As I noted in my article, this device (32x35mm) "is a monogram made up of two mirrored elements: an H, and a flourish that resembles both an L and, when reversed, a G. The device appears on at least four items between 1771 to 1773." (Elements crudely highlighted below.)
Through a happy accident, I have now identified the source of Henry Lasher Gardner's publisher’s device: Samuel Sympson's A new book of cyphers, more compleat and regular than any yet extant. Wherein the whole alphabet (twice over,) Consisting of Six Hundred Cyphers, is variously changed, interwoven and reversed (London: Printed for Samuel Sympson Engraver in Catherine-Street in the Strand, B. Cole Engraver at the Sun a Lace Shop in St. Paul’s Church-Yard, and sold by [six engravers and print-sellers], 1726), plate 44 (ESTC: T145073), which was reprinted in 1736 (N471341) and ca. 1750 (T132195; online here).
As you can see, the resemblance of the reversed G to an L is entirely fortuitous. I bet Henry Lasher was pleased.
BTW: The happy accident I refer to above was that I recently spotted a copy of the first edition of Sympson's A new book of cyphers on eBay (here). Although it started at GBP5, entirely unsurprisingly, it sold for more than one hundred times that (GBP586). (In case anyone is interested, a copy of the ca. 1750 edition is still available for twice this price: USD1495; here.)
As soon as I saw that the "cyphers" in the title were actually "monograms," I wondered whether Henry Lasher may have got his monogram from such a source. As you can see, my hunch was a good one. The two monograms are identical.
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For my other posts on Gardner, see A very crude Gardner ornament catalogue, 1995 and Works Containing Gardner Ornaments.
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