eBay

Here we show some of the recent offerings from the Collection that have been available on eBay.

The contributions to The Knave of Hearts by Parrish are considered by many to be the "crown jewels"

The Masque of Comus was a 17th Century moral tale borne from a collaboration between John Milton and Henry Lawes. It

tells a story about virtue and grace, two matter upon which Milton had meditated profoundly. The tale is of a lady, lost from

her brothers in a wood, who is threatened by the son of Bacchus and Circe. The loss of her virginity follows but through

A review in The New York Times published on 4 December 1921 provided the following critique of Rackham's Comus:

Another old masterpiece in new garments is the Arthur Rackham illustrated edition of John Milton's

Comus ... [i]t is quite likely that Milton would have been paralyzed beyond the use of words could

he see it - but, then, as Milton was blind, that is not saying so much for the book as it really deserves.

Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen illustrated by Kay Nielsen

George H Doran Company, New York: 1924

A highly collectable and rare complete 1st Edition

A rare copy of the 1st Edition of Nielsen's illustrated rendering of Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen produced by George H Doran Company (New York) in 1924.

This copy shows the original decorative

multitone paste-down to the front cover

and retains the original black cloth binding.

To the right, we show the decorative Title Page

for Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen.

Below, we show the decorative End Papers for this copy - we have shown the front and rear fixed papers to provide some insight into the state of preservation for this title.

Nielsen provided a range of illustrations for Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen including colour illustrations, full-page

monotone images and marginal monotone illustrations. This edition includes complete suite of 12 colour images he

prepared to accompany these tales, in addition to the extensive range of full-page and marginal monotone illustrations

he produced for this substantial work.

The highly collectable and rare 1st Edition is distinguished from later vintage editions by the inclusion of all 12 colour

illustrations (later editions often included just 8 images). Further, the illustrations appear as tipped-in plates and include

both the central image and the wonderful integrated ornamental border as originally prepared by Nielsen. Naturally,

the current offering is complete from front to rear cover.

The two adjacent images are among those prepared by Nielsen for "The Tinder Box".

On the left, we show the

tipped-in plate which appeared

as the title's frontispiece.

To the right, we show the introductory

monotone illustration.

The two adjacent images are among those prepared by Nielsen for "Ole Luk-Oie".

On the left, we show the

tipped-in plate.

To the right, we show the introductory

monotone illustration.

Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen includes a selection of 16 tales from Hans Christian Andersen - the 19th Century Danish

author and poet. The images from Kay Nielsen marked his return to contributions to commissioned illustrated books

following World War I and his subsequent involvement in the Danish theatre.

The tales comprising the collection include: "The Tinder Box"; "Great Claus and Little Claus"; "The Real Princess";

"The Hardy Tin Soldier"; "The Flying Trunk"; "Old Luk-Oie"; "The Swineherd"; "The Nightingale"; "The Snow Queen";

"The Red Shoes"; "The Shepherdess and the Chimney-Sweeper"; "The Shadow"; "The Shirt Collar"; "The Bottle-Neck";

"The Elder Tree Mother"; and "The Story of a Mother".

Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen illustrated by Harry Clarke

George G Harrap & Co Ltd, London: 1931

A highly collectable and rare complete vintage Harrap edition

A rare copy of the 1931 vintage edition of Clarke's illustrated rendering of Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen produced by George G Harrap & Co Ltd (London). Printing for this edition was undertaken by Jarrold & Sons Ltd (Norwich).

On the left, we show this copy retaining

the original decoratively stamped red

cloth cover.

To the right, we show the decorative Title Page prepared

by Harry Clarke for Fairy Tales by Hans Andersen.

Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen was Harry Clarke's first published commission and includes a splendid array of

monotone and colour illustrations.

This vintage copy is understood to include all illustrations that first appeared within the 1st Edition and is complete with

16 wonderful colour images and 24 major monotone plates. In addition to those illustrations, a wealth of marginal

monotone illustrations are also shown from Harry Clarke.

The two adjacent images are examples of colour and marginal monotone illustrations by Harry Clarke.

On the left, we show the colour plate

illustrating "The Hardy Tin Soldier" - this

appears as the frontispiece.

To the right, we show the marginal

monotone illustration that decorates

the Half-Title page.

The two adjacent images are examples of colour and major monotone illustrations by Harry Clarke.

On the left, we show the major monotone image

from Clarke illustrating "The Little Sea Maid".

To the right, we show the colour illustration

prepared by Clarke for "Thumbelina".

This compendium includes classic tales from Hans Christian Andersen including: "The Tinder-Box"; "Great Claus

and Little Claus"; "Thumbelina"; "The Travelling Companion"; "The Emperor's New Clothes"; "The Goloshes

of Fortune"; "What the old man is always right"; "The Storks"; "The Ugly Duckling"; "The Shepherdess and the

Chimney-Sweeper"; "The Fir Tree"; "The Swineherd"; "The Snow Queen"; "The Nightingale"; "The Little Match

Girl"; "The Elf-Hill"; "The Old House"; "The Butterfly"; "The Little Sea Maid"; "The Wild Swans"; "The Marsh

King's Daughter"; "The Garden of Paradise"; and "What the Moon saw".

