Early Printing in America; Being a reprint from the American Encyclopedia of Printing, edited by J. Luther Ringwald and published in the city of Philadelphia in 1871 by Ringwalt, J. Luther - 1921

San Francisco: Edwin & Robert Grabhorn, 1921. Limited Edition. Wraps. Very good +. One of 250 copies, octavo size, 16 pp. We all know the story of the Grabhorn brothers arrival in San Francisco on "December 24, 1919, several weeks in advance of their equipment, which has been sent on from Indianapolis by freight" (Magee p. 12). Edwin and Robert became one of the largest forces for fine printing not only in San Francisco, but both nationally and internationally, printing imaginative, quality fine press work for the next several decades, and raising the standard for all who would follow.

This relatively scarce item (there is one other online as of this writing) was printed by the Grabhorn brothers in September of 1921, less than two years after arriving in San Francisco, "for complimentary distribution"; per the Magee bibliography, it was the fifth and last of "The Printing Press" series. Here is presented an extract from the copius "American Encyclopedia of Printing" which was written and published by J. Luther Ringwalt in 1871, and which contained "over 1,600 entries and 200 illustrations to educate its audience about the history, machinery, tools, process, and products of printing" (n.b., quote from the web site of The Library Company of Philadelphia).

___DESCRIPTION: Bound in evergreen laid paper wraps, white paper label to the front wrap with black lettering and a black decorative border, stitched binding, title, caption title, and one decorative initial printed in black and red, caption title of quotation in red, one decorative headpiece, decorative rule at the top of each page of text; handset Oxford type, paper Glaslan, octavo size (8.5" by 5.5"), pagination: [i-ii], [1]-13, [14] a quote "To the Reader"; limited edition of 250 copies, unnumbered, with "some copies in terra-cotta boards" (Magee).

___CONDITION: Better than very good, the wraps clean, the label on the front wrap unrubbed, the stitched binding strong, the interior clean and bright, and entirely free of prior owner markings; we would have rated near fine except for a separation of the wrap at the fold above the stitching, a very small area of loss at the tail of the crease, and light overall wear to the edges of the wraps.

___CITATION: Grabhorn Bibliography no. 30.

___POSTAGE: International customers, please note that additional postage may apply as the standard does not always cover costs; please inquire for details.

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