Mary Davies and the Manor of Ebury

London: Cassell & Company, Limited, 1921. First edition. Leather. Very Good. 9" by 6". Not Stated. A smartly bound first edition of this illustrated account of the life of Mary Davies. Complete in two volumes. First edition. Volume one is illustrated with a frontispiece and eighteen plates, with the odd in-text images. Volume two is illustrated with a frontispiece, twelve plates, eight black-and-white photographic plates, and one folding map to the rear. Collated complete. Born in January 1665 to the scrivener Alexander Davies, who died in the Great Plague, Mary inherited a plot of land while still a baby. This was the Manor of Ebury, 300 acres of farmland to the west of London that stretched from the Thames to what is now Oxford Street. Deemed desirable for her vast wealth, the scandal of her marriages defined not only the tragic fate of the estate, but Mary too. Written by Charles Tindal Gatty, a British antiquary, musician, author, and lecturer. Bound by Hatchards. Bound in full blue crushed morocco. Externally, smart with rubbing to the extremities. Fading to the spine and board edges. Internally, firmly bound. Front hinge starting but firm to volume one. Pages are very bright and clean with the odd spot. Light spotting and age toning to the endpapers. Contemporary ink inscription to the front endpaper of volume one. Bound by Hatchards. Very Good