Tausend und Eine Nacht

A rare copy of the German-language version of Stories from The Arabian Nights - Tausend und Eine Nacht - with Dulac's suite of 50 superb colour illustrations shown on tipped-in plates.

This edition was published in or about 1935 by Schmidt & Günther (Leipzig).

On the left, this copy shows the original decoratively red-stamped white cloth cover.

To the right, we show the Title Page.

Dulac's illustrations to Stories from The Arabian Nights masterfully capture the fantastic elements of the tales

through a combination of brilliantly coloured characters and soft, impressionistic backgrounds while in other

scenes, a brooding and mysterious atmosphere is created through the use of a darker palette.

The contemporary review published in The New York Times (21 December, 1907) provides the following description:

For real charm - a charm quite comparable to Scheherezade's own - this volume depends upon the indescribably quaint and bewitching illustrations provided by Edmund Dulac ... The quality ... is best indicated by saying that the color prints give the impression of mosaics of mother of pearl and rich jewels with the light behind them - a miniature and

sublimate stained glass effect, divorced from the ecclesiastic stiffness of real stained glass, and made (in the case of the female figures particularly) infinitely graceful, a fit medium for fairies, houris, genii, goblins, women, and last, but not least, children; admitting, too, of delightfully humorous effect for all the grace and delicacy of it.

As an exquisite instance of the purely beautiful, graceful, and alluring among the fifty illustrations in the present volume may be noted the picture representing the Princess in the story of the Magic Horse reclining Orientally at her toilet attended by her maidens; as an example of the

humorous nothing could be better than the picture which represents Ali Baba, squat and bearded, returning from the cave of the Forty Thieves with his three laden asses - "a well-satisfied man".

One of the magnificent illustrations appearing in this edition of Tausend und Eine Nacht - Dulac's depiction of Scheherezade

The collection of stories illustrated in Stories from the Arabian Nights include: "The Fisherman and the Genie"; "The Story of the King of the Ebony Isles"; "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves"; "The Story of the Magic Horse"; "The Story of the Wicket Half-Brothers"; and "The Story of the Princess of Deryabar".

To the left, we show another of the wonderful images

shown displayed as a tipped-in plate within this edition

of Tausend und Eine Nacht - Dulac's depiction of

Pirouzè, "the fairest and most honourably born".

The Ring of Niblung

A rare copy of The Ring of Niblung - as published by William Heinemann Ltd (London, 1939) and containing a selection of more than 40 colour illustrations and many more monotone images by Rackham. The first publication of this edition, printing was undertaken in Great Britain by William Clowes and Sons, Limited (London and Beccles).

The Ring of Niblung contains Margaret Armour's translation of Wagner's Ring Cycle, including, The Rhinegold, The Valkyrie,

Siegfried and The Twilight of the Gods. The Rackham illustrations - in both colour and monotone included in this edition

are drawn from his contributions to The Rhinegold & The Valkyrie and Siegfried & The Twilight of the Gods first published

prior to World War I.

Two examples of the many colour and monotone images within The Ring of Niblung

that illustrate Wagner's "The Rhinegold" and "The Valkyrie".

A further two examples of the many colour and monotone images within The Ring of Niblung - in this case,

the images are drawn from Wagner's "Siegfried" and "The Twilight of the Gods".

Arthur and His Knights

A rare copy of Chaundler's Arthur and His Knights - as illustrated by Thomas Mackenzie - produced by Nisbet & Co. Ltd. (London) in, or about, 1945. Printing for this edition was undertaken by Morrison and Gibb Ltd (London and Edinburgh).

To the left, we show the rare illustrated Dust Jacket (covered with protective plastic sleeve).

On the right, we show the unassuming and

unmarked red cloth cover as issued by Nisbet.

Presenting Chaundler's own version of the Arthurian legend, this tale opens with an introduction to Merlin and

proceeds through a tale that would be familiar to many: Arthur is introduced to Excalibur and founds his Court

around The Round Table; Merlin passes and Morgan le Fay begins her influence; Quests - including that for

The Holy Grail - are described involving Lancelot, Sir Kay, Gareth, Sir Tristram and Sir Galahad; the exile of

Queen Guinevere; and the passing of King Arthur.

Throughout, Mackenzie's 8 colour illustrations are magnificent.

Here we show two of the 8 illustrations appearing within Arthur and His Knights.

On the left, is Mackenzie's version of "The Lady of the Lake" and to the right, is his depiction of Tristram carrying his love away on horseback.

Kay Nielsen illustrations from Hansel and Gretel: And Other Stories by the Brothers Grimm

These illustrations are from the 1st Edition published in 1925 by George H Doran Company (New York) for the United States market. With 2,100 copies of the 1st Edition available to the English-speaking world, these images were produced in limited numbers.

For this Edition, Nielsen's colour illustrations were also accompanied by a number of monotone images. In addition, the tipped-in colour plates were produced with the original integrated borders - each border being uniquely designed by Nielsen to accompany the associated illustration.

Nielsen's illustrations for Hansel and Gretel: And Other Stories by the Brothers Grimm are beautiful examples of his high Art Nouveau style and are typically lush with sensual composition, extraordinary detail and deliciously subtle original colours.

The individual pages only are offered, but a prospective framing option is also shown as an example of how superbly these pages may be presented.