Available Copies from Independent Booksellers
Price: US$875.00 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: One tipped-in color plate, 19 full-page silhouette plates, some with color, and 41 in-text silhouette illustrations. Original vellum-backed, gilt-stamped, paper covered boards, minor rubbing, age toning, top edge gilt, others uncut. First deluxe limited edition. Number 479 of 625 copies signed by Rackham. Latimore & Haskell 51; Riall 141.
Seller: Written Relics, Alton Bay, NH, U.S.A.
Price: US$1500.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: Stated at copyrigh page: "London : William Heinemann, 1920". Large 9 1/4" x 11 1/2" design. Stated at limitation page: "This Edition de Luxe, printed on English Hand-made Paper, with an additional colour-plate, is limited to 625 copies (600 for sale) numbered and signed by Arthur Rackahm, of which 100 are reserved for the United States of America. No. '251,' 'Arthur Rackham.'" Cream boards, stylish gilt cover and spine titles, cream vellum spine wrap, moderate edge, corner wear, rub, discoloration. Cover vignette features a kneeling knave with platter offering in gilt. The Primerose or 'Briar Rose' color plate adjacent first page of tale is present and the wonderfully dark design captures the sleeping beauty in her spell. Bind good; hinges intact. This is The Sleeping Beauty translated by C. S. Evans from the original French of Charles Perrault. The spectacular English variant of Arthur Rackham's illustrated 'The Sleeping Beauty'. Illustrated throughout by Arthur Rackham in a unique silhouette style; features b&w and several silhouettes decorated in red, slate, and black. Several two-page spreads over adjacent pages. Includes twenty-five full-page silhouettes, nine in color (frontispiece and four double plates) - and sixteen in black (four double illustrations); the rare color mounted frontispiece; silhouette head-and tail-pieces and other silhouettes throughout the text. Near very good signed limited edition. From the great Golden Age of Illustration in children's literature comes this tale of The Sleeping Beauty. One of the most famous and beloved of all the folk tale classics is adapted here by C. S. Evans in collaboration with Rackham to create one of the most wonderful editions of any fairy tale. Rackham creates a fantasy world of crisp silhouette images to depict characters from the fable of a girl's transformation into a princess. Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) was one of the premier illustrators of the twentieth century. Throughout his career, he developed a very individual style that was to influence a whole generation of children and artists. His haunting humour and dream-like romance enhance the enchantment of The Sleeping Beauty. "It is immediately clear that Rackham is a master of the medium (silhouette), being able to evoke character and humour by profile and gesture alone, and allowing the two dimensional effect of his pen work to lead the reader through the book and keep the story going." - Latimore & Haskell "Rackham's fanciful imagination gave his illustrations instant recognition, and his dedication to illustration kept him in the public eye for 30 years" (Hodnett, 233). Like his Cinderella (1919), The Sleeping Beauty relied "almost wholly for its effect on silhouette. Rackham was a master of the medium, being able to evoke character and humor by profile and gesture alone, and allowing the two-dimensional effect of his pen work to lead the reader through the book and flow the story along" (Hamilton, 118). Charles Perrault's story as told by C. S. Evans begins with the King and Queen longing for a child. When at last a child is conceived and born, three fairy godmothers bless her at a feast. Fairy godmother Flora bestows upon her the gift of beauty, Fauna gives her the gift of song, and Merryweather begins to give her a gift, but Maleficent arrives and casts a spell that on her sixteenth birthday, the girl will prick her finger on a spindle and die. Merryweather uses her gift so that she instead will fall into sleep, only to be awakened by a kiss from her true love. Her parents send her to stay with the fairies to hide her from Maleficent. She meets Phillip, but does not know he is a prince. She then must return home to the castle as promised, and upon her return Maleficent appears and lures her to prick her finger on a spinning wheel. The fairies then cast a spell over the entire kingdom so the King and Queen won't know that she has been put under the spell. They give Prince Phillip the shield of virtue and the sword of truth to rescue her. He uses these to battle the witch when she turns into a dragon. Phillip races to the sleeping beauty and awakens her with a kiss. The kingdom rises from slumber and Prince Phillip and the princess are married and live happily. The classic good versus evil mythos in which a damsel is rescued by a valiant prince and all ends well - passed down through the ages since first created long, long ago. Printed in Great Britain by Richard Clay & Sons, Ltd, Brunswick St., Stamford St., and Bungay, Suffolk. 110 pages. Insured post. Size: 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall
Seller: The BiblioFile, Rapid River, MI, U.S.A.
