1890 Rare Gothic Novel - Auriol; or, The Elixir of Life by W. Harrison Ainsworth

An atmospheric illustrated edition of Ainsworth’s Gothic tale of immortality and forbidden knowledge, handsomely preserved in a richly gilt half-leather binding with marbled boards and the complete series of dramatic plates by Phiz.

Author: William Harrison Ainsworth. Illustrated by Phiz (Hablot Knight Browne).
Title: Auriol; or, The Elixir of Life.
Publisher: London: George Routledge and Sons, The Broadway, Ludgate; New York: 416 Broome Street, [circa 1890].
Edition: Undated later 19th-century illustrated edition.
Language: English.
Pages: 238 pages, followed by publisher’s catalogue.
Size: 9 x 6 inches.
Binding: Very good handsome period half brown leather binding over richly marbled paper boards, with matching leather corners. Spine with five raised bands, richly gilt floral decoration to the compartments and gilt lettering. Upper edge gilt. Marbled endpapers. Light rubbing and wear to the extremities and corners, with some surface wear to the marbled paper, as shown. Front endpaper inner hinge reinforced by a previous owner, remaining firm and functional. An attractive and substantial period binding. Protected in a removable mylar cover. 
Content: Very good condition, complete and firmly bound. Scattered foxing throughout, particularly to some preliminary leaves and around the illustrated plates, as shown, otherwise the pages remain well preserved. Engraved armorial bookplate to the front pastedown.
Illustrations: Complete with 15 full-page engraved illustrations by Phiz (Hablot Knight Browne), including the frontispiece The Mysterious Interview in Hyde Park, followed by The Elixir of Long Life, The Ruined House in the Vauxhall Road, The Dog Fancier, The Hand and the Cloak, The Iron Merchant’s Daughter, The Barber of London, Seizure of Ebba, The Antiquaries, The Chamber of Mystery, The Tomb of the Rosicrucian, The Compact, The Significant Whisper, The Enchanted Chairs, and Rougemont’s Device to Perplex Auriol.

Estimate: USD $225–300.

The book: Auriol; or, The Elixir of Life is one of William Harrison Ainsworth’s most overtly Gothic and supernatural novels. Beginning dramatically on the final night of 1599, the story revolves around the discovery of an elixir capable of prolonging life and the sinister consequences that follow its possession. Alchemy, Rosicrucian mysteries, secret chambers, supernatural bargains and the darker corners of London combine in a tale steeped in Victorian fascination with forbidden knowledge and unnatural longevity.

The novel is particularly effective in an illustrated edition such as this, where Phiz’s densely worked plates transform Ainsworth’s strange London into a theatrical world of antiquaries, alchemists, crowded streets, ruined buildings and mysterious encounters. The elegant period binding, vivid marbled papers and extensive suite of engravings make this an appealing copy for collectors of Victorian Gothic fiction, supernatural literature, fine bindings and nineteenth-century illustrated books.

The author: William Harrison Ainsworth (1805–1882) was one of the most popular English historical novelists of the Victorian period. A contemporary of Dickens, he achieved considerable success with such works as Rookwood, Jack Sheppard, The Tower of London and Old St. Paul’s. His fiction frequently combines historical settings with crime, melodrama, Gothic atmosphere and supernatural or legendary elements.

The illustrator: Hablot Knight Browne (1815–1882), universally known as Phiz, was among the defining illustrators of Victorian literature and is celebrated above all for his long collaboration with Charles Dickens. His energetic line, crowded compositions and flair for dramatic characterization were equally well suited to Ainsworth’s fiction, and the fifteen plates in Auriol provide a wonderfully visual counterpart to the novel’s mixture of mystery, grotesquerie and Gothic spectacle.