Laus Veneris

[London]: Golden Cockerel Press, 1948. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Near fine. Buckland-Wright, John. One of 750 copies, quarto size, 30 pp., with prospectus. Algernon Charles Swinburne (1837-1909) was a part of the Pre-Raphaelite circle which included Dante Gabriel Rossetti, at times with a "medievalising strain" inspired by Edward Burne-Jones; at one point Swinburne met William Morris which may have had an additional influence on his work.

In this work Swinburne "explores the relationship between the femme fatale and the tragic lover"; speaking through the figure of the Knight, who is "doomed to live forever in the Venus mountain, with his goddess-love: the tragic aspect of the legend comes from the knight's belief that he has lost God's grace; thus although he gains his love, he conceives of this as a sin" (n.b., above info from Wiki and an article by Siobhan Lam, Brown University, 2006, on "The Victorian Web").

With lovely wood engravings by John Buckland-Wright (1897-1954), who was born in New Zealand and moved to England at a young age; initially a student of architecture he instead decided to pursue a career in art. He worked primarily with illustrating private press books, many for the Golden Cockerel Press; his "naturally elegant style, coupled with his abiding interest in the female form, created a distinctive and sensuous style" (n.b., quote from the web site of Brier Hill Gallery).

___DESCRIPTION: Bound in quarter purple cloth with marbled paper over boards, gilt lettering and publisher's device on the spine, top edge gilt, fore- and bottom edges uncut, illustrated title page, eleven total wood-engravings including the frontispiece; Perpetua type on mould-made paper, quarto size (10" by 6.5"), pagination: [1]-28 [1, blank], [1, colophon], limited edition of 750 copies, this no. 285. Loosely laid in is the prospectus, a single sheet measuring 9 3/4" by 6 1/4", the title page on the recto, one illustration and information on the verso.

___CONDITION: Near fine overall, the marbled paper sides clean (with some light rubbing on the back board), straight corners without rubbing, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, the interior clean and bright, and entirely free of prior owner markings; the cloth on the spine lightly sunned with a hint of wear at the head and tail. The prospectus very good, with light toning, the original mailing fold and minor overall wear.

___CITATION: Cockalorum no. 178.

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