ca. 1862. Three parts in one volume, continuously paginated, 12mo; pp. 32, with 16 small wood-engraved illustrations; pp. [ii] part title, 33 - 62, with 12 small wood engravings numbered 17 - 32; pp. [ii] part title, 63 - 90, with 10 wood engravings numbered 33 - 42; lightly foxed throughout, with very small dink affecting upper margins at gutter; rebound in modern green boards. Uncommon later edition of this appealing educational work on human biology and physiology for children. According to COPAC, the date of the first edition appears uncertain, though we believe that it was first originally published anonymously in 1850 under the variant title Every-day wonders; or, facts in physiology which all should know, one of a number of works written anonymously by Anne Bullar (1813-1856) and published by John van Voorst. An 1858 publisher’s advertisement for Voorst ascribes this to be from her pen, together with Domestic Scenes in Greenland and Iceland (1844), England before the Norman Conquest (1851), and Sunday Book for the Young (1855) - none of which are ascribed to her by COPAC.
This presumed later edition, is now fully ascribed to her. It is our understanding that it was originally issued in three separate parts, each in their own printed wrappers, and issued under the banner of the ‘Ladies Sanitary Association’ as part of their series of popular tracts on health. At some point it appears to have been bound together by a previous owner, and then more recently bound in modern boards. The three parts deal in turn with: 1. Breathing, blood, digestion, food, and nerves; 2. Bones, the muscles, and skin; and 3. The teeth, the eye, the ear, feeling, tasting, smelling.

1851. Large Folio, 450 x 295mm, bound manuscript in a single calligraphic hand in a variety of colours, ff. 158; with watercolour illustration mounted on front paste-down (presumably a self portrait of Joly in local Saintongeois costume), with numerous section headings stencilled in black and block lettering (a number misspelt and with corrections), the first leaf heading surrounded by ornate garland in green, brown and ochre, with the copious calculations throughout embellished with underlining in green, brown or ochre; with neat pen illustrations depicting a number of instruments on ff. 113; lightly foxed and soiled throughout, with a few ink smudges, one or two minor marginal nicks and losses but nothing significant, very small square excised at tail of final leaf, presumably a correction?; seemingly self-bound and stitched in contemporary paste-paper card wrappers, with title in manuscript on upper cover, evidence of previous tear on upper cover neatly repaired, some small loss along spine at stitching points, covers a little soiled with dampstaining at head of rear cover; overall a little dog-eared, but nevertheless charming for its unsophistication. A charming, unsophisticated, and one of the most substantial manuscript exercise books we have handled, and the work of the young student Théophile Joly, from Lonzac, a commune of Haute Saintonge in the Southwestern department of Charente-Maritime.
Joly’s notebook is an appealing example of a cyphering book, i.e. a manuscript written either by a student or teacher and with a particular focus upon mathematical content. Printed books were rarely used, and teachers would compile manuscript sum books to be used as teaching aids, and from which the students copied, often embellished with calligraphic headings and flourishes, ink and wash sketches and diagrams, etc. The content often followed a prescribed pattern, containing rules, cases, problems, and solutions to exercises associated with a well-defined progression of mathematical (usually arithmetic) topics.
The present example very much follows this traditional format, though Joly refrains from overly embellishing his course-work - perhaps being of a less artistic temperament, or perhaps reflecting a more rigourous approach to learning instilled by his tutor. His headings are seemingly stencilled in black block lettering - several of which have been misspelt and which have then been corrected. Clearly worked quite hard, the volume contains very few introductions to the arithmetical processes under discussion, but instead is focused almost entirely upon the problems to be solved together with the calculations. Few illustrations are included, although one or two small diagrams are to be found, but a full page illustrations depicting ‘les instruments de la géometrie’ is found on ff. 113. Perhaps compiled in preparation for a trade or mercantile apprenticeship, the arithmetic processes and examples are derived from, or relate to, various professions, including banking, land surveying, brewing, notaries, and as such throws a fascinating light upon contemporary educational priorities of the time.
Joly has clearly given way to a few moments of light-relief however. An appealing water-colour depiction of a young man in local costume has been pasted onto the inside front cover - and which may well be a self-portrait. Furthermore, in a moment of boredom perhaps, at the tail of ff. 22 we find what appear to be five ‘brass rubbings’ depicting the faces of a 2 and 5 franc coin, and which are dated 1838 and 1839. He frequently signs his name throughout the work as well. Seemingly also self-bound, though perhaps a less sophisticated example than some previously handled, Joly’s notebook is in many ways all the more charming for this ‘home-made’ feel!

1940s.]. Boxed set, 130 x 110 x 75mm including a heavy cast iron model with moveable internal barrel, a set of 24 colour retinal images on 12 circular card discs housed within a separate lidded box 85 x 45 x 65, a small key card explaining the individual discs, and a stapled sixteen page instructional pamphlet by Dr Fisher, now folded into four, with the final page damaged and torn (through rubbing against the cast iron model), with some loss of the text though meaning still discernible; also retained an old and somewhat grubby optical cloth; two edges of eye disc box torn and split with further light wear; in the original drab cardboard box with printed label on one side, box a little scuffed and worn, with some edgewear; overall a good example of a seemingly scarce survivor. A seemingly later version of this ‘schematic eye’ model, designed by Dr William A Fisher (1860-1944), Professor of Ophthalmology and President of the Chicago Eye, Ear and Throat College, and designed to help students study ophthalmoscopy - the examination of the back part of the eye (fundus - including the retina, optic disc, choroid and blood vessels). Fisher first introduced his model in 1907, earlier models being more cylindrical, often made of brass, and including a stand. This ‘improved model’ is now made of heavy cast iron. It consists of one barrel working inside of another in such a manner that a long or short eye can be produced. The viewer has a lens to represent the crystalline lens of the human eye, and a diaphragm shutter to represent the iris that when fully open represents a pupil of 30 millimetres. When one of the 24 retina simulation disc is placed in the three pronged viewing holder, the student with an ophthalmoscope can then look inside the viewer as if looking into an eye. Though a little damaged, the set retains a copy of Fisher’s instructional booklet, which discusses each of the conditions represented on the discs and thus diagnosable with the Fisher eye. An unusual survivor.

