1913 Rare Book - Tales From The Earthly Paradise by William Morris, Illustrated

Author: William Morris. Illustrated by Isabel Bonus.
Title: Tales from the Earthly Paradise.
Publisher: London, Adam and Charles Black, 1913. First Illustrated Edition by Isabel Bonus.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 8 " X 6 ".
Pages: viii-280 pages.
Binding: Attractive and very good, near fine, original publisher’s pictorial grey cloth binding, beautifully decorated in gilt, brown, turquoise, and black with medieval motifs and a circular vignette of a sailing ship. Spine titled and illustrated in gilt and brown with a knight holding a sword (hinges fine, overall slightly worn and scuffed - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover. Upper edge gilt.
Content: Near fine content (bright, tight and clean, rare light foxing or staining - as shown, front free endpaper bears a charming 1919 gift inscription (“Sheila Scott, with love from Auntie Seal”) - as shown). 
Illustrations: Complete with twelve full-page colour illustrations by Isabel Bonus. The artwork captures the delicate Pre-Raphaelite sensibility that reflects Morris’s aesthetic vision.

Estimate: (USD 250– 300).

The book: A striking Edwardian edition of Tales from the Earthly Paradise—a selection of William Morris’s poetic narratives arranged in prose by W. J. Glover. This Adam and Charles Black publication (1913) represents a beautiful continuation of Morris’s legacy, uniting Arts and Crafts ideals with early twentieth-century book design. The twelve richly colored plates by Isabel Bonus evoke a dreamlike medieval world—echoing the Pre-Raphaelite atmosphere that surrounded Morris’s literary and artistic life. The tales themselves, including The Land East of the Sun and West of the Moon, The Golden Apples, and The Love of a Princess, blend classical myth and northern legend into meditations on beauty, fate, and longing.

The author: William Morris (1834 – 1896) was a British designer, poet, and visionary who profoundly shaped the Arts and Crafts Movement. As founder of the Kelmscott Press, Morris championed craftsmanship and aesthetic integrity in an age of industrialization. His The Earthly Paradise (1868 – 1870) remains one of his most ambitious literary works—a poetic cycle that sought to revive the spirit of medieval romance through the ideals of art and beauty.

The illustrator: Isabel Bonus (fl. early 20th century) was a British artist and illustrator known for her refined color plates and sensitivity to romantic and mythological subjects. Her work here reflects both Pre-Raphaelite delicacy and Edwardian grace, making this 1913 edition one of the most visually appealing illustrated versions of Morris’s tales.