Highlights of specific items in the collections: 

Comettant, Oscar, 1819-1898. 
Trois ans aux États-Unis ; étude des moeurs et 
coutumes américaines.
2. ed., rev. et corr.
Paris : Pagnerre, 1858.
E166.C728 T76 1858

     This second edition of Comettant's work was printed in 1858, and acquired shortly thereafter by noted Mexican collector José Maria Andrade, whose pictorial bookplate appears inside the front cover on the upper left. 

     The bookplate features an engraving of a strawberry plant and the motto, "Inter Folia Fructus" which can be translated as "Between the leaves (pages), is Fruit".   Andrade sold his collection to Emperor Maximilian of Mexico for the new Royal Library that was being planned.  Maximilian's armorial bookplate was placed inside the front cover, in the center of the page.   

     Maximilian, who had been crowned in Mexico City on June 10, 1864, was removed from power in 1867, tried, and executed.    In 1869, in Leipzig, Germany, was auctioned 7,000 volumes from the collection of Andrade that had been removed from Mexico to prevent the Royal Library from being seized by the new government.  This volume was purchased from the sale by J.F.Sabin for the Sabin firm of New York.  

     This is attested to by a letter from J.Sabin dated March 18, 1869 to Ebenezer Kellogg Wright which is afixed to the inside back cover of the volume.  Mr. Wright acquired the book, and put his bookplate inside the front cover just below Maximilian's.

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This page last updated on Tuesday, April 19, 2005

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