1800. 12mo, pp. xii, 154; with folding engraved frontispiece map of the world, a folding plate of the spheres, and two further engraved plates of ‘Geographical terms and figures exemplified’; lacking the front free endpaper; some occasional light soiling, upper margin of frontispiece with faint stain, otherwise clean and bright; with a few neat pencil markings throughout; with the signature of ‘A. W. Wells’ on front pastedown, and of ‘Parker’ on rear pastedown; a most appealing unsophisticated copy in the original full sheep, ruled in blind, spine in compartments with raised bands, some loss of spine at head and tail, and upper joint cracked but holding firm, extremities a little rubbed; with the name ‘Parker’ stamped in black vertically on upper cover. A scarce provincial printing and charming unsophisticated copy of this popular geographical work by the noted historian Abbé Pierre Nicolas Lenglet du Fresnoy (1674-1755), originally published in 1736 as Géographie des enfans. The first English edition appeared in the following year. One of the earliest geography text-books aimed specifically at young children, the work comprises a series of sixty-six lessons, organised by country and area, and adopts the question and answer format to help instil into young minds. Thus they are given the key facts about major cities, rivers, population and systems of government. The final lessons introduce the reader to the use of the terrestrial globe, and concluding with a table of longitude and latitude. By studying for an hour a day, ‘all this knowledge may be acquired in less time than three months’ (p. x).
Not only aimed at children, however, as the preface notes: ‘This outline may likewise be useful even to those of riper years, for there are many, who, though they have had a good general education, are ignorant even of the first rudiments of this science... Young ladies, in two months time, may be instructed in the rudiments of Geography, and be able to give a pertinent answer to a question, that they would blush if they were unable to resolve’ (p.iv-v). The work proved to be extremely popular and enduring, as the present ‘twenty-second’ edition and Shrewsbury imprint suggests.
The author of several works, Du Fresnoy published his more extensive Methode pour etudier la geographie in 1716, the 1736 work presumably being an abridgement based upon that work.

1871 and 1880. Together, two volumes, 8vo and folio portfolio; pp. [ii], 45, [1] blank; with five chromolithograph wall charts mounted on linen, 565 x 715mm, each with two eyelets in upper margin; text volume somewhat browned and spotted, plates also a little foxed and browned, with some staining to verso, but otherwise good; text in contemporary cloth-backed blue marbled boards, with title label mounted on upper cover lettered in ms, with library stamp on upper cover, extremities a little rubbed and worn; wall charts housed within the original drab grey cloth-backed card portfolio, with printed label mounted on upper cover, preserving the original cloth ties, head and tail of spine a little worn, covers lightly scuffed and stained; overall a good copy. Scarce, though mixed set, of the first edition of the text and the second edition of the charts, of this striking example of ‘infographics’, introducing the study of geology and prehistory via a series of large wall-charts, by the German geologist Oskar Friedrich von Fraas (1824-97). As such it provides a fascinating view of contemporary geological theory. Fraas was the geological curator at the natural history museum in Stuttgart, and had been strongly influenced by the success of Louis Figuier’s ‘La terre avant le Déluge’ published in 1863, and which prompted him to publish his own ‘Vor der Sündfluth!’ in 1866.
The second edition of 1880 was expanded from four to five wall charts, the first four depicting the geological profiles and landscapes of the Silurian to Permian period; the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous; the Eocene, Miocene, and Pliocene age; and the Pleistocene period. The final plate is a prehistoric chart illustrating the Stone Age.

1985. Series of four large wall charts forming the periodic table, each poster 60 x 85cm, with a total size of 120 x 170cm; offset printed in a number of colours and including a large portrait of Mendeleev; all four tables somewhat browned due to paper quality, each with a number of marginal nicks and tears though with more prominent tears of over 5cms affecting the left margins on two of the posters; despite obvious signs of wear, still a scarce and vibrant survivor. Four large and striking educational wall charts illustrating Dimitri Mendeleev’s famous periodic system, produced by the largest Soviet publisher of educational literature, and seemingly issued to coincide with the 150th anniversary of his birth in 1834. According to the imprint, the posters were printed in a run of 55,000 copies in 1984 and were available to purchase for 30 kopecks each.
Vibrantly printed, the posters include a striking portrait of the chemist, together with a quotation: ‘The future does not threaten the periodic table with doom, but only promises improvement and growth.’ A number of leading Soviet educationalists have collaborated on its production including: Evdokia Mikhailovna Sokoloskaya (1923-2010) a leading Soviet chemist who for many years headed the Department of General Chemistry at the Faculty of Lomonosov Moscow State University; Igor Evgenievich Shimanovich (1939-) the Belarusian chemist and professor; Vladimir Valentinovich Sorokin, an established biochemist and educator and the author of a number of works; and Viktor Filippovich Tikavy (1930-2002) was a prominent Belarusian chemist, who served as Dean of the Chemical Faculty at the Belarusian State University.

