Green Willow and other Japanese Fairy Tales -
Grace James, Warwick Goble (illustrator)
1910 - Macmillan and Co., London - Edition de Luxe, one of 500 copies.
The deluxe edition of this lovely collection of tales and legends, many of them sourced from the Ko-ji-ki, or Record of Ancient Matters, which contains the mythology of Japan, selected and translated by the Japanese born Grace James (1882-1965) and beautifully illustrated with forty tipped-in colour plates by Warwick Goble, each one laid on brown card and with a descriptive tissue guard.
Stories include ‘Flower of the Peony’, ‘Green Willow’, ‘Tamamo, ‘The Fox Maiden’, ‘The Flute’, ‘The Moon Maiden’, and ‘The Wind in the Pine Tree’, among many others.
A superior example, housed in custom made two part tan morocco slipcase, with twin gilt labels. Warwick Goble [1862-1943] was an illustrator of children's books, who specialised in oriental themes. After training at the City of London School and the Westminster School of Art, Goble began his career contributing illustrations to monthly such as Strand Magazine, Pearson's Magazine, and The Boy's Own Paper. He later progressed to book illustration becoming the first to illustrate H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds, as well as exhibiting at the Royal Academy. In 1909, he became resident gift book illustrator for MacMillan and produced illustrations for The Water Babies, Green Willow, and Other Japanese Fairy Tales, The Complete Poetical Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, Stories from the Pentamerone, Folk Tales of Bengal, The Fairy Book, and The Book of Fairy Poetry. Later in life Goble gradually gave up illustration to pursue sculling, cycling, and travelling.
References: ‘Grace James’ www.americanliterature.com web. ‘Japanese Fairy Tales’, www.gutenberg.org. web.
Quarto (binding size 29.5x23,4cm), pp. xii 281 [3]. In publisher s deluxe full vellum, gilt lettering to spine, upper board with gilt vignette of Japanese lady and baby, lettered in gilt, top edge gilt, others untrimmed, blue silk ties. Housed in a pull-off two part case of half tan morocco over brown cloth, spin with twin black morocco labels lettered and decorated in gilt, pull-off case with black gilt morocco lettering labels. Condition: Near fine, gentle spotting to endpapers and edges, minor wear and light soiling to vellum binding, in near fine slipcase with light rubbing to edges. Ref: 112000 Price: HK$ 20,000
Stories include ‘Flower of the Peony’, ‘Green Willow’, ‘Tamamo, ‘The Fox Maiden’, ‘The Flute’, ‘The Moon Maiden’, and ‘The Wind in the Pine Tree’, among many others.
A superior example, housed in custom made two part tan morocco slipcase, with twin gilt labels. Warwick Goble [1862-1943] was an illustrator of children's books, who specialised in oriental themes. After training at the City of London School and the Westminster School of Art, Goble began his career contributing illustrations to monthly such as Strand Magazine, Pearson's Magazine, and The Boy's Own Paper. He later progressed to book illustration becoming the first to illustrate H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds, as well as exhibiting at the Royal Academy. In 1909, he became resident gift book illustrator for MacMillan and produced illustrations for The Water Babies, Green Willow, and Other Japanese Fairy Tales, The Complete Poetical Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, Stories from the Pentamerone, Folk Tales of Bengal, The Fairy Book, and The Book of Fairy Poetry. Later in life Goble gradually gave up illustration to pursue sculling, cycling, and travelling.
References: ‘Grace James’ www.americanliterature.com web. ‘Japanese Fairy Tales’, www.gutenberg.org. web.
Quarto (binding size 29.5x23,4cm), pp. xii 281 [3]. In publisher s deluxe full vellum, gilt lettering to spine, upper board with gilt vignette of Japanese lady and baby, lettered in gilt, top edge gilt, others untrimmed, blue silk ties. Housed in a pull-off two part case of half tan morocco over brown cloth, spin with twin black morocco labels lettered and decorated in gilt, pull-off case with black gilt morocco lettering labels. Condition: Near fine, gentle spotting to endpapers and edges, minor wear and light soiling to vellum binding, in near fine slipcase with light rubbing to edges. Ref: 112000 Price: HK$ 20,000