[Native Americana] Lewis, James Otto. Aboriginal Port Folio

Philadelphia: May-December, 1835. In eight (of 10) parts only. Broadsheets (490 x 300 mm). Three leaves letterpress advertisements for parts 1-3 [all issued]; 64 lithographed plates with hand-coloring after Lewis by Lenham & Ducal of Philadelphia. (Without lithographed title-page and frontispiece, plate of Kun-nun-der-waaguinse-zoo with horizontal tear across images, other short marginal nicks and tears and slight soiling, but otherwise fresh.) Original printed wrappers, preserving original stab holes, the last part partially sewn, untrimmed (heavier fraying to front wrappers parts 5 and 8, some edgewear to wrappers). Provenance: Montclair Art Museum, LeBrun Library (sold Christie’s 14 December 2000, lot 356). Field 936; Howes L-315; Reese Stamped with a National Character 23; Sabin 40812

First edition of the earliest and rarest color-plate book on America's Indigenous peoples--a remarkable survival in the original wrappers. Recording the dress of the Potawatomi, Winnebago, Shawnee, Sioux, Miami, Fox, Iowa and other tribes at treaties of Prairie du Chien, Fort Wayne, Fond du Lac, and Green Bay. Scarcer than Catlin's North American Indian Portfolio, Maximilian's Reise in das Innere von Nord-America or McKenney and Hall's History of the Indian Tribes. Publication was costly, and the work was intended to be issued in 10 parts, each comprising 8 plates, and issued in printed wrappers. The publisher's bankruptcy during the printing of part 9 caused the edition to be reduced; part 10 was barely finished and sparsely distributed (and is thus now virtually unobtainable). An 11th part would have contained "Historical and Biographical Description of the Indians," but it was never published. The title (not present here) and three advertisement leaves complete the only text in the work, excluding text on the wrappers.

Property from a Private Southwestern Collection

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Darren Winston

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[email protected]267.414.1247

Darren Winston, Senior Vice President at Freeman’s, has served as Head of Department for Books & Manuscripts, Philadelphia, since 2018. He has been a trustee of the Rosenbach Museum and Library since 2022, is a member of The Manuscript Society, The Bibliographical Society of America, and Philadelphia’s Philobiblon Club.

Raised in northern New Jersey, Darren moved to New York City in 1988 and began his career there as a bookseller in 1995. He spent the next 18 years selling to private clients and at East Coast book fairs. In 2003 he moved with his young family to Sharon, Connecticut where, in 2009, he opened his own bookshop. Darren Winston, Bookseller offered rare and vintage books, prints, fine art, and more, and hosted over 50 book signings and art shows. He was a trustee and, later, Board President, of the Sharon Historical Society, and for six years a trustee of Indian Mountain School in Lakeville, Connecticut.

Darren has hosted the radio program "Darren Winston's Book Report" for NPR-affiliate WHDD since 2009, appeared in the 2014 book-themed documentary The Paper Trail, and in 2024 he joined Antiques Roadshow as a books and manuscripts appraiser. From 1999 to 2005, Darren was the buyer and consultant to the Fine and Rare Books Department at Asprey, the British luxury goods company, at its New York headquarters. While there he spearheaded various in-store events including readings by Salman Rushdie and Dominick Dunne.

In 1993, Darren was hired as a Creative Consultant to Columbia Records, where he assisted in the repackaging of their 12-record Aerosmith back catalogue. He later sold his extensive collection of Aerosmith memorabilia, which he began amassing at the age of 14, directly to the band.

Darren now lives on the Main Line, outside Philadelphia, with his wife, two children, and dog. The family travels frequently to his wife's native England and Scotland. When not bookselling, he plays guitar in Pumped, an Aerosmith tribute band. Darren also appears on the top-rated PBS television program Antiques Roadshow.

Printed and Manuscript Americana

[Native Americana] Lewis, James Otto. Aboriginal Port Folio

Printed and Manuscript Americana

[Native Americana] Lewis, James Otto. Aboriginal Port Folio

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