Kelmscott Bookshop Rare Books has issued their Catalog 20, Artists' Books and Private Press, Early Printed Books, William Morris, Literature, History, Plus More! As the title of the catalogue and the name of the bookseller indicate, there is a focus on the book arts. However, as the catalogue title says, there is more, unrelated but highly collectible material too. We will take a look inside at a few of the items being offered.
We begin with a German bible, Biblia, Das Ist: Die Gentze Heilige Schrift-Deudsch. The text came from a 1545-6 edition of a bible translated to German by Martin Luther, but this five-volume set was published from 1926-1929. The publisher was Munich's Bremer Presse. They published from 1911-1939, with a brief interruption for the First World War. Bremer was a private press founded by Willy Wiegand, and their style was similar to that of Doves Press. Bremer eschewed ornamentation except for “splendid” initials drawn by Anna Simons. It was published to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the various printings of Luther's bible from 1522-1545. It sounds like we are upon an even more momentous anniversary now. Kelmscott describes this as “probably their masterpiece.” Scholar Roderick Cave wrote that “the influence of the Bremer Presse on German printing was probably greater and longer lasting than that of any of the other fine presses in Germany.” Item 21. Priced at $4,500.
This next item is a movable book from artist and author Ellen Knudson. Published by the Crooked Letter Press of Gainesville, Florida, in 2020, this is copy #14 of 40. The title is Rule of Thumb, a whimsical book about expressions containing the word "thumb." Examples of such are “rule of thumb,” “under my thumb,” and “sticks out like a sore thumb.” The book contains a movable thumb. Despite the light manner of the book, it was meant to relay a serious message about social media making us more distant personally, particularly as it was published in the Covid, social-distancing era. As Ms. Knudson explains, it “is a movable book about the historical human obsession with ourselves and with approval from others. In the last 10 years, we have become obsessed with living online instead of actual living. We seem to only care about how many ‘thumbs up,’ likes, or hearts we can accumulate on social media platforms. We practice a psychological social separation. We live virtual lives... How will we make it back? Can we make it back? I hope we will realize how much we don’t want to live without one another.” Item 36. $950.
The most notable figure in the private press movement was William Morris. He created his Kelmscott Press as a reaction to the shoddy, mass-printed books of the day. He wanted there to be printing of the quality represented by the old hand presses, works of the printer's art rather than his machine. Kelmscott had a short life, a consequence of Morris dying only six years after he opened his shop. This is an early one, The History of Reynard the Foxe, published in 1892. Reynard was the central character in a series of anthropomorphic fables written by various authors, starting a couple of centuries before printing. These were taken from William Caxton's translation of 1481. It was published in 300 copies, 275 to be sold by bookseller Bernard Quaritch. Item 117. $8,000.
This is another item from the Kelmscott Press. It is an uncommon frontispiece woodcut proof illustration from Love Is Enough. The book was published in 1897, a year after Morris died. His crew and friends kept Kelmscott in operation only long enough to complete the works Morris had started. The artist was Edward Burne-Jones, a close friend and collaborator with Morris. Item 118. $685.
Those who like birds but are concerned about loss of habitat will appreciate this work by artist Alice Austin. The title is Nesting and this is one of 10 deluxe copies from a total print run of 15. It is a collection of prints of birds and their nests as designed by the talented artist. She ends the work with a poem, noting “Due to habitat loss, there are 25 percent fewer birds since 1970. Still, birds are nesting, calling to each other, and a glimpse, through binoculars is wondrous, fleeting.” She uses caterpillar stitching in the binding, which should appeal to a hungry bird. Published in 2022. Item 15. $1,200.
Here is an obscurity by a poet whose name you may not know, probably do not know. Her name is Janetta Philipps and she wrote in the early 19th century. Offered is a copy of her Poems, published in 1811. She never achieved much of a reputation, if any, and does not appear to have many admirers of her poetry. However, when the then young Miss Philipps began writing, she had one very deep admirer of her work - Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley was extremely impressed, so much so that he offered to pay for her book's publication and solicited subscribers at Oxford. He subscribed to six copies himself. Shelley was no well-known either at the time and it is uncertain whether he actually paid for the private publication, though he certainly was instrumental in finding subscribers at Oxford. Her obscurity is such that almost nothing is known of her today or why Shelley was so impressed, as he does not seem to have had any personal connection with her, but perhaps if you purchase this book you will understand why Shelley was so fascinated those many years ago. Item 137. $900.
The Kelmscott Bookshop Rare Books may be reached at 410-235-6810 or info@kelmscottbookshop.com. Their website is www.kelmscottbookshop.com.
