1890 Rare Victorian Book - The Pilgrim’s Progress Illustrated by Thomas Dalziel
An attractive and uncommon late-Victorian edition of John Bunyan’s enduring allegory, extensively illustrated by Thomas Dalziel and preserved in its striking original pictorial red cloth binding.
Author: John Bunyan. With a memoir of the author by H. W. Dulcken, Ph.D. Illustrated by Thomas Dalziel.
Title: The Pilgrim’s Progress from This World to That Which Is to Come.
Publisher: London, Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, Warwick House, Salisbury Square, E.C.; New York and Melbourne. Undated, late 19th century (1890).
Edition: A New Edition, with a Memoir of the Author by H. W. Dulcken, Ph.D.
Language: Text in English.
Pages: xix-304 pages.
Size: 9" x 6".
Binding: Attractive good to very good original pictorial red cloth binding, richly decorated and lettered in gilt and black, with a striking scene of Christian and an angel to the front board and further gilt decoration to the spine. Binding firm, with some rubbing and wear to the extremities, including light fraying at the head of the spine, as shown. All edges gilt. Protected in a removable mylar cover.
Content: Very good content, bright, tight and generally clean. Endpapers and inner hinges are worn but remain tight, as shown, with some surface wear and traces of former adhesion to the front pastedown.
Illustrations: Illustrated throughout with one hundred black-and-white illustrations by Thomas Dalziel, including a full-page frontispiece and numerous full-page and text illustrations.
Estimate: USD 150–175.
The book:
The Pilgrim’s Progress, first published in 1678, is one of the most influential works of English religious literature. Written as an allegorical dream narrative, it follows Christian on his journey from the City of Destruction toward the Celestial City, encountering such enduring figures and episodes as Evangelist, the Slough of Despond, Vanity Fair and the Valley of the Shadow of Death. The second part follows the journey of Christian’s wife Christiana and their children.
This handsome illustrated edition combines Bunyan’s celebrated text with a memoir by H. W. Dulcken and one hundred illustrations by Thomas Dalziel. Its vivid original pictorial binding, extensive illustration and well-preserved interior make it a particularly appealing example of the richly produced Victorian editions through which Bunyan’s classic continued to reach new generations of readers.
The author:
John Bunyan (1628–1688) was an English writer, preacher and religious dissenter, best remembered for The Pilgrim’s Progress. Written in direct, vivid prose and drawing deeply upon biblical imagery, the work became one of the most widely read books in the English language and has remained continuously in print for centuries.
The illustrator:
Thomas Dalziel (1823–1906) belonged to the celebrated Dalziel family of Victorian engravers and illustrators. The Dalziel Brothers were among the most important figures in nineteenth-century British book illustration, working with many leading artists of the period. The numerous illustrations in this edition give Bunyan’s allegorical world a particularly lively and accessible visual dimension.