Whitman–Nichols Presentation Copy
An 1859 second-edition copy, later rebound, given by W. E. Whitman to the Rev. G. H. Nichols in 1860, with Randolph G. Adams’s bookplate and a manuscript fair copy of Humboldt’s letter.
Binding Description
Later brown cloth with a dark spine label lettered “The Rosetta Stone”; the date at the foot of the spine reads 1857 in error. The original publisher’s binding is not present.
Presentation / Association
“Rev. G. H. Nichols from his friend W. E. Whitman 1860.” Bookplate of R. G. Adams.
Provenance Chain
W. E. Whitman, probably William Ethan Whitman (1801–1875) → Rev. G. H. Nichols, probably George Huntington Nichols (b. 1818) — gift, 1860 → Unresolved gap → Randolph G. Adams (1892–1951) — bookplate → Unresolved gap → University of Pennsylvania — Kislak Center for Special Collections
Provenance Narrative
W. E. Whitman gave the book to the Rev. G. H. Nichols in 1860. It later carries the bookplate of Randolph G. Adams. Intervening ownership and Penn’s acquisition are unrecorded.
Copy Notes
Inscription: “Rev. G. H. Nichols from his friend W. E. Whitman 1860.” “Wm. E. Whitman, Esq.” appears among the honorary members on page 24 of the members’ catalog. A manuscript fair copy of Humboldt’s letter to Charles R. Hale (Berlin, March 12, 1859) and a facsimile of Humboldt’s autograph are tipped in.
People in This Copy
Sources and Documentation
Six copy photographs, October 2026; Penn Libraries catalog record; Barber Genealogy (1909), p. 247; Chapin, Glastenbury (1853), p. 139. Catalog record ↗
Visual Record
Images: copy photographs, University of Pennsylvania Libraries, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, October 2026.
