House Carpenters' Book of Prices and Rules

Item #84189

(PRICE BOOK). House Carpenters' Book of Prices and Rules, for Measuring and Valuing All Their Different Kinds of Work. (Adapted to Federal Currency). Philadelphia: [NP], 1819. 48pp. Modern paper-covered boards, printed paper label on front board. Toned, else very good. Rink, Technical Americana, 1785. Price books are more often found bound with books about carpentry work, making their individual survival more rare, especially given their heavy usage. Though there were a good many price books published in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, for various different trades, they are all rare today. Their basic purpose was to establish fair and equitable system of charges for services rendered; they are of obvious value to the historian. Hitchcock categorically excluded price books from his American architectural books. In addition to extremely detailed listings of the various jobs for house carpenters, the present work also lists prices for the work of stone masons, bricklayers, and master plasterers. From the library of William Reese, with his bookplate.

Price: $2,000.00