(Cruikshank, George) editor and illustrator. Hop-O'My-Thumb and the Seven-League Boots (George Cruikshank's Fairy Library No. 1). Inscribed by Cruikshank in the Year of Publication; edited and illustrated with six etchings, by George Cruikshank. London: David Bogue, 86 Fleet Street, [1853]. FIRST EDITION.
12mo - 6-15/16" x 5-5/16" (176 x 135 mm). Bound in the original pale green pictorial wrappers with titles and decoration printed in black to the front wrapper, and the correct first-issue publisher's advertisement printed in black to the back wrapper reading, "Preparing for publication / Jack and the Bean Stalk." Collates: [1-3], 4-30, [1: "List of Illustrations"] pp., plus [6] leaves of plates. This copy is housed in a custom protective blue cloth chemise and a quarter blue crushed levant morocco over blue cloth slipcase, featuring titles stamped in gilt to the spine and the gilt-lettered blue morocco book label of the legendary collector Estelle Doheny affixed to the inside flap of the chemise.
The physical condition of the item is graded FINE (utilizing the standard antiquarian book grading scale for works on paper). The delicate original paper wrappers show only a hint of minor peripheral wear, remaining exceptionally bright, clean, and structurally sound. Internally, the text block is remarkably fresh and bright with just a hint of very occasional, trivial foxing largely confined to the margins. The six masterfully executed etchings retain sharp impressions and excellent contrast.
This is the historic first entry in George Cruikshank's celebrated Fairy Library series, featuring six charming etchings widely considered by contemporary and modern critics to represent some of the finest, most intricate graphic work ever produced by the artist. This superlative example is enhanced by an impeccable provenance trail and an intimate contemporary association, being a Presentation Copy Inscribed by Cruikshank on the front flyleaf in a bold, sweeping hand: "Alex. Wm. Chrichton, Esq. / With the compliments of / George Cruikshank / and a hope to be / more intimately acquainted / July 19, 1853." A magnificent, collector-grade survival of an immensely fragile nineteenth-century publication, boasting an inscription dated within the immediate weeks of its release and preserved within the library of one of America's most distinguished book collectors.
A TRANSCENDENT, UNPARALLELED EXAMPLE OF NINETEENTH-CENTURY CHILDREN'S LITERATURE COUPLING THE FIRST EDITION OF GEORGE CRUIKSHANK'S FAIRY LIBRARY NO. 1 WITH A DISCOVERY-GRADE PRESENTATION INSCRIPTION SIGNED BY THE ARTIST IN THE MONTH OF PUBLICATION, PRESERVED IN THE FAMED ESTELLE DOHENY COLLECTION, REPRESENTING A CRITICAL ACQUISITION FOR INSTITUTIONAL SPECIAL COLLECTIONS OR EXTRAORDINARY PRIVATE COLLECTIONS DEVOTED TO THE HISTORY OF VICTORIAN ILLUSTRATION, ENGLISH CARICATURE, OR THE EVOLUTION OF RARE NINETEENTH-CENTURY BOOKMAKING.
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