1840's Rare Book - Guy Fawkes, or the Gunpowder Treason illustrated by CRUIKSHANK

 

Author : AINSWORTH, William Harrison , [CRUIKSHANK, George, illustrator].
Title : Guy Fawkes, or the Gunpowder Treason, an Historical Romance.
Publisher : London: George Routledge and Sons, no date (circa 1840's)
Language : Text in English
Size : 9 " X 6 "
Pages : viii-359 pages
Binding : Very good and attractive green half leather binding (hinges tight, overall slightly worn and scuffed) under a protective removable mylar cover.
Content : Very good content (bright, tight and clean, armorial 'Dowling' bookplate to front pastedown, and accompanying blue ink ownership inscription to free blank fly-leaf)
Illustrations : Illustrated with 24 wood beautiful engraved plates by George Cruikshank.

Estimation : (USD 150 - USD 200)

The book : Rare early edition of Guy Fawkes Or, The Gunpowder Treason.

Guy Fawkes : Guy Fawkes (13 April 1570 – 31 January 1606), also known as Guido Fawkes, the name he adopted while fighting for the Spanish, was a member of a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605.  The plot was an attempt to blow up the House of Lords in London on 5 November 1605, in order to restore a Catholic head of state. The use of a mask on an effigy has long roots as part of Guy Fawkes Night celebrations.
A stylised portrayal of a face with an oversized smile and red cheeks, a wide moustache upturned at both ends, and a thin vertical pointed beard, designed by illustrator David Lloyd, came to represent broader protest after it was used as a major plot element in V for Vendetta, published in 1982, and its 2005 film adaptation. After appearing in Internet forums, the mask became a well-known symbol for the online hacktivist group Anonymous, used in Project Chanology, the Occupy movement, and other anti-government and anti-establishment protests around the world.

The author: William Harrison Ainsworth (4 February 1805 – 3 January 1882) was an English historical novelist born at King Street in Manchester. He trained as a lawyer, but the legal profession held no attraction for him. While completing his legal studies in London he met the publisher John Ebers, at that time manager of the King's Theatre, Haymarket. Ebers introduced Ainsworth to literary and dramatic circles, and to his daughter, who became Ainsworth's wife.