Search Results: Authors starting with V from Swan's Fine Books

1780. No binding. Near fine. van Rijn, Rembrandt. Single etching printed to recto only, plate margins: about 4.5" by 3.5" A late 18th-century restrike, likely by Claude-Henri Watelet (1718-1786) of Dutch master, Rembrandt van Rijn's (1606-1669) etching, "Abraham Caressing (Isaac) Benjamin". While producing a body of work that continues to be treasured 400 years after his lifetime, Rembrandt experienced a great deal of loss in his personal life, losing three children in infancy and his beloved wife, Saskia, after the birth of their fourth child - the only one to survive to adulthood. The look of quiet sadness in this etching on the face of Abraham perhaps echoes some of that loss experienced by Rembrandt, while the face of the child shows only joy at being so closely held by his father. Rembrandt's work varies greatly, an aspect that sets him apart from many of his contemporaries. His work included biblical scenes, such as that seen in this work, but was not limited in that respect. He worked in… Read More

San Francisco: Grabhorn-Hoyem, 1970. Limited Edition. No binding. Fine. One of 300 copies, small quarto size, 36 pp. A charming story about Florence Nightingale's pet owl, written by her sister and published in a highly limited edition in about 1855 for private distribution. This second edition was edited by San Francisco bookseller David Magee and published on the 150th anniversary of Florence Nightingale's birth. Frances Parthenope Verney (1819-1890), born Frances Parthenope Nightingale, sister to the renowned Florence Nightingale, wrote this story of the life and death of Florence's pet owl, Athena, in order to cheer Florence who was on a sickbed in Scutari. Illustrated with drawings by Lady Verney. A set of unbound sheets, purchased by a local San Francisco binder who never got around to binding it. ___DESCRIPTION: Title page has vignette in sepia tones of Florence holding Athena perched on her hand with wings outstretched, additional charming illustrations throughout the text which are… Read More

London: A. & C. Black, Ltd, 1931. First Edition. Hardcover. Near fine. Outhwaite, Ida Rentoul. First UK edition, folio size, 128 pp., in a custom binding. Ida Rentoul Outhwaite (1888-1960) is likely one of the best-known Australian illustrators during the "Golden Age of Illustration"; her style has been compared to that of Arthur Rackham, "though lacking his sinister wildness". Called "the master of dreamlike black and white", she "often drew sea-foam, moonshine, [and] transparent insect wings" (n.b., quotes from an article in "The Sydney Morning Herald" published 15 February, 1986). This work with sixteen delicate full-page colour plates by Outhwaite and numerous black-and-white drawings throughout. When we acquired this volume the binding was too compromised to salvage, accordingly we had it custom bound by a professional (name available upon request) in half-leather and changeable silk, a binding worthy of the artwork. Note that this is the first edition printed in the UK; a deluxe edition… Read More

(Turin): Printed by Vincenzo Bona for Editions Glenat, 1991. Hardcover. Fine. Viala, Pierre; Vermorel, Victor. Folio size, 167 pp., in French. All oenophiles revel in the beauty not just of the wine sparkling in the glass, but in the delicate vines and glowing fruit; to be in a vineyard, surrounded by the lush vines, is a delight to the senses. Wine has been a source of joy since ancient times, with grapes and grapevines often being featured in artwork. However, it was in the nineteenth century that the science of ampelography turned decidedly serious, as pests and diseases such as phylloxera began ravaging vineyards, and so a precise classification was needed to determine which species and varietals would be resistant. This edition reproduces seventy of the plates from the original seven-volume "Ampélographie", published by Professor of Viticulture Pierre Viala (1859-1936) and industrialist Victor Vermorel (1848-1927) from 1901-1909; it focuses on the "principaux cépages" of France, narrowing in… Read More

[San Francisco]: [The Grabhorn Press, 1922], 1922. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Very Good. Sinel, Joseph. One of 210 copies, quarto size, [19] pp., inscribed by the printer Ed Grabhorn. Francois Villon (b. 1431, disappeared from view 1463), remains the best-known French poet of the late Middle Ages. Much of his life remains conjecture, but records show him involved in various forms of mayhem: murder, thievery, and other forms of criminal behavior. Many of the stories from these days have made their way into his poetry, which is sprinkled with mysteries and hidden jokes, "peppered with the slang of the time and the underworld subculture in which Villon moved" (n. b., from Wikipedia). This copy has a variant binding not recorded in Heller and Magee, bound in full leather with the title on the front in gilt. Additionally, this copy is inscibed by Ed Grabhorn on the front free endpaper as follows: "To Eddie Sherman / who helped me on / these books / E Grabhorn". One of the Fifty Best Books of 1922.… Read More

Paris: Gibert Jeune Librairie d'Amateurs, 1937. Limited Edition. Vellum. Fine. Dubout, [Albert]. No. 131 of 3000, twelvemo size, 173 pp., in French. Francois Villon (b. 1431, disappeared from view 1463), remains the best-known French poet of the late Middle Ages. Much of his life remains conjecture, but records show him involved in various forms of mayhem: murder, thievery, and other forms of criminal behavior. Many of the stories from these days have made their way into this poetry, which is sprinkled with mysteries and hidden jokes, "peppered with the slang of the time and the underworld subculture in which Villon moved" (n. b., from Wikipedia). French cartoonist and illustrator Albert Dubout (1905-1976) has captured the spirit of Villon to perfection in the sixty illustrations for this edition of Villon's work; a lovely, custom-bound version of the works of Villon. ___DESCRIPTION: Full vellum with yapped edges, spine with hand-lettering and a small hand-painted vignette of a man's head which… Read More

Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1993. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/near fine. First printing, oblong quarto size, 481 pp. In this volume, "Joseph Viscomi drastically revises our understanding of William Blake as he explores the technology behind the Illuminated Books. By using facsimiles created in his own studio, Viscomi, an experienced printmaker, offers the most complete explanation of how the illuminated plates were made, how Blake's techniques compared to other eighteenth-century print technologies, and how the plates were printed and the impressions colored" (n.b., from dust jacket flap). By Joseph Viscomi, Associate Professor of English at the University of North Carolina at Chapel HIll, and the author of several other works on William Blake. ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in full blue cloth, gilt lettering stamped on the spine on a stamped navy blue "label", grey endpapers, replete with illustrations, most black-and-white with a small section in full colour, mostly showing examples of… Read More

Berlin: Ullstein & Co, 1910. Hardcover. Good +. Six volumes (complete), quarto size, in German. German historian Julius von Pflugk-Harttung (1848-1919), best known as an authority on Papal and mediaeval history, wrote this expansive six-volume set on the history of art around the world, copiously illustrated with photographs, maps, and facsimiles, some in colour and some in black-and-white, throughout each volume; a gorgeous set expounding the author's interpretations of significant world events, art, and architecture. The set includes: "Altertum" (ca. 1909), "Mittelalter" (1909), "Der Orient" (1910), "Neuzeit 1500-1650" (ca. 1909), "Neuzeit, Das Politische Zerialter 1650-1815" (ca. 1908), "Neusiz seit 1815" (ca. 1908). ___DESCRIPTION: Full white cloth, illustration in black with gilt lettering, ruled borders, and stars on the front board, gilt lettering on the spine, all edges stained black, dark blue endpapers with all-over star pattern in gilt, title page in orange and black, all volumes with… Read More

Norwalk, Connecticut: The Easton Press, 2004. Leather bound. Fine. Large octavo size, 349 pp., signed by Vonnegut. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (1922-2007) wrote across a broad spectrum; from "widely satirical novels" to fantasy and science fiction, Vonnegut had a message to deliver: the "horrors and ironies of 20th-century civilization" (n.b., quotes from the online Encyclopedia Britannica). His career spanned more than five decades, during which he would write fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and five nonfiction works. This work, "Welcome to the Monkey House", is "a collection of Kurt Vonnegut's shorter works. Originally printed in publications as diverse as 'The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction' and 'The Atlantic Monthly', these superb stories share Vonnegut's audacious sense of humor and extraordinary range of creative vision" (n.b., quote from the web site of Worlds Without End). One of the Collector's Edition publications by The Easton Press, signed by Vonnegut on… Read More

Norwalk, Connecticut: The Easton Press, 2003. Leather bound. Fine. Large octavo size, 334 pp., signed by Kurt Vonnegut, with Easton Press COA and "Note" Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (1922-2007) wrote across a broad spectrum; from "widely satirical novels" to fantasy and science fiction, Vonnegut had a message to deliver: the "horrors and ironies of 20th-century civilization" (n.b., quotes from the online Encyclopedia Britannica). His career spanned more than five decades, during which he would write fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and five nonfiction works. This work, "The Sirens of Titan", was Vonnegut's second novel, originally published in 1959. Considered a "comic" science fiction novel, "it involves issues of free will, omniscience, and the overall purpose of human history...Much of the story revolves around a Martian invasion of Earth" (n.b., quote from Wiki). One of the Collector's Edition publications by The Easton Press, signed by Vonnegut on the page tipped onto the… Read More

Norwalk, Connecticut: The Easton Press, 2004. Leather bound. Fine. Large octavo size, 289 pp., signed by Vonnegut. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (1922-2007) wrote across a broad spectrum; from "widely satirical novels" to fantasy and science fiction, Vonnegut had a message to deliver: the "horrors and ironies of 20th-century civilization" (n.b., quotes from the online Encyclopedia Britannica). His career spanned more than five decades, during which he would write fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and five nonfiction works. This work, "God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater", was Vonnegut's fifth novel, and both introduces characters which would be encountered in "Slaughterhouse Five" as well as bringing together "[s]everal...of Vonnegut's continuing themes" (n.b., quote from Wiki). One of the Collector's Edition publications by The Easton Press, signed by Vonnegut on the page tipped onto the title page; loosely laid in is the Easton Press COA and the publisher's "Note". ___DESCRIPTION:… Read More

(Wakefield, West Yorkshire): Fleece Press (Simon Lawrence), 1985. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. Reddick, Peter. One of 250 copies, twelvemo size, 29 pp. Per the "Publisher's Note", "Vyvyan Richards' essay was first printed in 1937 and is the personal story of his friendship with T.E. Lawrence, with whom he planned to set up a private press...." Providing a fascinating glimpse into the life of someone who continues to be of interest almost one hundred years later, the essay begins thus: "In my third year at Jesus College, Oxford, it was reported that there was a queer stranger among us, who walked solitary at all hours of the night in the still quadrangles of the college..." Published by the Fleece Press, run by Simon Lawrence, who became entranced with the art of printing when he "walked through the door of the Whittington workshop in April 1980" (n.b., from the web site of the Press). It has been called "The highest quality private publishing firm in the country" by Paul Johnson (The… Read More