1867 Rare Color Illustrated Book - Out of the Heart by Hans Christian Andersen

Author: Hans Christian Andersen. Translated by H. W. Dulcken, Ph.D. Illustrated with engravings by the Brothers Dalziel.
Title: Out of the Heart: Spoken to the Little Ones.
Publisher: London, George Routledge and Sons, Broadway, Ludgate Hill, 1867. First Edition thus.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 5.5" x 4.5".
Pages: vi-432 pages + publisher's catalogue.
Binding: Attractive and very good original publisher’s green cloth binding with gilt lettering and decoration to the spine and front board, blind-stamped decorative borders to both boards, and gilt pictorial title panel to the front cover. Binding remains bright, sound, and very attractive, with light wear to the extremities and a tiny tear to the upper hinge area of the rear cover, as shown. Hinges strong. Protected in a removable mylar cover. 
Content: Very good content. Pages are generally clean and firmly bound, with some light foxing and age toning throughout, as expected. Previous owner’s gift inscription to the first endpaper, dated in memory of her grandmother who died May 17th, 1888, aged 76. A charming and well-preserved Victorian copy.
Illustrations: Complete with all 16 full-page color illustrations, including the frontispiece. Also illustrated with numerous engravings by the Brothers Dalziel throughout the text.

Estimate: (USD 250–300).

The book: A charming 1867 illustrated edition of Hans Christian Andersen’s Out of the Heart: Spoken to the Little Ones, translated by H. W. Dulcken and published by George Routledge and Sons. This richly illustrated Victorian collection includes many of Andersen’s beloved tales, among them The Hardy Tin Soldier, Little Ida’s Flowers, The Emperor’s New Clothes, The Snow Man, Thumbelina, The Ugly Duckling, The Fir Tree, and The Angel.

This copy is especially appealing in its bright green publisher’s cloth binding, with gilt decoration and blind-stamped ornament typical of attractive Victorian gift books. The full-page color illustrations, together with the numerous Dalziel engravings, give the volume a lively visual charm, making it a desirable example of nineteenth-century Andersen publishing for both collectors of fairy tales and Victorian illustrated books.

The author: Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875) was the Danish author whose fairy tales became among the most famous and enduring works in world literature. His stories combine tenderness, imagination, melancholy, moral insight, and poetic simplicity, often giving voice to children, animals, toys, flowers, and humble objects. Tales such as The Ugly Duckling, The Little Mermaid, The Emperor’s New Clothes, The Snow Queen, and The Steadfast Tin Soldier have become part of the shared literary imagination of childhood.

The translator: H. W. Dulcken, Ph.D. was a prolific nineteenth-century translator and editor, especially remembered for his English versions of Andersen’s fairy tales. His translations helped introduce Andersen’s work to a broad English-speaking readership during the Victorian period and appeared in numerous illustrated editions for children and families.

The illustrators: The Brothers Dalziel were among the most important wood engravers of the Victorian era. Their workshop produced engravings after many leading artists of the period and supplied illustrations for some of the most beautifully printed books of the nineteenth century. Their work here adds a classic Victorian visual setting to Andersen’s tender and imaginative stories.