1926 Rare Luxurious Binding by Riviere - The Compleat Angler
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Author: Izaak Walton and Charles Cotton.
Title: The Compleat Angler.
Publisher: London, John Lane The Bodley Head Limited, [1926].
Language: Text in English.
Size: 7" x 5".
Pages: lxxxix-454 pages + The Anglers’ Calendar.
Binding: Attractive and very good full dark green crushed morocco leather by Rivière, Bath. Gilt spine with raised bands, featuring elaborate angling-themed tooling in compartments (fish, rod, creel). Covers with wide gilt decorative borders, inner gilt dentelles, and central gilt piscatorial device (Piscatoribus Sacrum 1674) (hinges fine, overall slightly worn, soiled and scuffed - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover. All edges gilt. Blue floral patterned silk endpapers.
Content: Very good content (bright, tight and clean, rare light foxing - as shown).
Illustrations: Profusely illustrated throughout by Edmund H. New with intricate woodcut-style in-text illustrations and chapter headings, as well as photogravure portraits of the authors under tissue guard.
Estimate: (USD 500–1000).
The book: A luxurious edition of The Compleat Angler, the most famous book ever written on fishing, and a classic of English literature. This edition, edited by Richard Le Gallienne, combines textual scholarship with aesthetic excellence, presenting the work in a richly illustrated and finely bound format. With its artistic illustrations by Edmund H. New and its high-quality craftsmanship by Bayntun, this is a magnificent homage to Walton and Cotton’s enduring pastoral celebration of angling and friendship.
The authors: Izaak Walton (1593–1683) was an English writer best known for The Compleat Angler, first published in 1653 and later expanded with contributions from his friend Charles Cotton (1630–1687). Walton's work is celebrated not only as a fishing manual but as a meditation on rural life, tranquility, and camaraderie. Cotton’s contribution in the later editions focused on fly fishing for trout in northern England.
The illustrator: Edmund H. New (1871–1931) was a British illustrator associated with the Arts and Crafts movement. Known for his meticulous line drawings, New contributed illustrations to works by John Ruskin and William Morris. His style harmonizes perfectly with Walton’s 17th-century prose, enriching this edition with a distinctively refined visual charm.