Cloth binding for Cowper’s ‘Poetical Works’

Unsigned

[1881]

Cloth binding with lacquered chromolithographic insert.

7¾ x 5 inches

This splendidly turgid design exemplifies the tendency to over-decoration that is typical of the mid-nineteenth century, and must have looked old-fashioned at the time of issue when the style of Arts and Crafts was the dominant aesthetic. One of a series, it typifies the publishers’ cheap, over-laden books for a mass-audience. [Commentary continues below.]

Scan and text by Simon Cooke [Click on image to enlarge it, and mouse over the text for links.]

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