Nicholson's Cambrian Traveller's Guide, George Nicholson — 3rd Edition

Nicholson's Cambrian Traveller's Guide, George Nicholson (Revised by The Rev. Emilius Nicholson) — Third Edition

Publication London, Longman, Orme, Brown, Green, & Longmans, 1840

Formatting 8vo, pp. 668, [1] folding map.

Condition Report Very Good. The book remains tightly bound in its original publisher's blind-stamped red cloth, a remarkable survival for a heavy topographical guide of this era. The boards are bright with the gilt urn motif and titling to the spine remaining notably unoxidised and vivid. There is minor shelf-wear to the extremities, most notably a touch of fraying to the headcap and light rubbing to the corners, but the hinges are entirely sound and the text block sits firmly within the binding. Internally, the pages are largely crisp and clean with their untrimmed edges intact, showing only occasional, light sporadic foxing that is primarily restricted to the preliminary leaves and the title page. The hand-coloured folding map is exceptionally well-preserved, exhibiting sharp, bright colours with only minor offsetting and a few faint handling creases, completely free from the heavy tearing or misfolding often endemic to such inserts.

Catalogue Note This is the third edition, extensively revised, corrected, and expanded by the author's son, the Rev. Emilius Nicholson. This edition is particularly prized for its comprehensive updating of the original early nineteenth-century text, making it a definitive topographical dictionary of Wales during the dawn of the Victorian era.

The volume is complete with its striking, large hand-coloured folding map of the Principality of Wales, engraved by Sidney Hall, positioned as the frontispiece. Such maps are frequently excised or irreparably damaged in surviving copies.

The front free endpaper bears a charming mid-nineteenth-century ink ownership inscription: "Wm Blunt is the right owner of this Book. Steal not this Book for fear or shame, For up above is the owners name. January 25th 1858." Original publisher's cloth bindings from this period are inherently fragile, and finding a substantial travel guide retaining its original unrestored binding in such robust condition is increasingly scarce on the open market.

Nicholson's Cambrian Traveller's Guide stands as a monumental and meticulously detailed topographical directory to Wales, capturing the nation on the cusp of the industrial and railway revolutions. Augmented by the finest extracts from historical writers and the author's own exhaustive excursions, it offers a window into the romantic, rugged landscapes and emerging towns of the nineteenth-century Principality. From detailed stage-coach routes to the histories of ancient ruins, this guide remains an essential, deeply evocative resource for collectors of British topography and Welsh history.