Description
Set of five signed, limited edition copies of Rowland Ward’s Records of Big Game (Africa). Compiled and edited by Gerald A. Best, Francois Edmond-Blanc, Major W.G. Raw and Anthony A. Best.
Quarto, [five volumes], 483pp; 452pp; 494pp; 537pp; 514pp. Full leather, small seal stamped in gilt on front covers. Title in gilt on spines with gilt decorations. All edges gilt. Marbled endpapers with decorative gilt turn-ins. Each edition number printed on title page. All volumes near fine, with small marks to covers, corners, or gilt. Internally fine. Signed by the editors on tipped-in limitation pages. All five volumes are limited edition copies, each individually numbered. A beautiful set, finely bound in five vibrant colors.
The Ward family were well-known taxidermists during the late 19th century, with Rowland Ward’s store most notably nicknamed “The Jungle.” As Ward’s success continued, he combined the family’s publishing interest with his taxidermy business to create Rowland Ward Limited. The first Records of Big Game was published in 1892 under the title “Horn Measurements and Weights of the Great Game of the World.” Records of Big Game is still published today, with the 31st edition set to release in 2023.
