(New York: Alfred Stieglitz, 1903), a bound volume comprising Numbers 1 through 4, illustrated with the complete photogravures and halftones after photographs by GERTRUDE KÄSEBIER, ALFRED STIEGLITZ, EDWARD STEICHEN, CLARENCE WHITE, FREDERICK EVANS, and others, lacking wrappers, 3 colophons, final text pages, and advertisements.  Small folio, contemporary Cobden-Sanderson-style binding of full red morocco, gilt, elaborate stipple and tulip device at corners, stamp-signed ' MS 1904,' top edges gilt; John Eignace Dumont's bookplate on front pastedown

For the most part, with the exception of minor condition issues and scattered foxing in the margins, the plates in each issue are all in generally very good to excellent condition. Offsetting is visible on the pages opposite many of the plates. The majority of the text and plate leaves are in generally fine condition, crisp and clean, with age-darkening and foxing primarily affecting only the edges. The fine condition is almost certainly a result of these numbers having been bound at an early date. The leather on the inside of the back cover is stamped 'M. S. 1904.' The red leather binding is attractive and in generally very good condition. The cover is faintly soiled and darkened. The spine and edges are rubbed, and the joints are cracked near the lower edge. The free endpapers are darkened at the periphery where, when closed, the paper is in contact with the leather. Number 1: The placement of 'Portrait (Miss N)' and 'Dorothy' are switched in this binding. 'Serbonne' – The plate is tipped down at all corners, and there are two creases - possibly tears - that have been laid down, in the lower right corner. Pages 65/66 and the advertisements are lacking. Number 2: The colophon is lacking. Pages 53/54 and the advertisements are lacking. Number 3: The colophon is lacking. The 'Photo-Secession' supplement page is lacking. 'Winter Landscape' – This plate is loose. Pages 51/52 and the advertisements are lacking. Number 4: The colophon is lacking. 'Height and Light in Bourges Cathedral' – The lower left corner is creased. 'York Minister: Into the North Transept' – The lower left corner is creased - possibly torn - but laid down. Pages 57/58 and the advertisements are lacking. Those wishing condition reports on individual specific plates are welcome to contact the Photographs Department directly.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

This bound volume of Camera Work Nos. 1-4 comes originally from the collection of amateur Pictorialist photographer, John Eignace Dumont (1856-1944).  A coffee, tea, and sugar broker from Rochester, New York, Dumont’s work was frequently published and exhibited internationally throughout the late 1880s and 1890s.  The Camera Club of New York featured Dumont in a one-man exhibition in April 1899, and The Clarionet Player, among his most popular images, was reproduced that same month as a photogravure in Alfred Stieglitz’s Camera Notes.  The Art Nouveau bookplate on the front pastedown of this volume was designed by Harvey Ellis, with whom Dumont formed the Rochester Society of Arts and Crafts in 1897.