Meryon, Charles Lewis (1783-1877), physician to Lady Hester Stanhope

Travels of Lady Hester Stanhope ... narrated by her physician (London, 1846), vol iii, part 2. Charles Lewis Meryon's own interleaved copy of the final part of his account of Lady Hester Stanhope's peregrinations in the Mediterranean and the Levant between 1810 and 1817, extensively annotated, presumably for a second edition. This volume would appear to be the sole survivor of Meryon's six-volume interleaved set of the Travels, which were compiled in part from correspondence and notes now in the Wellcome collection (cf. MSS.5687-5689). In about 1859 he seems to have begun collating additional matter for a second edition of the Travels, both from his own correspondence noted above (referred to by Meryon as 'Letters') and from other sources probably now lost, transcribing it into the interleaved volumes as and where appropriate. A second edition never appeared. Some original illustrations, including two pencil and wash sketches of a house, presumably Meryon's, at Abra, on Mount Lebanon, interleaved (ff. 1-2), and a sketch of Henry John George Herbert, 3rd Earl of Carnarvon (1800-1849) (f. 186r.). Copy letter from Lady Hester to her half-brother, Philip Henry Stanhope, 4th Earl Stanhope (1781-1855), dated May 1817, demanding money, interleaved (ff. 323-4). Manuscript index to the complete interleaved set of the Travels at end.

1846

401 ff. (some blanks), incorporating pages 223-422 of vol. iii of the printed edition 1 vol., 195 × 120 mm. Original half green-morocco binding, lettered 'Travels of Lady Hester Stanhope. Vol. III. Pt. II.' on spine.

Purchased from Clive Farahar, 1995.

Described in typescript supplements, by Christopher Hilton and Richard Aspin, to the Library's published finding aids.

This volume was formerly in the library of Wilhelmina, Duchess of Cleveland (1819-1901), Lady Hester Stanhope's niece, and mother of Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery (1847-1929), who inherited the volume and placed it in his library at the Durdans, Epsom, Surrey. It was sold at the Durdans' sale at Sotheby's on 30 June 1933 (part of lot 1158) and acquired by Viscount Norwich. The volume bears bookplates of all three previous owners.