THE FREAKS OF FASHION with Illustrations of the Changes in the Corset and Crinoline from Remote Periods to the Present Time.

Anon. (William Barry Lord).

Published by Ward, Lock & Tyler, London, nd. Attributed to 1870.

About this Item

Pages: title page; blank; Preface; vi - xii; Chapter I - IX pp10 - 224; Index pp225 - 227; blank; Ward Lock adverts from pp1 - 16. No author or date is stated. A pencilled note states c. 1867 . The Smithsonian lists a copy with no mention of a frontispiece and no mention of adverts, and states that a version of the book appeared in 1868 giving W. B. L. as author, who they identify as William Barry Lord, (Barry not Berry) but give no info why. The pagination is curious as the title page begins the text block on what is in effect page iii of the initial page-series in roman numerals. ie either pages i & ii constitute the front free end-paper or are missing. I have seen a copy listed on the net with a frontispiece which could be the missing i/ii. However that frontis is in a very different and more finished style to the other illustrations which are all in more newspaper style in our copy. The cover design and title are the same and also without date or author. Their cover is red Ours, here, is green. So the frontispiece could have been added for a variant edition or issue that happened to be in red cloth (or perhaps added by an owner for just the one copy). There is no sign of a frontispiece having been torn out of our copy. The end papers are very clean and could have been replaced, but the front paste down does lie against the front board as if laid there by machine rather than a restorer s human hand. Within the pagination of our copy are 54 line drawings, as listed in the List of Illustrations . 46 of these are full page and 8 are in-text. Illustration no. 54 also appears on the title page. The List of Illustrations does not mention a frontispiece. The Cornell University copy (other libraries list these same images also) has the same pagination as ours, no frontis piece and though they list 46 illus have 54 in the viewable pages. Theirs like ours has no date and no author and appears to be identical with ours internally. Although theirs has a name inked to the title page of William B. Lord. In several reference books we cannot find any notice about a William Barry Lord as an author nor therefore a listing of editions & variants for this title. So in the absence of better information we are unsure if our copy of this scarce book lacks a frontispiece or not, who it is by, or when printed. We assume ours is perhaps an earlier issue where an intended title page had not been ready and which appeared first in the green cloth issue, then later in red, or it could be the other way round - the cost of a title page abandoned after an early issue. Our copy's cover is in original green cloth, which is lettered in gilt with the cover illustration in gilt and black. A little rubbing to extremities, mild wear only. With the bookplate of Anne and F. G. Renier, well known book collectors. Very good indeed.

Seller Inventory # A.FREAKSOF

Bibliographic Details

• Title: THE FREAKS OF FASHION with Illustrations of the Changes in the Corset and Crinoline from Remote Periods to the Present Time.
• Publisher: Ward, Lock & Tyler, London, nd. Attributed to 1870.
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Near Fine