1850 Scarce 1stED - CRUIKSHANK's True Legend of St Dunstan, Horseshoe Against Witchcraft.
(description)
Author: Edward J. Flight & George Cruikshank.
Title: The Horse Shoe. The True Legend of St Dunstan and the Devil; Showing How the Horse-Shoe Came to be a Charm Against Witchcraft.
Publisher: London, D. Bogue, 1850. First edition.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 9 " X 6 ".
Pages: 24 pages.
Binding: Attractive and very good half brown morocco leather binding with nice marbled covers finely bound by Tout (hinges fine, overall slightly worn and scuffed - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover. Upper edge gilt.
Content: Very good content (bright, tight and clean - as shown, rare light foxing - as shown, scarce original printed wrappers bound in front and rear - as shown, rare very close tears on the outer margin of some pages - as shown, antique bookseller description of this book pasted on last blank page - as shown).
Illustrations: Complete with the beautiful etched illustrations by George Cruikshank.
The book: Attractive and scarce first edition of The True Legend of St Dunstan and the Devil; Showing How the Horse-Shoe Came to be a Charm Against Witchcraft. It relates how Dunstan nailed a horseshoe to the Devil's foot when he was asked to re-shoe the Devil's cloven hoof. This caused the Devil great pain, and Dunstan only agreed to remove the shoe and release the Devil after he promised never to enter a place where a horseshoe is over the door. This is claimed as the origin of the lucky horseshoe.
The illustrator: George Cruikshank (27 September 1792 – 1 February 1878) was a British caricaturist and book illustrator, praised as the "modern Hogarth" during his life. His book illustrations for his friend Charles Dickens, and many other authors, reached an international audience.