The Poems of John Keats
Hammersmith: Kelmscott Press, 1894. Limited Edition. Octavo, 8 1/4 x 5.5 in (206 x 140 mm) 392 pp. Edited by F.S. Ellis. One of 300 copies on Flower paper, printed in red and black in Golden type, wood-engraved borders and initials designed by William Morris, neat contemporary ink inscription to front free endpaper, original limp vellum with ties, yapp edges, spine titled in gilt, uncut; binding very slightly soiled with a small mark to the upper cover, else in fine condition.
Inscription: "W.M. Marshall / from E.M. & T.C. Farrer / 1896"
[Peterson A24; Tomkinson p. 113 no. 24; Forman p. 220; Ransom p. 327, no. 24].
This collection and the extreme care and expertise William Morris poured into his edition of the poems of John Keats (1795-1821), is a testament to the high regard in which this second-generation romantic poet was held towards the end of the 19th century, and particularly by the Pre-Raphaelites. "This was, arguably, the most popular of the titles published by the press, and the supply was exhausted quickly." [PetersonA24]
Morris was especially keen on textual fidelity to Keat's originals. For "La Belle Dame Sans Merci", a mainstay of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, he was intransigent: “A specimen of each sheet of every book was brought in to Morris as soon as it came off the press. I (Sydney Cockerell) was with him when he happened to open the sheet on which La Belle Dame sans Merci was printed. He began to read it and was suddenly aware of unfamiliar words. ... Great was his indignation. He swiftly altered the words and then read the poem to me, remarking that it was the germ from which all the poetry of his group had sprung. … The sheet was reprinted.” [Peterson, p. 65 - Sidney Colvin, John Keats: His Life and Poetry, 1918]
The donors of this copy were Emma Cecilia Farrer Darwin, and her brother, Thomas Cecil Farrer (2d Baron Farrer). Emma was married to the youngest son of Charles Darwin, while her brother Thomas was on the board of the Underground Electric Railways Company of London (forerunner of the London Underground) and was an active suffragist, along with his wife, Lady Evangeline.
Item number: 10
Price: $13,000.00
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