Item 1 is Henry Alken's Qualified Horses and Unqualified Riders... It is an amusing illustrated look at horsemen struggling to hold on. £5,000 (US $9,658). Item 2 is another Alken work, Sporting Discoveries, or the Miseries of Shooting...By Ben Tally-Ho... These plates depict such scenes as a hunter who has shot a sheep, and another who shoots in the direction of a scared bystander. Does he look a little like Dick Cheney? £6,000 (US $11,590).

For those who like to relive Britain's great military triumphs, James Jenkins offers two exciting works. They retell Britain's victory over Napoleon, on land and on sea. Item 24 is The Martial Achievements of Great Britain and her Allies from 1799-1815. £2,750 (US $5,311). Item 25 is The Naval Achievements of Great Britain from the Year 1793 to 1817. Most notable here is the Battle of Trafalgar. £11,000 (US $21,247).

Denis Diderot's great Encyclopedie was a monumental work of art, science, history, and notably, enlightenment. It promoted the novel idea that government should serve the people, rather than the other way around. The 21-volume work was an inspiration for the French Revolution, though Diderot could not have imagined how that event would turn out. £50,000 (US $96,579).

Several great, illustrated bird books are offered. There is John Gould's classic The Birds of Great Britain, the large folio five-volume first edition from 1862-73. £65,000 ($125,712). There is Theodore Descourtilz' Ornithologie Bresilienne, the birds of Brazil, published in 1856. £25,000 (US $48,351). Gregory Mathews created one of the last of the great bird books, the 13-volume The Birds of Australia, published in a limited edition of 225 copies in 1910-27. £17,500 ($33,845).

Bernard J. Shapero Rare Books may be found online at www.shapero.com, telephone +44 (0)20 7493 0876.