1776. 8vo, pp. [xxiv], 594, [14]; without the four page dedication, which is sometimes present; with 109 naive woodcuts within text, and large woodcut vignette on final verso; lower corner of page 84 torn with loss of paper not text, and with neat discrete paper repairs to pp. 341-42, 359-60, 413-14 and 541-42, stain affecting pp. 433-437, the whole text lightly foxed and browned, with some occasional minor marginal dampstaining, otherwise clean; in contemporary half calf over marbled boards, spine in compartments with raised bands, ruled in gilt, with orange paper lettering label, spine slightly cracked, with both joints starting but holding firm, with slight loss to rear joint, covers a little scuffed, and recornered to style; with the bookplate of Lennart Ragnemark on front pastedown; a good copy. Second edition of this ‘introduction to the knowledge of animals’ by Magnus Orrelius (1717-1794), of particular appeal for the numerous charming woodcuts, which though perhaps not all original, are believed to have been done by the author himself. The work was first published anonymously in 1750-1751 in weekly parts as Historia animalium, and is considered to be Sweden’s first vernacular zoological handbook.
The Royal Swedish Academy was founded in 1739, on the initiative of Linnaeus amongst others. One of the aims was to promote the economic benefits of the natural sciences, a principle which naturally favoured botanical and zoological research, with the hope that the discovery of new animal and plant species could be of use to man. Up to this time, little had been written about the plant and animal kingdom, with most published being in Latin, and so a number of manuals and textbooks were published to fill this void, and disseminate knowledge more widely. Linnaeus himself, famously published his Fauna Svecica, the first Swedish natural fauna, in 1746, though this was once again published in Latin, and whilst ground-breaking, was not really a handbook for general use.
In October 1749, advertisements appeared in Stockholm for a work on the history of animals written ‘in the Swedish tongue’, to be published by subscription in parts to make it more affordable and cheaper to print. The anonymous author borrowed the title Historia Animalium from Conrad Gessner’s famous work. According to Martin Biinsow, when Linnaeus saw the advertisement he was greatly perturbed, fearing plagiarism of his popular lecture notes. ‘In a letter to the Academy of Sciences' secretary, Wargentin, Linné writes that, if there is plagiarism, he will withdraw not only from the fauna, but from all work. However, the great man could breathe a sigh of relief when the work started to come out. There was no question of any plagiarism, even if the author had picked up a lot of facts from Linné’ (Biinsow, I Var Herres Hage, Svensk zoologi i Kunskapskallan, p. 5 a google translation). Indeed, for this second edition, a letter of recommendation by Wargentin himself is included on the verso of the title-page – a sign of Academy approval no doubt.
The author, in fact, was Magnus Orrelius (1717-94), a member of the Moravian Brethren in Sweden, active as a writer, translator and woodcutter, though not part of traditional academic circles. From an impoverished background, and born as Mans Fanberg, he funded himself to study at Uppsala, at which point he changed his name. His poor financial situation meant that his studies were fragmented and he never took his degree. He worked as a personal tutor, and then as an accountant, but made most of his living as a writer, as well as penning a number of pamphlets and articles on social issues such as child-rearing, and population decline.
The Historia Animalium was his first work, and whilst it claimed to describe all animals existing on the globe, was confined principally to mammals, including man, Orrelius adopting Linnaeus’ classification and system. This second edition has been substantially revised and enlarged when it comes to the number of species described, but for cost reasons the descriptions were kept shorter and are limited, as previously, to mammals. As acknowledged in the preface, the work draws upon a number of sources, including Pliny, Aristotle, Olaus Magnus, as well Linnaeus. Whilst clearly aiming to be a serious scientific treatise, Orrelius often trying to distance himself from some earlier myths and legends, (notably the unicorn an Aristotelian invention according to Orrelius), the information provided is often of varying reliability. Far from being an objective commentator, his own moral judgements and opinions pervade the work, which often make for entertaining reading. His theological leanings ensure too, that in line with fellow 18^th century scholars, his work very much recognises and celebrates the wonders of Creation, stressing how an appreciation of the beauties of nature can lead to a greater understanding of God.
Focusing more upon behavioural traits than anatomical descriptions, Orrelius often imparts human qualities to the animals under discussion, seeing animals as images of human characteristics. About the ‘natt-människan, homo nocturnus, troglodytes’ (the orangutan, p. 41), Orrelius notes that ‘they speak in a whispering manner, think and draw conclusions like rational creatures, imagining that the whole globe was created for their sake, and that they once will come to his former power over the inhabitants of the earth’. He describes the ‘lurfwige bawianen’ of Sumatra (p. 51), as whilst not ugly, ‘is nevertheless terrifying in appearance, after that he always grinds his teeth, and gives signs of anger. It is sometimes the meanest and rudest of all animals’. Mammals from all corners of the globe are described, from Africa to America, including elephants, rhinocerus, whales, lions, camels, sloths, porcupines, domestic beasts such as dogs and cattle, as well as the walrus (p. 94) and the racoon (p. 262). The animals are frequently described as being greedy, or ferocious, or blood-thirsty, and though perhaps not believing in unicorns, he does subscribe to various traditional ‘forest’ myths, superstitions and beliefs.
The work includes 109 charming if somewhat naive woodcuts of mammals, believed to be the work of Orrelius himself. In discussing the first edition, Biinsow notes that a number of the woodcuts appear to have been copied for earlier works by Olaus Magnus, as well as Albrecht Dürer (notably his 1515 woodcut of a rhinocerus), and some from Johnston’s Historiae naturalis (1650-1654). It is interesting to note that all appear to have been revised and re-engraved for the present second edition, the similarities not nearly so obvious. Much less refined, they have a charming, naive quality. An important, if less well known contribution, to the zoological canon.

1794. Folio, pp. [8]; with woodcut ornament on title-page; lightly soiled, with old accession number in upper margin, and faint signs of signature at tail though seemingly bleached out, otherwise clean and fresh; uncut, unbound and unstitched as issued. The fear of being buried alive is arguably one of humanity’s greatest anxieties, with terrifying accounts of wrongful burial recorded throughout the centuries. Towards the end of the 18th century, however, a corpus of literature emerged on the resuscitation of the apparent dead, ‘a matter of particular importance at the end of a century in which the fear of being buried alive was an overriding concern’ (Lesky, The Vienna Medical School of the 19th century, p. 88). ‘Special lectures on the subject had been instituted in Prague since 1779 and a rescue society as well as a special rescue house had existed there since 1797’ (ibid).
The present Royal decree issued by the Prussian Health authorities in Berlin provides instructions for rural village preachers in particular, so that they, in turn, could instruct members of their congregation about the signs of actual death, ‘so that no living person is buried’. In the absence of city physicians, certification of the dead was the duty of the clergy. Eight signs of death are listed, ranging from the lack of a pulse and not breathing to being ice cold, with advice then given on how to determine these (for example placing a flame in front of the nose of mouth to check for signs of breathe). Other suggestions include tickling the throat with a feather, burning a feather or ammonia under the nose, or placing a burning candle in front of the eyes to check for eye movement, and in the case of apparently stillborn children, vigourous rubbing and blowing air into the lungs. Other techniques such as blood-letting, galvanic impulses, the application of cold and hot compresses to the heart, and the use of tobacco smoke are also mentioned. It suggests that too, no deceased person, even if signs of death are observed, should be laid out naked in a cold room, but should be left clothed in moderately warm air, for at least one or two days in summer, spring and autumn, and three to four days in winter. The instructions also describes the signs of putrifaction, the various conditions that might lead to death, and provides advice on how best to store corpses whilst awaiting burial in different seasons.
Footnotes at the end reveal that the authorities have drawn upon Hufeland’s work of 1791, Über die Ungewißbeit des Todes as well as Mayer’s treatise Abhandlung von den zeichen des wirtlich ersolgren todes und von der zur verhütung des lebendig-begrabens notingen vorsicht bey behandlung der leichen, published in Berlin in the same year. This dealt in particular with the setting up of temporary mortuary tents and coffin design for use in rural areas, and for those areas too far from the public mortuaries recently built in cities such as Weimar, Brauschweig and Berlin.

[1761]. Two volumes, 8vo; pp. xliv, 515; [iv], 560; with attractive woodcut title-page vignettes, woodcut arms and headpieces; faint dampstain affecting upper gutter of final few leaves of Vol. I, and also lower margins of ff. 451 to the end of Vol. II (though very faint), both volumes a little browned with occasional light spotting and soiling, though generally clean and crisp, in contemporary full speckled calf, spine in compartments with raised bands, ruled and decorated in gilt with red and green morocco labels, all edges marbled, retaining green silk markers, small nick with loss at head of spine and upper joint of Vol. I, small nick to tail, and to upper cover of Vol. II, with further light surface wear and to extremities and corners; a good copy. An uncommon introduction to science aimed at a female audience. Written in the form of a dialogue with an anonymous Comtesse, the work is modelled on those of Fontenelle and Algarotti, though according to the dedication to the Comtesse de Rochechouart, the present treatise offers a more complete course of physics than either previous work. The dedication also includes an interesting discussion on the education of women, contributing to the ongoing debate surrounding the role of women in society.
Prompted by the reappearance of Halley's comet in 1758, the countess is keen to understand the phenomena, but resents the fact that savants spend so little time on female education, and feels that most men want to limit their knowledge to 'feeble notions of geography, mythology and history'. Having emphasised that science is as much a practical study as a theoretical one, Devillers agrees to embark upon a course of instruction which he divides into 18 days, and deals with subjects such as pneumatics, hydrostatics and hydraulics, electricity (II, 1-65 with a section on medical electricity), gravity, the laws of motion, optics and the telescope and astronomy (days 16-18, II, 377-557).
Devillers moved to Lyons early in his career, and began lecturing on physics, later taking a room in the town hall to present his lecture series. He was elected a member of the Academy of Lyons, and was noted for his fine collection of instruments, or 'cabinet de physique'.

