HOWELL, James ([?]1594-1666). Londinopolis, London, 1657, folio, engraved portrait and double-page view of London, contemporary calf (with flaking and surface abrasion). FIRST EDITION, [?]PRESENTATION COPY.

HOWELL, James ([?]1594-1666).  Londinopolis; An Historicall Discourse or Perlustration of the City of London, the Imperial Chamber, and Chief Emporium of Great Britain: Whereunto is added another of the City of Westminster, with The Courts of Justice, Antiquities, and new Buildings thereunto belonging. London: Printed by J. Streater, for Henry Twiford, George Sawbridge, Thomas Dring, and John Place, 1657. Small folio (278 x 180mm). Engraved portrait frontispiece of the author by Abraham Bosse after Claude Melan, title printed in red and black, woodcut initials, double-page engraved view of London with the title ("London the glory of Great Britaines Ile, Behold her Landschip here, and tru pourfile") in a baroque cartouche (lacks the blank before the portrait, variable browning and spotting throughout the text but not affecting the portrait, title and plate, some darker spots, upper fore-corner of Q1 torn away but present, unsightly rust hole in Aa4 affecting a few letters). Contemporary calf ruled in gilt (much flaking and surface abrasion, some inconspicuous old repairs, possibly a later spine, later endpapers). Provenance: later ink annotation at the margin of p.389 speculating as to the future population of London; a few old marginal textual corrections or notes in ink; Ross Collins (modern pencil signature on front pastedown). FIRST EDITION, [?]PRESENTATION COPY, with a contemporary slip pasted onto the upper margin of the portrait inscribed, "For his very worthy frend [sic], Mr Jacob Bonnel," and 2 further slips pasted onto the lower margin inscribed "5 Nonas Junii" and "1657". A later pencil note on the front pastedown reads, "Presentation Copy from the Author (see the flyleaf before the portrait) in the handwriting of Howell." Since the flyleaf in question has at some point been removed, the inscriptions have been cut out later and pasted onto the frontispiece. Brunet II, 652: "cet ouvrage est en grande partie tiré de Stow's survey"; ESTC R13420; Grolier 487; Pforzheimer 515; Wing H3091.