Lewis (James) Original Designs in Architecture, 2 vol. in 1, vol.1 second edition, vol.2 first edition, list of subscribers, 64 engraved plates, some very light browning and foxing, occasional light soiling and damp-staining, some creasing, modern half calf, spine with red morocco label, uncut, folio, 1797.

⁂ In the first book, originally published in 1780, Lewis extols the architectural wisdom and skill of the classical world and expresses his view that the challenge of the architect - to find the balance between appreciation and respect for the ancient rules and orders, without descending to a servile reliance on them - is particularly acute when designing a villa. This position is reiterated more forcefully in his second book, published some 17 years after the first, where he explicitly cautions against contemporary capriciousness, love of novelty, and a vain presumption of superiority over the ancients, while at the same time praising the work of certain individuals such as Jones, Wren and Vanbrugh. Among the subscribers are 'Catherine the Second, late Empress of Russia' [the Great], who had died the year before, as well as her Italian architect Giacomo Quarenghi, Sir Joshua Reynolds 'President of the Royal Academy', James Adam 'Architect to His Majesty' and numerous British and Italian nobles, artists and architects. From the library of Gervase Jackson-Stops (pencil inscription).