ca. 1920-1930s]. Green metal tin, 20.5 cm in diametre, 1.2cm in depth, containing within two pairs of revolving discs riveted in place, the upper made of printed green metal with a printed card disc below, the upper discs with 9 cut out windows and eight columns of numbers alongside a corresponding pin-holes; some foxing and soiling evident to card discs; with instructions printed on tin base; without the original stylus for turning the discs though still functional; tin somewhat soiled and scuffed, but otherwise a good and scarce survivor. A scarce and ‘delightful’ educational game ‘for speedily learning the facts of arithmetic’, produced by the Educational Device Company of Medina in New York. One of a series of ‘drill-tests now ‘ready’, the present example includes discs to help students with the manual calculation for ‘column addition’ and ‘part of numbers - Fractions’. ‘Work the problem at one of the windows. The answer to this problem is in the column to the right. Put the stylus in the hole beside the answer you think is the correct one, and push the upper disc as far to the left as it will go. There - if you have selected the correct answer, the stylus will drop into a hole in the lower disc. Keep the stylus firmly in this hole, and pull both discs as far to the right as the stop will permit. This will bring a new problem to the window. Work it as above, and keep on indefinitely until all the facts are learned’. (Instructions).
We are unsure as to whether the discs were intended to be interchangeable: the rivets seem to be immovable so perhaps not, but the instructions note that others were available, however, dealing addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
Far from ‘delightful’, the game appears rather devilish (though may perhaps not be revolving as fully intended). Google provides some tantalising snippets of contemporary reviews, which seem to suggest it was well reviewed in its day. ‘A very clever piece of work’ and ‘marvellous little machine’ according to the American Educational Digest: The School Executives Magazine of 1923 and 1924, that ‘simply won’t allow the child to make a single mistake. Think of it - every example done correctly and no papers to correct! It seems uncanny but it is true’ (Normal Instructor and Teachers World, vol 34). Surviving examples appear to be extremely scarce, however, with a possibly earlier variant existing that was housed within a wooden box. We have for far been unable to find any further information about Kuhn.

1754. 8vo, pp. [iii]-viii, 233, [11] including table of contents, approbation, privilege and errata; with appealing woodcut title-page vignette, woodcut head- and tail-pieces, and four folding engraved plates; small nick affecting fore-edge of pp. 9-11, insignificant minor worm-trail at tail of pp. 221-232, minor ink staining to plate I, and some occasional light foxing and spotting; otherwise clean and crisp; in contemporary full mottled sheep, spine in compartments with raised bands, tooled in gilt with morocco label, slight nick to spine at tail, upper cover a little scuffed and scratched, extremities lightly bumped and rubbed; with contemporary book-label of ‘Me. Lespinasse, Avocat’ on front pastedown; an appealing copy. First edition of this attractively printed practical elementary work on calculus and geometry, by Pierre Anastase Torne (1727-1797). Though at the time a priest in Tarbes, and a professor at the town college, Torné had long held an interest in mathematics and geometry, and according to the Biographie Nouvelle des Contemporains, was in correspondence with both Jean le Rond d’Alembert (1717-1783) and Joseph Lagrange (1736-1813) who were willing for him to share their teachings, presumably in the present work, although there appear to be no obvious citations. The work was to have some success however and was well received.
Torné was to later become a canon at Orléans Cathedral, and in 1774 delivered the funeral oration of Louis XV, having previous gained a reputation for his oratory and preaching. In 1789 he enthusiastically embraced the revolution, and travelled to Paris to join the Jacobins. He was elected constitutional Bishop of Cher in 1791. Not only politically engaged, he maintained an active correspondence with leading figures and maintained a correspondence with Rousseau. He was to later leave the priesthood and marry at the age of 66, although the marriage proved to short-lived. He eventually returned to Tarbes where he obtained a position as the librarian at the École Centrale, which allowed him to save a number of manuscripts from the revolutionary turmoil. He retained his links with the Jacobins, but died having been rejected by his family, the revolutionary bishop now somewhat forgotten.

1920s?]. Consisting of one lidded card box 115 x 160m, containing within four separate lidded boxes 75 x 55mm; lacking one blank blue tile, but otherwise complete, white, pink and yellow boxes containing a set of 90 coloured lettered squares (of which five are blank in each set, although as noted only four blue blank tiles); upper lid of each with printed text giving the numbers of individual letters; sets generally bright and clean, with a block of colour on each added in pen to indicate set of cards; some light soiling to boxes; retaining original green cloth ‘caller’s bag’ usually missing; with a folded set of printed rules (though torn in half but without any loss or interruption of text and still usable); rules with some pencil markings; in the original white box, upper lid printed, box lid rather dust-soiled and scuffed, worn along joints and edges, and with later sellotape repairs around the edge; still a good example of a scarce game. An appealing game, similar in vein to scrabble, and we believe an early issue, unusually retaining the original cloth callers bag and including a set of rules. The game consists of a box containing four separate boxes, each of which contains 85 small square cards with letters of the alphabet printed on both sides, together with a further 5 blank cards ‘to replace lost letters’ (though the present set lacks one blue blank tile). The four sets are printed in different colours: white, blue, pink and yellow.
‘The object of the game is to form as many and as long words as possible out of each of the sets of letters supplied... each set contains 85 letters, the proportional quantities of each letter being the same as used by printers. Each set is kept in a small box or bag, with a larger bag for the “Caller”’. Each player takes a set, except for the “Caller”, who keeps his set in a bag ‘from which he draws them one by one at random’. As each letter is called, the player takes the corresponding letter from his set, and places them ‘in not more than six vertical or horizontal columns, endeavouring to arrange them so as to form complete words, reading vertically downwards or horizontally across’.
According to the main lid, the game was ‘invented by the late Alexander Millar’, but as the instruction leaf reveals, the marketing and distribution of the game appears to have been undertaken by two sisters. The printed note states that the game could only be obtained from ‘Miss O. H. Drury’ of Farnagh, York Road, Kingstown, Dublin’. Previous sets handled suggested that a ‘Miss M.I. Drury’ was also involved in this entrepreneurial enterprise. A change in the price of the game has also been noted in ink - the original price ‘Price 1/6 per set. Postage 1 set 3d., 2 sets 5d., etc.’ now changed to ‘1/8 per set, and increased to 4d and 5d respectively’. The price of the sets appears to have changed over time, with the dispatch address also changing. The games seems to have proved relatively popular, with variant and presumably later issues identified including a printed note on the box lid of Miss M. I. Drury’s involvement. Only the Ballam collection set appears to retain the original callers’ bag (in that case blue).

