Restoration Binding.- [Allestree (Richard)] The Whole Duty of Man: laid down In a Plain and Familiar Way for the Use of All, but especially the Meanest Reader, engraved frontispiece with arms of King Charles II and additional title (both a little frayed and chipped at edges), I12 with tear into text, M1 with tiny marginal rust hole, S2 with loss to corner affecting catchword, U6 with marginal portion excised affecting 2-3 words, scattered faint spotting and water-staining, contemporary ink signatures of Ann Butler and Martha Eyre to front free endpaper (top half excised), Howard Nixon's copy with his pencil note to front free endpaper and ALs to him from Sydney M. Cockerell concerning bindings loosely inserted, contemporary red morocco elaborately tooled in gilt ?by the Devotional Binder, with all-over pattern of four-petalled flowers, tulips, drawer handles and dots, some infilled with black stain or silver paint, spine similar in compartments with 4 raised bands, g.e., a little rubbed, corners and spine ends slightly worn, silver paint oxidised, 12mo, by R. Norton for Robert Pawlett, 1680.

⁂ Provenance: Howard M. Nixon (1909-83), librarian and historian of bookbinding, author of several works including English Restoration Bookbindings: Samuel Mearne and His Contemporaries, 1974.

"Devotional Binder - This binder was so named by G. D. Hobson because nearly all his bindings are found on works by the author of the Whole Duty of Man or on similar devotional volumes." Nixon, English Restoration Bindings.