Ancient Law, Its Connection with the Early History of Society, And...
Copy of a Landmark of Legal Thought Owned by the Son of Isambard Kingdom Brunel Maine, Henry Sumner [1822-1888]. Ancient Law: Its Connection with the Early History of Society, And Its Relation to Modern Ideas. London: John Murray, 1861. viii, 415, [1] pp. Octavo (8-1/2" x 5-1/2"; 21.6 x 14 cm). Contemporary calf, gilt rules and corner fleurons to boards, gilt spine with raised bands and lettering piece, gilt tooling to board edges, marbled endpapers and edges. Minor nicks and scratches to boards, moderate rubbing to extremities with wear to corners, gilding mostly rubbed away from spine and board edges. Light toning to interior, owner inscription of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Jr. to head of title page, marks in pencil, most likely in his hand, to margins of a few leaves. A very good copy with an interesting association. $950. * First edition. Famous for its dictum that civilization progresses "from status to contract," this landmark work in legal history and anthropology traces the evolution of legal systems from divine command to customary law and, finally, contracts and codified law. Maine's historical model resembled the biological model of Darwin's On the Origin of the Species (1859), though there is no evidence that it was a direct influence. Brunel [1837-1902], a London barrister of Lincoln's Inn, was the eldest child of the eminent civil and mechanical engineer. Grace's Guide to British Indistrial History, "Isambard Brunel, Junior (1837-1902)" (accessed online). Dauchy [et al.], The Formation and Transmission of Western Legal Culture: 150 Books that Made the Law in the Age of Printing 115.
Price: $950.00
Book number 85490