1911. Five volumes, large 8vo: I. pp. [ii] ‘legende’ to plate, [ii] half-title, [ii] cancel title-page including ‘Turin 1911’, viii, 782, [ii] blank, [iv] explanatory leaves to movable plates, copiously illustrated throughout with half-tone illustrations and diagrams and with three chromolithograph plates incorporating movable flaps (one bound at the front and two at the rear including one on rear pastedown), and with 29 of 30 plates in all comprising 2 double-page chromolithograph astronomical plates, one chromolithograph double-page map, three chromolithograph plates, and 23 black and white plates on 19 leaves (four leaves with plates on recto and verso, and three with text on verso); missing one chromolithograph plate at p. 208 depicting volcanic activity; II. [ii] ‘legende’ to plate, [iv], 771, [1], with one chromolithograph plate incorporating movable flaps, three chromolithograph plates, four double-page chromolithograph plates, and 25 black and white plates (one double-page); III. [ii] explanatory leaf to plate, [iv], 739, [1], copiously illustrated throughout, and with one chromolithograph plate incorporating movable flaps, six double-page chromolithograph maps, three chromolithograph plates and 17 black and white plates (two double-page; IV. pp. [ii] explanatory leaf to movable plate, [iv], 746, copiously illustrated throughout, with one chromolithograph plate incorporating movable flaps, 15 chromolithograph plates, 9 double-page chromolithograph maps, and 20 uncoloured plates on 15 leaves; V. pp. [ii] explanatory leaf, [iv], 829, [3] blank, xxvii general index, [1] blank, copiously illustrated throughout and with one chromolithograph plate incorporating movable flaps, 26 chromolithograph plates (two with printed overlays), 6 chromolithograph maps, and 10 black and white plates; uniformly bound in half brown morocco over tan cloth, spines ruled and lettered in gilt, upper covers with gilt vignette, lettering in white, and with blind-stamped decoration, all volumes with some light scuffing, rubbing and surface wear, and due to weight, all a little shaken; a good sound copy. DUE TO WEIGHT ADDITIONAL SHIPPING COSTS LIKELY. Seemingly the second edition, second issue with cancel title page reflecting the additional Gold Medal awarded at ‘Turin 1911’ (first 1907). A comprehensive and copiously illustrated home encyclopaedia which presents the state of knowledge at the beginning of the twentieth century. The French publisher Aristide Quillet was well-known at the time as a specialist in the publishing of detailed and richly illustrated scientific, medical and educational encyclopaedias, and ‘Mon Professeur’ is another striking example of his prolific output, as well as being a further collaboration with Philippe Hettinger, Professor at the University of Paris and ‘Directeur de la Collaboration Scientifique et Professionnelle’. Hettinger was himself the author of a number of popular works, several of which adopted the use of movable parts. Indeed ‘Mon Professeur’ includes a number of chromolithograph ‘flap’ plates, illustrating a large telescope, a colliery, an extracting machine, a dog rose, a frog, a diplodocus, and a telegraph machine.
Aristide Quillet was a passionate educator, and firmly believed that social advancement and ‘liberation’ was only possible through access to knowledge and culture. His published works, therefore, were aimed in particular at the general populace, and those who may not have had access to extensive schooling. ‘Mon Professeur’ provides a systematic introduction to a number of general topics, including astronomy, physics, chemistry, geology, botany, anatomy and physiology, geography, history, mathematics, art and design, and language and literature. Including numerous black and white, half-tone, and chromolithograph illustrations and maps, it provides an invaluable resource. It was later reprinted in 1932 in three volumes.
The present set is lacking one chromolithograph plate in volume one, and is without the separately published supplementary volume sometimes found.

1905. 8vo, pp. [ii], [461]-508, [8] list of publications; with 17 half-tone plates, and large folding engraved ‘geologic map’ printed in green, red, blue, brown and orange, housed within pocket on rear pastedown; map a little creased at one fold, but otherwise good; lightly browned throughout with some minor dinking to fore-edge in places; stapled as issued in the original printed wrappers, staples rusted, and both inner hinges cracked, with evidence or previous attempt to re-glue spine to book-block, spine somewhat browned and soiled, 3cm tear to rear cover where inside pocket has slightly pulled away; a sound copy. The Ph.D. dissertation of the noted U.S. geologist, glaciologist and educator, Ida Helen Ogilvie (1874-1963), earned whilst at Columbia University, under the guidance of her advisor, the petrologist James Furman Kemp (1859-1926). Ogilvie's dissertation was the geologic mapping of the Paradox Lake Quadrangle in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. Fifteen-minute quadrangle maps were only just becoming available for this part of the United States, and hers was the first quadrangle report on rocks from the Adirondacks published by the New York State Museum in 1905.
‘Ida Ogilvie’s wealthy parents had expected their daughter to be socially prominent and allowed her to travel extensively before she attended college... However by the time she reached Bryn Mawr, she had no intentions of pursuing the life of a society matron. She studied geology with Florence Bascom, then went to Columbia University to complete a doctoral degree (1903).
After completing this degree, she took a position at Barnard College, where she founded the department of geology. Not content with working only with undergraduates, she wanted to teach graduates at Columbia as well. However, they were well stocked with professors in her areas of expertise. She found, nevertheless, that they had no one to teach glacial geology. Interested in the subject since her time at Chicago, she read extensively and prepared herself to teach it. Ogilvie was an excellent lecturer and spent a considerable amount of time organizing and preparing for her classes. She worked extensively on the geology of New York State and the glaciers of Alberta, Canada. The second woman to be admitted to the Geological Society of America, one of the three women first admitted to the Columbia Chapter of Sigma Xi, and vice-president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Ogilvie was active professionally. She used a portion of her inherited wealth to support geology students at Bryn Mawr, Columbia and Barnard’ (Ogilvie, II. p. 958).
Ogilvie was one of the first students of Florence Bascom, who set a generation of women from Bryn Mawr onto careers in geology. Ogilvie’s hiring at Barnard College began one of the few geology programs at elite women’s colleges, with others started by Elizabeth F. Fisher at Wellesley College, and Mignon Talbot at Mount Holyoke. Maps in the 15 Minute Quadrangle series were made in the period between the 1890s and the 1950s and were created by the Map Division of the United States Geological Survey (USGS), to provide a detailed topographic map coverage of the entire United States at the same scale. The term Quadrangle refers to the sides of the maps which are 15 minutes of latitude and longitude in length. The series was gradually replaced by the 7.5 Minute Quadrangle series. The 15 Minute Quadrangle maps provide vital geographic, historical, and topographic information that can be used in understanding the nature of a place.

