Of Queens' Gardens
London / Edinburgh: George Allen / Ballantyne Press, 1902. 8vo, 8 x 5 3/4 inches (203 x 145 mm), (4), 68, (1) pp. Printed on handmade Arnold paper with a flower and vine border on each page with red initials; publisher's device wood engraved on colophon; yapp edges. Full vellum over boards, stamped in gilt. on front cover and spine, 3 of 4 cloth ties missing. Light foxing to the flyleaves and typical offsetting from text frames, otherwise clean throughout and binding tight, vellum very slightly curled.
A companion piece to his "Of Kings' Treasuries" this essay was delivered by the English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era John Ruskin (1819 – 1900) in 1864, this refined printing of "Of Queens' Gardens" describes an ideal model of Victorian femininity. Focusing on the role of women, it asserts their rights and duties in education, according them responsibility for the household and, by extension, for providing the human compassion that must balance a social order dominated by men. This book proved to be one of Ruskin's most popular, and was regularly awarded as a Sunday School prize.(Cook and Wedderburn 18, 19 ff.) Its reception over time has been mixed, and twentieth-century feminists have taken aim at "Of Queens' Gardens" in particular, as an attempt to "subvert the new heresy" of women's rights by confining women to the domestic sphere. Although indeed subscribing to the Victorian belief in "separate spheres" for men and women, Ruskin was however unusual in arguing for parity of esteem, a case based on his philosophy that a nation's political economy should be modeled on that of the ideal household. For both men and women, Ruskin promotes reading and proper education as the means to fulfill their ultimate purpose. A handsome production, in the style of William Morris's Kelmscott Press, with elaborate printed borders and dropcaps in red ink, which mirrors Ruskin's interest in the principles of the Arts & Crafts movement.
Condition: Near fine.
Item number: 1544
Price: $500.00
Share: