ALKEN, Henry (1784-1851). Ideas, accidental and Incidental to Hunting and other sports; caught in Leicestershire. London: T. McLean [plates dated 1826-1830, watermarks 1829].

2° (252 x 352mm). 42 hand-coloured soft ground etchings (light spotting to some plates and offsetting to one plate), extra illustrated with 3 original pencil drawings and one watercolour by Henry Alken of plates entitled 'My high Tom, I have an IDEA we shall soon be off, for my Orse seems to understand it'; 'I Say Joe you addent no IDEA it was so deep, ad you_look at my At!!'; 'By George! Harry, I have an IDEA that the thing is not quite so easy as I anticipated' watercolour, letterd 'Ideas' below title and signed H. Alken at upper right, and 'I have no IDEA what could induce me to follow you over this d_d rotten Bridge', each pasted on blank leaves opposite the printed plate. Contemporary flat backed half roan over cloth covers, with gilt lettering piece on upper cover, gilt spine in compartments, gilt edges (extremities rubbed, scuffed with some loss to cloth).

A FINE COPY OF THE RARE FIRST ISSUE OF THE FIRST EDITION. The plates depicting humorous equestrian incidents and the dangers often associated when out hunting and not fully in control of your horse. Here we see Alken's skills of composition, his understanding of horses in motion, combine with his brilliant talent for drawing to produce one of the most amusing books on hunting and coaching. The Dixon catalogue of 1937 included two similar pencil drawings (lot 83) for 'Ideas', similar to those inserted into this copy. Siltzer p.72; Tooley 36; Schwerdt I p.17; Mellon/Snelgrove p.37.

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