1841-1843. Two text volumes, 8vo, (Vol. II a wide-margined copy, 257mm x 175mm and 280mm x 182mm) and folio atlas in two parts; pp. xxx, 302; pp. 361, [3] blank, [364] -368; ATLAS: pp. [74] and with 66 large and finely engraved plates, in two parts, pp. [39-40] second title-page ‘Parte Artificiali, dated 1843; sporadic faint dampstaining affecting upper margins of Vol. I, a little more prominent from pp. 290 to the end, but otherwise crisp and bright, with two loosely inserted contemporary notes, Vol. II with some occasional foxing and marginal soiling, atlas some text offsetting visible on title-page from other title-pages, with evidence of previous attempts to remove, text and plates with some offsetting, foxing and light soiling throughout, but generally bright, outer margins of plates 10, 26 and 63 with some more prominent dust-soiling and some marginal tearing; a mixed set, Vol. I in contemporary green half cloth over pink marbled boards, spine ruled and lettered in gilt, spine a little rubbed and scuffed with further light surface wear, corners bumped and worn, Vol. II a wide-margined copy, uncut and partially unopened in contemporary sheep-bakced marbled boards, spine ruled and lettered in gilt, inner hinge cracked but holding, head of spine torn with small loss, spine and joints worn and scuffed with small hole at tail of upper joint, corners bumped and worn, atlas in contemporary half morocco over blue paper boards, spine lettered and decorated in gilt, inner hinges repaired, boards somewhat stained and spotted, with some minor loss in places, paper splitting along tail of upper cover, corners bumped and worn. First edition, though a made up mixed set, of a scarce and little known yet comprehensive and most attractively illustrated theoretical and practical obstetrical textbook, by the Sicilian obstetrician Giovanni Raffaele (1804-1882), and probably the most important and exhaustive Italian work on the subject of the day.
Professor of obstetrics at Napoli, the work was published over two years, and covers ‘Dei parti naturali e dell’ igiene loro conveniente’, and ‘Dei travagli laboriosi e delle cure che loro convengono’. The 66 fine and precise engravings have been executed by a number of engravers, and in addition to highlighting various pelvises, numerous different presentations, also illustrate a variety of gynaecological and obstetrical instruments, with the final five plates also depicting the use of forceps.
The work is scarce, and of three complete sets previously handled, two were also mixed sets.

1770-1775. Complete set of playing cards, comprising engraved title card, engraved seller’s advertisement card and 52 engraved pictorial cards bearing details of mythological characters; three cards hand-coloured, all good strong impressions, seller’s card on different stock somewhat browned and with small abrasion and manuscript number ‘42/6’ in top right-hand corner, ‘Morpheus’ card on same variant card stock, also somewhat browned, remaining cards with general soiling and browning but generally clean and bright; housed within the original card box, with engraved label on upper cover (somewhat faded), one side of box split with loss, with heavy wear to all sides; despite box wear, a fine and scarce set. Extremely scarce and striking educational game introducing children and young adults to Greek and Roman mythology through a series of 52 engraved pictorial cards giving the details of famous mythological figures and scenes. The title card promises that even those of a more mature age may find them amusing. Each card is divided into two halves, with double line borders. An elegant neo-classical engraving adorns the top half, representing a deity, hero, or memorable event selected from myths and religions of antiquity. Each deity is distinguished by the emblems which are usually associated with them. Brief explanatory notes are found below. Both epic heroes and Olympians are highlighted, together with a wealth of supporting characters. Thus we are introduced to: ‘Circe, Perseus, Vulcan, Charon, Europa, Adonis, Neptune, Bellona, Arachne, Mars, Ulysses, Ajax and others, and incidents such as Apollo's transformation of Prince Cypariss into a cypress (sic) tree, and the Nine Muses' transformation of the Nine Daughters of Pierus, King of Macedonia, into magpies’ (Cotsen). There are two cards for two characters (Ceries and Iphis) both different, referring to separate incidents. Three of the cards have been hand-coloured by a previous owner, evidently at an early date. Willerton’s advertisement card includes an image of Mount Olympus.

1940. Mixed set, four volumes, 8vo; I. pp. 128, with unnumbered photograph on contents verso and 96 text diagrams, illustrations and photographs; II. pp. 125, [3] blank, with unnumbered photograph on contents verso and 80 text diagrams, illustrations and photographs; III. pp. 128, with unnumbered photograph on contents verso, four half page photographs and 66 text diagrams; IV. pp. 158, with unnumbered photograph on contents verso, 10 full and half page photographs and 14 text diagrams; all four volumes, aside from some occasional light foxing and minor soiling, clean and bright; each volume with contemporary ownership signature or label; all four in contemporary decorative publisher’s cloth, with series motif of swallow and butterfly on upper cover, in orange, green, red and blue, spines all a little sunned, head and tail of spines lightly rubbed and worn with some minor loss, with further light rubbing and surface wear; an appealing set. Offered together an appealing, though mixed, set of this series of biology text-books aimed at secondary school pupils. The series was begun in 1936, with the present set including two later editions of Books I and III (1940 and 1951), with what we believe to be first editions of Books II and IV (1938), although neither volume is dated. The books effectively take the students’ through four years of study, and deal with the life stories of animals and plants, their structure, function and concluding with the applications of biology to practical problems. ‘Demonstrations and lectures are not enough for children, and the whole book has been based on experiment and observation which they can make for themselves. If they follow out the scheme of “Things you can do at Home or at School,” they will not only be more interested in the work, but will be brought into direct contact with the creatures they are studying and will acquire regular habits of observation... We have particularly kept in mind the needs and conditions of schools in the industrial towns and cities, and have not assumed that every school has the advantage of a special Science room’ (Book I, p. 5). The final chapters of Book IV are devoted to the lives of some notable biologists, including Aristotle, Antony van Leeuwenhoek, Carl Linnaeus, Charles Darwin, Louis Pasteur, Lord Lister and Jean Henri Fabre. Reproduction is touched upon in Book III, but confined to animals and with no mention of human reproduction. The prefaces each make mention of the books leading up to a course of Hygiene, which may well have tried to address these more delicate matters.
Morgan was the author of a number of pedagogical works, including a series of mathematics for senior school girls entitled ‘Real-Life Arithmetic for Girls’ (1936), and ‘The teaching of mathematics in the secondary modern school’ (1959). In 1952 she had collaborated with J. Williamson to publish the ‘Arithmetic Tool Box’, which comprised of 244 cards, which dealt with the elementary processes in number, fractions and British Money, and which was followed by ‘The Decimal Tool Kit’ issued in 1964.

