Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field. [Fore-Edge Painting].

SCOTT, Sir Walter.

Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field. [Fore-Edge Painting].

Sir Walter Scott's Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field; finely bound with a double fore-edge painting

Edinburgh: Adam and Charles Black, 1855.

$975.00

Out of Stock Item Number: RRB-130473

Custom Clamshell Box (+$450)

* Custom Clamshell Boxes are hand made by the Harcourt Bindery upon request and take approximately 60 days to complete

Ask a Question Shipping & Guarantee

Finely bound example of Scott's historical romance in verse of 16th-century Scotland and England. Octavo, bound in full pebbled morocco with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling and fleuron cornerpieces to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, illustrated with eighty engravings including tissue-guarded frontispiece and additional engraved title page, all edges gilt with two fore-edge paintings depicting Lord Marmion and a Highland warrior. In very good condition. Armorial bookplate and ownership inscription.

The first known example of a disappearing fore-edge painting (where the painting is not visible when the book is closed) dates back to 1649. In the mid 18th century, the subject matter of fore-edge paintings evolved from simply decorative or heraldic designs to landscapes, portraits and religious scenes, usually painted in full color. The technique was popularized by John Brindley (1732-1756), publisher and bookbinder to the Prince of Wales and Edwards of Halifax, a distinguished family of bookbinders and booksellers. The majority of extant examples of fore-edge paintings date to the late 19th and early 20th century on reproductions of books originally published in the early 19th century, including the present volume.