PBA Galleries

10 parts in 2 vols., bound in 1 vol. 12, 9, [4], [6], [6], [10], [4], [4], [4], [4] pp. Text in English and French. With copper-engraved allegorical frontispiece & 80 copper-engraved plates, a few folding. (Elephant folio) 26½x19¼, 19th century ¾ gilt-ruled red morocco & marbled boards, spine elaborately tooled in gilt, raised bands, marbled endpapers, a.e.g. First Edition.

Magnificent folio presenting the finest creations of master architects Robert and James Adams, with engraved perspectives, views and plans by Bartolozzi, Piranesi, Cunego, Pastorini and others after the brothers Adam. Conceived as a catalogue of their finest work, presenting the "novelty and variety" of the Adams' designs, the publication was delayed for fear of copying by their rivals. Finally, the financial crisis brought on by the Adelphi affair forced them to publish this work as well as sell their private collection of old masters. They limited the number of plates used to illustrate each part, thus ensuring a prompt and substantial return on only a moderate outlay. A beneficial aspect of this tactic was that it also allowed them to put their full effort into the plates which were produced, employing the finest engravers of the day. The result was one of the most brilliant displays of commissioned architecture ever published. However, the paucity of detail, wherein the magnificent buildings were presented but their schematic details were not given, gave birth to imitations better tailored to use for building, such as Wililam Paine's "Practical Builder" (1774), John Carter's "Builder's Magazine" (from 1774) and George Richardson's "Book of Ceilings" (1774). In 1778 the Adams put out the second volume, partly to encourage buyers to purchase unsold numbers of the first series, and brought their project to an end. Though it was not a commercial success, The Works is without a doubt the finest and most novel architectural work of its time. The reader is taken on a virtual journey of discover through gardens, entry-ways and rooms of some of the grand buildings of Europe. RIBA 28; Berlin Cat. 1977.