Crock of Gold (Bayntun-Riviere fine binding)

Beautifully bound in fine full-calf leather by BAYNTUN-RIVIERE BOOK INFO Crock of Gold by James Stephens Published in 1926 in London by Macmillan, first illustrated edition. 228 pages. Octavo. 8.75" x 6." One tissue-guarded frontispiece and eleven exquisite full-color illustrations by Thomas Mackenzie. 31 gorgeous mono wood block illustrations within text as head and tail pieces. Rebound by Bayntun of Bath, England's Bayntun-Riviere Bindery in exquisitely fine, red, full calf leather with double gilt filet paneling. Five gilded lightly raised spine bands with full gilt compartments - tooled gilt borders and decoration, including pots of gold emblems, in four compartments. One blue and one green gilt-lettered leather spine label in compartments two and three, respectively. All edges gilded by hand in 23.5-karat gold leaf. The head and foot of book with a single gilt filet and interior leather borders tooled with decorative gilt scrollwork (gilt inner dentelles). Handmade marbled endpapers. A luxurious copy for collectors of fine books! Signed by Bayntun on front flyleaf. CONDITION REPORT NEAR FINE. The Crock of Gold is a comic novel based on Irish folklore and philosophy written by Irish author James Stephens. Consisting of six stories, following a philosopher on his journey to find the most beautiful woman in the world and deliver her to the gods, Pan and Aengus Og. The stories feature leprechauns & Pan, delightful characters and charming humor. Stephens began his career under the tutelage of the renowned painter and writer, George William Russell, and during his lifetime was a close friend of the famous Irish novelist, James Joyce.…