In the publisher’s magnificent presentation binding
48 DOYLE, Arthur Conan. The Works. New York: Doubleday, Doran & Co., 1930 £65,000 [ 160203 ] 24 volumes, octavo (218 × 142 mm). Contemporary brown crushed morocco by French Binders, Garden City, spines with five raised bands, lettered in gilt in two compartments and dated at foot, compartments with two-line gilt rules, each front cover with a different onlaid panel in various colours, turn-ins ruled around in gilt, green moiré silk doublures and endpapers, top edges gilt, others untrimmed. Photogravure frontispiece portrait by Pirie MacDonald in vol. I. A fine set. ¶ Green & Gibson A61.
The Crowborough Edition – named after the Sussex town where Doyle’s house, Windlesham, was located – has double the number of volumes of the Author’s Edition of 1903. Doyle had already signed sheets for it but his illness and death on 7 July 1930 prevented him seeing final publication of the work, and so it belongs to that select category, the posthumous signed limited edition. We have previously handled another of the first 10 sets, but not in such a richly decorative binding.
First complete collected edition, number 5 of 10 sets for presentation from an edition of 760 sets signed by the author in the first volume, of which 750 were for sale, presented here in a fine publisher’s deluxe binding with 24 unique morocco onlays, one for each front cover, depicting scenes from the texts. The French Binders traces its lineage back to the Club Bindery, founded in 1895 by members of the Grolier Club to provide exceptionally fine bindings for American collectors. The Club Bindery moved to Cleveland, where it was successively renamed the Rowfant Bindery (1909–13), the Booklover’s Shop (1914–17), and finally, the French Binders (1918–20s), as the in-house bindery to Doubleday in Garden City, New York.
SIXTY FINE ITEMS
All items are fully described and photographed at peterharrington.co.uk
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