ca. 1919.]. Green painted wooden slant slope box 23.5 x 43.5 x 14 cms (narrowing to 6.5 cms at top), with metal hinged flaps at front and back, retaining rear metal holding clasp though missing upper edge clasp, and with metal carrying handle at top, with two rows of 10 metal fingers (i.e. two hands) pivoting on a metal rod within, the front row painted in reddish brown, the rear row in white, fingers between 7 cms and 10 cms in length; with remains of internal chain to keep the front flap secure; box a little soiled, with some cracking to green paint, general signs of wear and a little bumped and knocked, both inside and out; with mounted patent metal label along the top edge painted over in green but still readable; photograph of instruction label loosely inserted; a scarce survivor. A scarce and extraordinary early 20th century calculating machine, the invention of schoolteacher Wilhelm Wlecke of Gütersloh near Dortmund in North Rhine-Westphalia, a patent for which (DE331979) was granted by the German Reich on March 5th, 1919.
This striking, if somehow slightly sinister teaching aid, differs significantly in terms of optics and methodology from the traditional ball based calculators, such as abacuses, commonly found in school rooms across the world at the time. Based upon the idea that most young children and young adults use their fingers to learn to count, Wlecke’s ‘finger calculating machine’ was designed as a ‘teaching aid for elementary arithmetic lessons in elementary schools’, and comprises a wooden box with hinged flaps at the front and the back, and containing two rows of ten red and white fingers made of sheet metal, (thus two ‘hands’) and which can be moved individually. The box would be placed in front of the class on the teacher’s desk, who would then open the two flaps, and could then fold down each finger separately, to perform basic arithmetical calculations visible to the whole class. This visible ‘finger calculator’, Wlecke believed, would be particularly useful for children who were under-performing in mathematics. By turning the lesson into effectively a small theatre performance, he hoped to create a lasting memory of the processes under discussion, through visualisation.
Wlecke subsequently published an accompanying textbook ‘Die Finger als Fundament des ganzen Zahlenbaues’ in ca. 1923, which apparently went through various editions, all of which are now are extremely scarce, with only a handful of the 1929 edition located on OCLC in German Institutions. To further accompany the device, Wlecke produced some additional illustrated charts and tables, and which are depicted in the HNF blog post.
Despite his best efforts, the machine proved too difficult to use, and indeed ran counter to the more widely held pedagogical theories that ‘counting on the fingers’ should be discouraged. Perhaps too, it was just too reminiscent of the nightmare inducing Struwwelpeter! Other examples found are located in various educational and state museums across Germany, suggesting that Wlecke travelled quite extensively to try and disseminate his methods. Indeed the Schweizer Schule magazine (p. 352, vol 44, 1931) reports upon a successful demonstration given by him in the Swiss community of Stans. Nevertheless, his machine and system failed to find widespread support, and it is our understanding that only a small number of the machines were in fact produced, handmade by Wlecke himself, and production appears to have ended in around 1930.
A photograph of an instructional sheet mounted on a previous example handled and now at UCLA is included.

1697. Folio, two parts in one volume, with two further supplements; pp. [ii] engraved title-page, [68], 152; pp. [2], 259,[1] errata; pp. [iv]; pp. [iv]; with woodcut head and tailpieces and 48 engraved plates by Jan and Caspar Luiken, Georg Christoph Eimmart and Christoph Weigel, and two further double-page engraved plates; title printed in red and black with 2 large woodcut historiated initials, the plates comprising either nine or 12 panels including two title panels flanking top central image giving the millennium and century; narrow horizontal worm hole in blank outer margins of first 20 leaves (touching a few words and edge of one plate but with no significant loss), small hole with loss upper gutter of final leaf, some minor foxing and spotting throughout, mostly marginal, and with some soiling and foxing to plates, a few with some browning to verso margins, light dampstain to margin of final two leaves; front free endpaper detached; with 19th century owner's inscription dated 1851 on front flyleaf, who has clipped the top corner of same flyleaf to remove earlier provenance, remains of further label on rear endpaper and of old label on rear paste-down; in contemporary speckled calf, spine in compartments with raised bands, with old title label, tooled in gilt, head and tail of spine worn exposing head-bands, with loss at head, upper joint cracked and head and tail but holding, covers somewhat scuffed and scratched, corners bumped and worn; a good copy. First edition of a striking educational compendium - a superbly illustrated mnemonic history of the world from Creation up to 1697, the work of the noted engraver Christoph Weigel (1654-1725), and with text by Gregory Andreas Schmidt (1655-1696) and Samuel Faber. The beautifully etched and engraved plates provide a chronological summary of universal history, and are presented mnemonically broken down into the six millennia before and after Christ, then into the centuries and also by decades. A general ‘table’ is given summarising each millennium, with 37 special tables for the 37 centuries of the two millennia before Christ and the two after, each with 10 illustrations depicting events from a given decade. The small beautifully executed copperplate engravings vividly demonstrate Weigel’s mastery, and no doubt would have captured the imagination of the young readers. As an iconographic memory tool, it is in the great tradition of symbolic and emblematic books of the period.
‘In 1697 there appeared in the bookshop of Johann Daniel Tauber in Nuremberg a large tome, richly illustrated with 48 folio copper plate engravings and titled Sculptura Historiarum Et Temporum Memoratrix. The book, which presents the principal events in universal history since the creation of the world in the form of a chronological summary, does not simply follow a strictly chronological order but is shaped on mnemotechnic principles... History is thus conceived as a list of the principal events in history. This virtual list is embodied first and foremost in sets of illustrations on 48 panel engravings each of which depicts a millennium—or a century as the case may be—which in turn are divided into ten panels; these last illustrate either a century (as a subdivision of a millennium) or a decade (as a subdivision of a century). The plates, as such, can thus be viewed as pictorial lists. This became fully apparent when in 1700, poorer-quality copies were made and published on their own, with no explanatory text, under the title Die Welt in einer Nuß (’The world in a nutshell’).’ (Abstract from: ‘Le Monde dans une noix’, Markus Meumann, online facsimile of the reprint of 1700; without appendix here present - https://doi.org/10.4000/mcv.5803).
The present copy is also bound with two supplementary mnemonical double-page engravings, both of which appear to be rare, and we believe were printed before the book edition was published. The first, Gedächtnuß-hülffliche Bilder-Lust der merckwürdigsten Begebenheiten des 1696ten Jahrs’ describes 12 events in 1696 and announces the publication of the main work available by "nechkünfftige Michaeli" (feast of St. Michael, September 29). It is accompanied by two leaves of printed text ‘Memorabilia historica anni millesimi sexcentesimi nonagesimi sexti. Oder historische Denckwürdigkeiten des 1696ten Jahrs’.
This is followed by a second similarly rare broadside, Gedächtnuß-hülffliche Bilder-Lust der merckwürdigsten Begebenheiten des 1697ten Jahr’ with the VD 17 locating only a single copy at Munich. As usual it describes 12 contemporary events including a view of Cartagena in Columbia, South America as well as a view of Barcelona. The heading is: ‘Memorabilia historica anni MDCXCVII. Sive continuatio prima ad annum praecedentem MDCXCVI. Das ist: historische Denckwürdigkeiten des 1697sten Jahrs. Oder: Die erste Fortsetzung auf das vorhergehende 1696ste Jahr’. The Raid on Cartagena in Columbia was a successful attack by the French on the fortified city of Cartagena de Indias, on May 6, 1697, as part of the War of the Grand Alliance. By 1695, the French Navy had declined to the point that it could no longer face the English and Dutch in an open sea battle and therefore had switched to privateering. The account provided includes a detailed list of the loot together with two leaves of explanatory text.
Of further Americana interest, p. 206 under 1492 notes Columbus's New World discoveries and voyages to the islands of Cuba and Hispaniola, including later explorations in 1497 and 1506 with Americus Vespucci; page 273 notes battles in 1621 Brazil between the Dutch and Spanish; the Spanish Silver Fleet in 1628 from the Americas; on pages 258-9 appears an illustrated account of William Penn, the great Quaker. (Not in Landis, European Americana).
Christoph Weigel's (1654-1725) ‘fame rests not so much upon his own work as engraver as upon the mighty works which he issued as publisher. The height of his career was reached in 1698 when he settled in Nuremberg.’ (Faber du Faur, German Baroque Literature p. 469).