Price: US$4500.00 + shipping
Condition: Fine
Description: Evans, C.S. (editor). Rackham, Arthur (illustrator).The Sleeping Beauty. London and Philadelphia: William Heinemann & J.B. Lippincott Co., 1920. First Edition, Limited Edition. Signed by Rackham. This is a desirable, limited edition printing of The Sleeping Beauty, edited by C. S. Evans and illustrated and signed by Arthur Rackham. Published in 1920 by London s Constable & Co. and Philadelphia s WIlliam Heinemann, this collectible printing is numbered #260/625 copies of the Edition de Luxe, of which only 600 were made available to the public. The book is presented in the original publisher s deluxe quarter vellum over Japanese vellum-covered boards, stamped in gilt, and finished with top edge gilt. The earliest known version of The Sleeping Beauty is found in the narrative Perceforest, composed between 1330 and 1344. The tale was first published in 1634 by Giambattista Basile in his collection of tales titled The Pentamerone. Basile's version was later adapted and published by Charles Perrault in his Histoires ou Contes du Temps Passé in 1697. Perrault (1628 1703) was among the first writers to bring magical children s stories into the literary mainstream, proving to his original seventeenth century readers that such works were important and enjoyable, as well as thought-provoking. The version that was later collected and printed in 1812 by the Brothers Grimm was an orally transmitted version of the literary tale published by Perrault. In 1919, C.S. Evans adapted and expanded the beloved and cherished stories of Cinderella and then The Sleeping Beauty in order to give his brilliant illustrator, Arthur Rackham, maximum opportunity to exercise his gifts. The product of their collaboration are two of the most wonderful editions produced of these, or any other, fairy tales. In these 1919 and 1920 printings, Rackham mastered his black and white silhouette style. "Cinderella and The Sleeping Beauty differed from Rackham s preceding books in relying almost wholly on silhouette for their effect. It is immediately clear from the collection of images that Rackham is a master of the medium, being able to evoke character and humor by profile and gesture alone and allowing the two-dimensional effect of his pen work to lead the reader through the book and keep the story going." (James Hamilton. Arthur Rackham: A Biography, p. 188) Thoroughly illustrated with numerous illustrations and in-text silhouettes, this book is a testament to Rackham s illustrating prowess. Rackham s fanciful imagination gave his illustrations instant recognition, and his dedication to illustration kept him in the public eye for 30 years (Hodnett, 233). Charles Seddon Evans (1883 1944) was a well respected writer, editor, and folklorist, who brought this magical story to life. He began his career as a schoolmaster before joining the publishing house of Edward Arnold as the Educational Editor in 1909. He moved to the firm of Heinemann in 1913, where he spent the rest of his working life, becoming Chairman and Managing Director in 1932. He wrote this version of The Sleeping Beauty to serve as a companion volume to his previously published 1919 edition of Cinderella, which was also illustrated by Arthur Rackham. Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) was one of the most celebrated painters of the British Golden Age of Illustration, which encompassed the years from 1850 until the start of the First World War. Rackham s artistry is unparalleled. Throughout his career, he developed a unique style, combining haunting humor with dream-like romance. Presented alongside the text, his illustrations enhance Perrault s enchanting narrative. CONDITION: A beautiful printing, in very good condition Numbered #260/625 copies of the Edition de Luxe. 4to. Publisher's deluxe quarter vellum over Japanese vellum-covered boards, stamped in gilt; top edge gilt, other edges untrimmed. Minimal wear to boards, with light bumping to corners and spine. Signed by Rackham.
Seller: The Great Republic, Colorado Springs, CO, U.S.A.