1867 Near fine Red Morocco Binding - The Princess by Alfred Tennyson
Author: Alfred Tennyson.
Title: The Princess: A Medley.
Publisher: London, Edward Moxon & Co., Dover Street, 1867 (Sixteenth Edition).
Language: Text in English.
Size: 6.5" x 4".
Pages: 183 pages.
Binding: Attractive and near fine full red morocco binding, finely gilt-tooled with the title “The Princess” and fleur-de-lis device to upper cover, gilt title to spine, and gilt author’s name at the foot (hinges fine, lightly scuffed - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover. All edges gilt. A beautiful presentation binding, bright and well-preserved, showing only light traces of use at corners.
Content: Good to very good content (bright, tight and clean, foxing mainly to the preliminary and final leaves, less pronounced in the body of the text. A small stain is visible on the lower margin of the Prologue page, decreasing in size over the first twenty pages and then disappearing. Contemporary gift inscription dated 1868 to the front flyleaf - as shown).
Estimate: (USD 150 – 200).
The Book: Alfred Tennyson’s The Princess: A Medley first appeared in 1847, and it remains one of his most innovative narrative poems. In this long work, Tennyson blends blank verse, lyrical interludes, and narrative storytelling to explore themes of gender roles, education, and the struggles between tradition and progress in Victorian society. The poem tells the story of Princess Ida, who founds a women’s university and rejects traditional marriage, only to confront both her ideals and her emotions when faced with love.
This 1867 edition, published by Edward Moxon & Co., reflects the ongoing popularity of the work during Tennyson’s lifetime, presented here in a striking gilt red morocco binding.
The author: Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892) was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom during much of Queen Victoria’s reign and remains one of the central figures of 19th-century English literature. His works, including In Memoriam, Idylls of the King, and The Princess, profoundly shaped Victorian poetics, blending lyric mastery with philosophical depth.