1940. Together six large varnished, linen-backed hanging wall charts: I. 767 x 498mm. II. 740 x 498mm. III. 768 x 495mm. IV. 740 x 495mm. V. 768 x 510mm. VI. 765 x 510mm; each retaining the metal hanging bar and metal tail rods, though only two with hanging hook; electric washer with small tears at head and crude tape repair at tail, fridge poster with small tear with loss at left margin, refridgerator unit post with small splits at head and small nick to right hand margin, electric cooker with 9cm tear upper right hand margin touching text but without loss; all six browned and somewhat foxed and spotted, with some marginal fraying and wear in places; overall considering their ephemeral nature, good. Six vibrant and striking educational wall-charts, showing the inner electrical workings of common domestic appliances, from the early days of the Electrical Association for Women. Founded in 1924 by the Women’s Engineering Society (WES) to promote training and jobs for women in the field of electrical engineering, it was led by the noted engineer Caroline Haslett (1895-1957). Originally based in the Kensington & Knightsbridge Electric Lighting Co., the headquarters moved to Regent Street in 1933, before eventually moving in 1955 to 25 Foubert Street, just off Carnaby Street, where they remained until the Association closed in 1986. Demonstration rooms and kitchens were integral parts of every location, and the association also employed lecturers and demonstrators to travel to schools and W.I groups around the country. Wall charts such as these were no doubt used both at the Association’s own demonstration kitchens, but were designed to be portable, and could be used by E.A.W. lecturers and demonstrators. John Snell in his introduction to the 1936 edition of the ‘Electrical Handbook’ talks about the Association’s collaboration with the Federation of Women’s Institute. Mrs Florence Key, editor of the Woman Teacher, also praises their use in her review of December 13^th 1940: ‘Three New E.A.W. Charts... These coloured charts are designed to show in a simple manner the construction of an Electric Iron, and Electric Cooker and an Electric Washer and Wringer. They measure 20 inches by 30 inches, are linen backed and varnished and are mounted on rollers. They will be found useful for schools and a great aid to those who wish to understand, or to explain, the working of the electric servants of the home’ (review by Mrs Florence. E. Key, editor of The Woman Teacher, Vol. XXII, No. 5, December 13th, 1940 p. 68).
Although the E.A.W.'s happily collaborated with several leading male authors, and included men within its financial and advisory structure, the group proudly insisted that it was a women's organization in which women addressed other women about women's concerns and well-being. Formed only four years before the 1928 Equality Franchise Act which gave all women over 21 the right to vote, several other prominent figures of WES were involved in the EWA, all of whom had considerable experience and expertise. Many had been involved in W.W.I. war work including munitions and other factories, and their experience of running and managing factories, working on the shop floors, design studios, workshops and engine sheds (particularly in the nascent aeronautics industries) gave them experiences and skills they could never have expected to access in peacetime. Not only hoping to train women in the field, the E.A.W actively focused upon educating the wider female populace about the phenomenon of electricity, at a time when households were moving away from a reliance upon gas in the wake of optimism about the potential of this cheap and abundant source of energy as a technology of social transformation. With the creation of a national grid, by the 1930s electricity was celebrated as a means of making homes cleaner and healthier, by removing the dust and germs which had so dominated public health concerns of the 19^th century. For over half a century, the E.A.W. worked to modernize the British home by bringing the blessings of labour-saving appliances to the aid of British women. It sought to open up career paths for women, although ultimately these tended to be focused upon more ‘genteel’ roles, such as technically trained teachers and demonstrators, rather than returning to the front-line, roles which many of the original E.A.W. members had enjoyed during both wars. It sought to both educate women about electricity and its advantages in the home, whilst also seeking to discover the real needs and desires of the women themselves, and to bring this forcibly to the attention of the electrical industry in Great Britain; to make the 'women's point of view', as it was called, a factor in the production, distribution and application of electricity in the home.
For many years it proved immensely popular and influential. As Carroll Pursell notes ‘the E.A.W. was a part of that inter-war call to women to come 'back to home and duty', as historian Deidre Beddoe has termed it. It exemplified both the splintering of the women's movement into special interest groups, and a primary focus on the married woman in her home rather than in a job. At the same time, it also reflected notions of companionate marriage and the involvement of men, or at least men's technological advantages, in the care and maintenance of the home.... It may be that, finally, the E.A.W. is best seen as an expression of what Alison Light has called 'conservative modernity': it was a period when women and the home were placed at the centre of British national life, as well as a time which marked 'for many women their entry into modernity, a modernity which was felt and lived in the most interior and private of places'. (Domesticating Modernity, p. 48).
‘Was it feminist, as was often suggested, or really retrogressive, since it tended to accept the position of women in society as home-maker?’, is the question posed, however, by Gavin Weightman, (Children of the Light, How Electrification Changed Britain Forever, 2011 p. 165). By the 1970s, the world was a very different place, and the Association began to struggle, failing to attract and retain young members, combined with a loss of older members and branches. By 1977 it had ‘suspended its educational programme: demonstrators had been replaced by salespeople; the electricity boards had their own training programmes for staff and no longer recognized the E.A.W. diploma; science, rather than 'domestic' science, teachers now covered electricity in the schools; and schools became generally more resistant to using E.A.W. materials. Nor was the once-popular kitchen facility at headquarters immune from the changing times. When it was suggested that the fact that the front door of the headquarters at 25 Foubert's Place was kept shut might account for a falling off of visitors, the director denied it. It was more likely that the low number of visitors was due, she guessed, to high public transport fares, which kept suburban women at home, and to 'an overwhelming increase in foreign tourists' drawn to the area, presumably, by the modish drama of nearby Carnaby Street. 'In any case', she added, 'the door was closed on the advice of the police for security reasons in the high-risk area where the Headquarters offices are situated'’ (Pursell, p.65). The Association was eventually dissolved in 1986, the victim of large social changes, some of which it had proudly helped to bring about. ‘The Guardian noted that 'its headquarters in the West End of London, a few yards off Carnaby Street, have survived until now as an anachronistic oasis surrounded by the tacky clothing shops and high-tech showrooms. There is very little high-tech', it pointed out, 'at the E.A.W., which has a giant model of an electric plug for teaching women how to connect appliances to the electric supply' (ibid p. 66).