1885 First Edition - The Poetic of the Rose, Ros Rosarum by E.V.B.

Author: “E. V. B.” (Eleanor Vere Boyle).
Title: Ros Rosarum ex Horto Poetarum: Dew of the Ever-Living Rose. Gathered from the Poets’ Gardens of Many Lands.
Publisher: London, Elliot Stock, 1885. First Edition.
Language: Text in English with passages in several languages including Latin, Greek, and others drawn from European poetry.
Size: 7.5 × 5 inches.
Pages: xxvi, 274 pages, followed by publisher’s advertisements.
Binding: Fine binding, finely bound in full red morocco with raised bands, gilt floral ornaments in compartments, and gilt lettering to the spine. Decorative marbled paper panels set within the boards in a geometric onlay design. The binding is unsigned but executed in a refined late nineteenth-century style. Top edge gilt; remaining edges untrimmed. Marbled endpapers. Under a protective removable mylar cover.
Content: Near fine content (bright, tight and clean).A very well-preserved copy. Pages clean overall with occasional light toning. Deckled edges retained. The inner text block remains solid and attractive, with the natural irregularity of the deckle edges visible as issued. An elegant example of a carefully bound Victorian literary anthology.
Illustrations: Illustrated throughout with numerous charming black-and-white vignettes and decorative wood-engraved designs depicting roses, cherubs, and ornamental floral motifs integrated into the typography.

Estimate: (USD 250–400).

The book: Ros Rosarum ex Horto Poetarum is a delightful Victorian anthology devoted entirely to the poetic symbolism of the rose. Drawing from the gardens of many literatures and centuries, the compiler gathers verses, quotations, and reflections celebrating the flower that has long stood as one of poetry’s most enduring emblems of beauty, love, devotion, and transience. The selections range widely, from classical and biblical references to medieval and Renaissance poetry and onward to more modern European voices. The text is arranged thematically and geographically, exploring how different cultures and literary traditions have invoked the rose in their verse.

Beyond its literary interest, the volume possesses a distinctive artistic charm. The pages are enlivened with numerous decorative wood-engraved illustrations and ornamental initials that frame the poetry with a delicate floral aesthetic. Together with the refined typography and thoughtful arrangement of the material, the book reflects the late Victorian taste for beautifully produced literary gift books.

The author: “E. V. B.” was Eleanor Vere Boyle (1825–1916), an English writer, illustrator, and translator known for her literary anthologies and elegant illustrated books. Boyle possessed a deep appreciation for classical literature, poetry, and symbolism, and many of her works explore the cultural meanings attached to flowers, mythology, and poetic tradition. Her compilations were admired for their scholarly sensitivity combined with a refined artistic sensibility, making them both intellectual and decorative volumes suited to the cultivated Victorian reader.