[BEWICK, John (ca. 1760-1795), illustrator]. [TRUSLER, John (1735-1820)]. Proverbs in Verse, or Moral Instruction Conveyed... On the Plan of Hogarth M

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Summer Fine Books & Manuscripts

By Potter & Potter Auctions

Jul 9, 2026

Set Reminder 2026-07-09 11:00:00 2026-07-09 11:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Summer Fine Books & Manuscripts https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/potter-potter/summer-fine-books-manuscripts-22825
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• Lot Description

  [BEWICK, John (ca. 1760-1795), illustrator]. [TRUSLER, John (1735-1820)]. Proverbs in Verse, or Moral Instruction Conveyed... On the Plan of Hogarth Moralized... London: I. Souter, [ca. 1815-1817]. Twelvemo. 122, [2], [4, publisher's ads] pp. Fifty-six woodcuts by John Bewick. Contemporary calf, neatly rebacked, ruled and stamped in gilt, gilt spine with gilt-lettered black morocco label, all edges gilt. Marbled endpapers. EARLY EDITION, FIRST PUBLISHED IN 1800. 

  Condition

  Boards worn and soiled, hinges repaired, light offsetting from engravings, the occasional minor stain, small ink stamp ("W. Strong") to lower margin of front flyleaf (binder's stamp?). A very good, clean copy

• Provenance

  Contemporary bookplate of Fraser, Fourth Baronet of Ledeclune (Sir William August Fraser) on front pastedown. . This work is based on a prose version published in 1790 and it uses most of the illustrations from that work. The verse version was aimed at a younger audience and the change from prose to verse was "with a view to making them more entertaining." All editions are scarce, known in nine copies or less. John Bewick was a wood-engraver and the younger brother of Thomas Bewick. Once in London, he worked for his brother's former employer, Thomas Hodgson of Clerkenwell, a wood-and metal-engraver. Bewick eventually set out on his own and rented rooms from George Percival at 7 Clerkenwell Green. Here, he began his relationship with the eccentric Dr. John Trusler, who lived nearby and printed his own books from his home. Trusler commissioned nine of the sixty-eight titles so far identified as having containing John Bewick's illustrations. John Trusler was a Church of England clergyman author, printer, educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and is credited with publishing the first thesaurus to the English language. 

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