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

Author: W. Harrison Ainsworth. Illustrated by Phiz (Hablot Knight Browne).
Title: Auriol; or, The Elixir of Life.
Publisher: London: George Routledge and Sons, [circa 1890]. New York: 416 Broome Street.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 8.5 x 5.5 inches.
Pages: 238 pages.
Binding: Very good and handsome half dark-green polished calf leather binding over green pebbled cloth boards, with five richly gilt-tooled raised bands and ornate floral gilt tooling to compartments, red morocco title label, marbled edges, and striking marbled endpapers (hinges fine, light rubbing to extremities and outer hinges, a touch of fading to calf on spine — as shown). A refined 19th-century binding.
Content: Very good content (bright, tight and clean, scattered light foxing, chiefly to preliminaries and the margins of plates — as typical for this period and paper stock - as shown). Text pages remain clean and crisp. Features an elegant 19th-century armorial bookplate of Thomas James Dixon on front pastedown.
Illustrations: Illustrated throughout with full-page engraved plates by Phiz, including “The Mysterious Interview in Hyde Park,” “The Elixir of Long Life,” “The Dog Fancier,” “The Compact,” “The Enchanted Chairs,” and others. All plates present.

Estimate: (USD 250– 300).

The book: A beautifully bound later 19th-century Routledge edition of Auriol; or, The Elixir of Life, one of W. Harrison Ainsworth’s most atmospheric and Gothic works. Mixing elements of alchemy, forbidden science, supernatural longevity, and melodramatic intrigue, the novel follows the enigmatic Auriol — a man bound to a sinister pact granting unnatural life at terrible moral cost.

Set against a vividly drawn London of hidden chambers, occult laboratories, shadowy streets, and fashionable promenades, Ainsworth’s narrative moves between Gothic mystery and social drama. This edition is enhanced by Phiz’s dramatic engravings, which bring the novel’s strangest and most theatrical scenes to life with characteristic movement, shadow, and emotional intensity.

Presented here in a handsome period half-calf binding of excellent workmanship, this edition is ideal for collectors of Victorian Gothic fiction, illustrated literature, and fine 19th-century bindings.

The author: William Harrison Ainsworth (1805–1882) was a major figure in 19th-century English fiction, renowned for blending historical narrative, Gothic atmosphere, and popular melodrama. A contemporary of Dickens, Ainsworth achieved wide readership through works like The Tower of London, Jack Sheppard, and Old St. Paul’s. His fiction is notable for its theatricality, its interplay of history and supernatural themes, and its long association with major illustrators of the Victorian age. 

The illustrator: Phiz (Hablot Knight Browne) (1815–1882) was one of the great masters of Victorian book illustration, best known for his lifelong collaboration with Charles Dickens. Phiz’s energetic line work, expressive faces, and dramatic compositions made him one of the era’s defining storytellers in images. His plates for Auriol bring out the novel’s Gothic tension, mysterious settings, and emotional intensity with exceptional skill.