1890 – Tennis, Rackets, Fives – Heathcote | First Edition, Illustrated Sports & Athletics

Tennis is a late 19th-century collection of four works on popular yard games and sports. This 1890 work includes descriptions of tennis, lawn tennis, rackets, and fives – games that were widely played in 19th-century England, especially among the higher class. Author J.M. Heathcote includes numerous in-text illustrations depicting aspects of the game – positions, form, equipment, etc.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Tennis : Lawn Tennis. Rackets. Fives.
• Author(s): J. M. Heathcote
• Publisher: London : Longmans, Green and Co
• Edition: First edition, 1890.
• Binding: Half leather over marbled boards
• Format: (4to), single volume
• Size:  9.75 in × 7.75 in (25 cm × 20 cm)
• Collation: [xvi], 524 pp
• Illustrations: In-text illustrations throughout
• Contents Include:
  • Tennis: Historical development and official rules
  • Lawn Tennis: Court dimensions and scoring
  • Rackets: Technique and play form
  • Fives: Variants and school traditions

Condition:

Good. Leather worn at corners and hinges; marbled boards rubbed. Gilt spine titles legible. Text block secure with clean, unmarked pages and intact illustrations.

Why Collect This?

• First edition of a rare Victorian sports volume
• One of few period works combining multiple racket games
• Illustrated with technical in-text diagrams and examples

Item Number: # 29732