Lot 27

STEPHENS, John. A Land of Promise, 1839, First Edition

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STEPHENS, John. A Land of Promise, 1839, First Edition

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Estimate: A$100 - A$300

Current Bid: A$350

(9 Bids)

17 June 2026 18:00 AEST
Timed Auction
Stanmore, Australia

Description:

STEPHENS, John. A Land of Promise, 1839, First Edition,
First edition of one of the foundational promotional works for the young colony of South Australia, issued at a crucial moment in its early settlement history. Stephens' book, published under the pseudonym "By One Who Is Going", combines detailed description of soil, climate, natural productions, and economic prospects with extended extracts from emigrants' letters, and a full account of the South Australian Company. Long regarded as one of the most influential emigration guides of the period, it is now scarce in commerce.

Provenance:
Early ownership signatures and a later nineteenth-century inscription, suggestive of the book being passed through several colonial families—typical for South Australian emigration literature that travelled with settlers.

  • Dimensions: 13 x 15 cm
  • Condition: 8vo. Original publisher's green ribbed cloth, gilt kangaroo device to upper cover, gilt title to spine. The binding, as shown, is worn and mottled with darkening to both boards, some cloth loss to the spine ends, and general rubbing consistent with early colonial handling. The original yellow endpapers have been replaced at an early date, with neat nineteenth-century inscriptions to the front blank leaf, including ownership dated 18 Jan. 1852, and a presentation inscription dated May 13th 1873.

    Internally, the text is generally clean, with intermittent mild spotting, notably to the preliminaries. The title-page is complete and crisp. The text block remains sound.

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
A$0 A$19 A$20
A$20 A$49 A$5
A$50 A$99 A$10
A$100 A$299 A$20
A$300 A$499 A$25
A$500 A$999 A$50
A$1,000 A$1,999 A$100
A$2,000 A$4,999 A$200
A$5,000 A$9,999 A$500
A$10,000 A$19,999 A$1,000
A$20,000 A$49,999 A$2,000
A$50,000 A$99,999 A$5,000
A$100,000 A$199,999 A$10,000
A$200,000 A$499,999 A$20,000
A$500,000 + A$50,000