of images, text, and all other media found on this website is limited. Please review Rights and Reproductions for details.
