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1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert
1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert

1865 Rare Book - Robert Burns’s Poetical Works, Illustrated by John Gilbert

$200 USD - $200 USD
$200 USD
$200 USD - $200 USD
$200 USD

Author: Robert Burns. Edited by Rev. Robert Aris Willmott. Illustrated by John Gilbert.
Title: The Poetical Works of Robert Burns.
Publisher: London: Routledge, Warne, and Routledge; New York: 129 Grand Street, 1865.
Language: Text in English (with Scots dialect glossary).
Size: 6.5 x 4.5 inches. 
Pages: lxiii+ 478 pages.
Binding: Attractive and very good, near fine, contemporary full tan calf leather binding, richly blind- and gilt-stamped with central title “Burns” in ornate gilt script, decorative scrollwork borders, and gilt spine with raised bands and floral tooling. Gilt edges and marbled endpapers (hinges fine, overall slightly scuffed - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover.
Content: Very good content (bright, tight and clean, rare light foxing or staining - as shown). Prize bookplate from Blackheath and Greenwich Ladies College, awarded to Miss A. Corks, 1st Class Geography Prize, Christmas 1869, signed by the Ladies Principal, The Misses Burton & Dixon.
Illustrations: Illustrated throughout with finely engraved plates by John Gilbert, including frontispiece portrait and numerous full page illustrations. (Complete).

Estimate: (USD 250 – 300).

The book: A splendid mid-Victorian illustrated edition of The Poetical Works of Robert Burns, elegantly produced and preserved in its original 19th-century binding. This 1865 edition by Routledge reflects the era’s devotion to literary presentation—pairing the sentimental power of Burns’s poetry with the refined aesthetic of fine gilt-tooled calf binding.

The marbled endpapers and elaborate blind-stamped design convey both durability and grace. The presentation bookplate from Blackheath and Greenwich Ladies College provides a glimpse into the educational and social context of its time—when mastery of geography, literature, and refinement were celebrated as hallmarks of achievement.

The text, edited by Rev. Robert Aris Willmott, provides helpful notes and a comprehensive glossary for readers of Burns’s Scots dialect, allowing 19th-century audiences to fully appreciate the poet’s rustic voice and moral imagination. 

The author: Robert Burns (1759–1796), Scotland’s national poet, infused the lyric tradition with an authentic, vernacular voice that transformed British poetry. His verses—celebrating nature, love, independence, and humanity—bridged the gap between folk song and high literature. Works such as The Cotter’s Saturday Night, Tam o’ Shanter, and Auld Lang Syne cemented his legacy as a poet of compassion and democratic spirit.

By 1865, Burns’s popularity was international—his poems were read in Britain, America, and the colonies as moral and sentimental instruction. This beautifully illustrated edition represents the enduring admiration of Burns in the Victorian imagination.

The illustrator: Sir John Gilbert (1817–1897), one of the preeminent illustrators of the Victorian period, was celebrated for his expressive engravings and dynamic compositions. His collaboration with Routledge brought literary classics vividly to life. In this edition, his images of Scottish landscapes, rustic gatherings, and tender moments between lovers capture both the romance and realism at the heart of Burns’s world.

His illustrations not only complement the poet’s themes of humility, joy, and longing but also situate Burns within the visual culture of Victorian Britain—where illustration was as integral to literary experience as the text itself.