1922 First Rackham Illustrated Edtn Ltd 537/600 Signed A WONDER BOOK By Nathaniel Hawthorne Illus. Arthur Rackham

1922 First Rackham Illustrated Edition

A WONDER BOOK
By Nathaniel Hawthorne

KEY DETAILS
Condition: Very Good
Format: Hardcover, quarto (4to 9 1⁄2 × 12 in 241 × 305 mm )
Note: Binding/size selection follows standard bibliographic conventions and is approximate; exact measurements may vary.
Published By: Hodder & Stoughton, London (and Toronto), 1922
Language: English
Limited Edition: 537/600 Copies
Signed By: Signed by Illustrator
Illustrated By: Arthur Rackham
Collation: viii, 206, [2] pp. Complete with all 24 colour plates (incl. frontispiece) - 24 colour plates, 16 mounted/tipped-in with captioned tissue guards + 8 full-page colour plates + b/w illustrations.
Dust Jacket: None, as issued, No Jacket
SKU: BTETM0001640
Shipping Info: Approximate Package Dimensions H: 12.5, L: 30, W: 25 (Units: cm), W: 3Kg
Tracked Shipping, Insurance Coverage as per Customer Request

DESCRIPTION
A Wonder Book
First Rackham-illustrated edition (“first edition thus”). Limited to 600 copies, numbered and signed by the artist — this copy no. 537, signed by Arthur Rackham on the limitation leaf.

CONDITION, COLLATION & COPY NOTES
Condition Report Clean, bright cloth and strong gilt; light handling wear. Bump to top corner of upper board and hinge starting (see photos). Some toning/foxing to edges typical of the book. Edges - Top edge gilt; others uncut. Binding / Housing: Original publisher’s cream/white cloth with gilt lettering and decoration. Housed in a green presentation/clamshell box (leather-backed spine); some sun-bleaching/fading noted. Please see Photos as part of condition report.

SYNOPSIS
Hawthorne’s retelling of Greek myths, presented as “stories within a story”: the frame narrative has a Williams College student, Eunice Bright, telling mythic tales to a group of children at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts (where Hawthorne lived for a time). Stories include: “The Gorgon’s Head” (Perseus and Medusa) “The Golden Touch” (King Midas) “The Paradise of Children” (Pandora’s box) “The Three Golden Apples” (Heracles and the Hesperides) “The Miraculous Pitcher” (Baucis and Philemon) “The Chimæra” (Bellerophon, Pegasus, and the Chimera)

AUTHOR BIO
Nathaniel Hawthorne (4 July 1804 – 19 May 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer whose works often focus on history, morality, and religion. Born in Salem, Massachusetts, he became one of the leading figures of American Romantic literature.

ILLUSTRATOR
Arthur Rackham
Arthur Rackham RWS (19 September 1867 – 6 September 1939) was an English book illustrator and one of the leading figures of the Golden Age of British book illustration. His work is noted for robust pen-and-ink line combined with watercolour. Among his best-known illustrated books are Rip Van Winkle, Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens, and Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm.