The Story of Roland

Octavo. First Hurd illustrated edition. 347 (1) pages. Beautifully illustrated by Peter Hurd. A great medieval classic set in the Carolingian age. On the shelves of the Mark Hopkin's Hotel in San Francisco are the Scribner's classics with illustations of Peter Hurd's Story of Roland and N.C. Wyeth's classics. Peter Sturhahn describes the scene of the books in the Hotel's wood pannelled room. The original, such as this copy, have the original end papers also initialed by Peter Hurd. In Wace's account of the battle of Hastings, he writes: "Taillefer, who sang before Duke William, was singing of Charlemagne, and of Roland and Oliver, and of the vassals who died at Roncevaux. Twenty years later an unknown monk (though the song entitled: 'The Life of Charles the Great and Roland', was falsely claimed to be authored by the Archbishop Turpin.) The Chanson de Roland became one of the great classics song at the end of the Middle Ages and into the early days of the Renaissance.Bound in black cloth, color pictorial pastedown to front cover, spine lettering gilt(worn), color pictoirial endpapers, light wear to corners, cloth lightly rubbed. A very good copy.…