[BROWN, J.H.]. Spectropia; or, Surprising Spectral Illusions Showing Ghosts Everywhere, and of any Colour. London: Griffith & Farran, 1866.
FIFTH EDITION; hardcover, octavo (25 x 20 x 1 cm), pp. 11 + 16 leaves of plates. English text hand-coloured illustrations throughout. Publisher's original cloth-backed covers, initial and terminal blacks present, 16 colour illustrations including a frontispiece, illustrations in the text. Condition: VERY GOOD. Binding tight and secure. Covers well-preserved with some light rubbing to extremities and marks to rear. Interior largely fresh and clean, with a previous owner name neatly inked to front endpaper. Scarce thus.
Notes: Fifth edition of this scarce work debunking Spiritualism and those who claimed to see ghosts. Through the use of 16 illustrations the author shows how the illusion of seeing a ghost can be created. The "List of Plates" identifies what colour illusion a plate will create. "Plate II. this black figure will give a white spectre" etc. An very attractive copy of a scarce work.
