History of the Navy ~ E.S. Maclay 2 vol rare 1898 book set ~ unique provenance

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History of the Navy ~ E.S. Maclay 2 vol rare 1898 book set ~ unique provenance:
$198.50

History of the Navy ~ Edgar S. Maclay 2 vol rare 1898 book set ~ *unique provenance*
unique collector set has coat-of-arms library sticker inside front cover: Ex Libris Wilhelmi II ~ Imperatoris Regis (see background info note below)
plus handwritten notation on fly sheet indicating: From the Library of Crown Prince Wilhelm at Cecialanhoff Palace Potsdam Germany 1945
(this inscription is verified to have been made by the person who brought this set of books back to the U.S. from Germany after WWII)Title page information:
A History of the United States Navy
from 1775 to 1898
by Edgar Stanton Maclay
In two volumes, Illustrated
New edition, revised & enlarged
D.Appleton & Company, New YorkOther specifics:
- each book has navy blue hardcover binding approx 6.25in x 9in with an inlaid copper-tone plate-like image on front cover
- each book is extensively illustrated, including about 50 full-page historic prints
- each book has very detailed lists of \'Contents\' & \'Illustrations\' and vol II has an overall \'Index\' for the full set
- pages are gold leaf on top-edge only
- vol I has 660pgs, vol II has 624 pgs• this is a first edition set published in 1898, from a German palace library collection of Wilhelm II
• set is in very good condition overall - held in family of last U.S. owner since ~ 1945
• there are very few full sets of this work in this condition, & likely none with this provenance
> marked down 30% from orig listing price!* background info note *
Kaiser Wilhelm II was the last German emperor who ruled the German empire & the Kingdom of Prussia from 1888 to 1918 (he died in 1941).
his son, Crown Prince Friederich Wilhelm (1882 - 1951) was the last crown prince of the German empire & the Kingdom of Prussia.
Crown Prince Wilhelm was born in Potsdam Germany, where this book set was held in a palace library until 1945.