Paradise Lost [and] Paradise Regained by Milton, John; Galanis, D. (Illustrator); Simons, Anna (Initial Letters) - 1931

(London): The Cresset Press (Printed at the Shakespeare Head Press), 1931. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Near Fine. One of 195 copies (plus 10 on vellum), folio size, 550 pp. The final work printed by The Cresset Press when it was functioning as a printer of fine press books, thought by many to be its finest, and printed by Bernard Newdigate at the Shakespeare Head Press. With twenty wood-engravings by D. Galanis (16 full-page, plus head- and tail-pieces in each volume) and the title-page and initial letters by Anna Simons. From the second edition, revised and augmented by the Author, printed at London by S. Simmons in 1674.

___DESCRIPTION: Bound in full cream buckram with gilt lettering on the spines, fore- and bottom edges uncut, illustrations throughout the text, limitation statement for each volume at the end; note that this set has been matched, with Volume I being no. 130 of 195 copies and Volume II being no. 186 of 195; we surmise that the mis-match of the numbers occured at the time of publication, for we know what became of the complementary copies; in addition the aging/condition is exactly the same for this set; folio size (approximately 14" tall), pagination: Volume I, (i)-xii, (1)-442, colophon; Volume II, (i-vi), (1)-88, colophon.

Laid into the front of Volume II is an interesting piece of ephemera: a small squre of paper, printed in red with "I set / Paradise Lost & Regained / Nos. [186 hand-written in black ink] / Heffer". The hand-written number of 186 matches exactly the hand-written number on the colophon page of Volume II. Both volumes are housed in a slipcase covered in brown laid paper with a large watermark bearing the insignia of Rome (the wolf suckling Romulus and Remus), with "Roma" beneath, the slipcase has paper labels on the front and spine.

___CONDITION: Both volumes are near fine, with strong, square text blocks, solid hinges, corners gently bumped and not rubbed, the interiors are clean and bright, and the set is entirely free of prior owner markings other than some light former bookseller markings in pencil on the front endpapers of Volume I. The slipcase is near fine with just a hint of rubbing to several of the joints.

___CITATION: Ransom p. 8.

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