The Blue Beard Picture Book containing Blue Beard, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, The Sleeping Beauty. This item is unavailable.The Blue Beard Picture Book containing Blue Beard, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, The Sleeping Beauty

Small quarto, four sets of 8pp. [32pp. total]. Block-printed in several colors, with inset text. Presumed early printing of this collection of classic fairy tales illustrated by Walter Crane and printed by Edmund Evans at Routledge. No date, but ca. 1875, the date of the first edition given in OCLC. Band in early 20th century 3/4 crushed light blue morocco with gilt title to spine and marbled boards. Handsome bookplate to the front paste-down. Some insect chewing to the last two leaves and the rear free endpaper; worth noting, but not affecting any of the contents, which are clean and lovely. Some rubbing to the binding; overall very good. Vibrant color illustrations by one of the great illustrators of his day; a real "bridge" between his Victorian forebears and the early Modernists.