Catalogue of Books Belonging to RA Cathcart Esq, WS, Edinburgh c 1852.
Manuscript Catalogue of Books Belonging to a Nineteenth-Century Edinburgh Lawyer [Manuscript]. Cathcart, Robert Alfred [1825-1855]. Catalogue of Books Belonging to R.A. Cathcart Esq., WS. Edinburgh, c.1852. [31] pp. Text mostly to rectos, followed by 25 blank leaves. Quarto (9" x 7-1/2"). Contemporary three-quarter sheep over cloth boards, blind rules to spine, blind fillets to joint and corner edges, marbled edges and endpapers. Light rubbing to boards, moderate rubbing to extremities, a few scuffs to spine, some wear to corners, which are bumped. Light toning to interior, light foxing in a few places, text in a single neat hand, mostly in ink with some entries and headings in pencil. $950. * Robert Alfred Cathcart was, like several other members of his family, an Edinburgh lawyer and member of the Society of Writers to her Majesty's Signet. The catalogue is an interesting glimpse into the lives of lawyers practicing in this time, showing what a wealthy lawyer's library might contain - in this case some 150 legal and 200 other works. The works are organized into "Law Books," "Medical Works," and "Miscellaneous Works." Among the legal texts are a manuscript copy of Baron Hume's Commentaries on the Law of Scotland Respecting Trial for Crimes (1819) and quite a few works on Roman law. Medical works cover the fundamentals of anatomy and pathology. Cathcart may have relaxed at the end of a long day with The Arabian Nights' Entertainment (1843) or The Mysteries of Paris (n.d.). The catalogue captures a unique snapshot of what a young nineteenth-century Scottish lawyer at the beginning of his career deemed the essentials of daily reference and practice.
Price: $950.00
Book number 72581