In a handsome full morocco binding

Maitland, Frederic William ~ The Life and Letters of Leslie Stephen

Duckworth & Co., London : 1906

The First UK printing published by Duckworth & Co., London in 1906. Large 8vo., sometime rebound by an unknown binder in full brown morocco, attractively and elaborately decorated with inlaid red morocco hexagon to front board, borders, intertwining circles and other devices in gilt; spine with five raised bands, lettered in gilt direct with subject's name to second compartment, author's to fourth compartment, and the others with decorative borders and gilt stamps; date in gilt to foot; embossed in blind to lower board with duplicate circle motif and borders; upper edge gilt, else untrimmed; decorative red and gold headbands; marbled endpapers (a small scuff to the front and rear end-papers) and morocco turn-ins with corner pieces, borders, and names such as Johnson, Pope, Eliot, Swift and Hobbes in gilt; title in black and red; photogravure frontis of Stephen, taken from a painting by G. F. Watts, R.A.; and a further four portraits throughout appearing behind mounted tissue guards; The BOOK a beautiful copy in the elaborate binding; with renewed endpapers and some light spotting and browning, mostly affecting the edges and prelims; frontis gutter discretely reinforced with archival tissue to the verso. A wonderful copy of the biography of Leslie Stephen, the multi-faceted English author, critic, historian, biographer, mountaineer, and Ethical movement activist who helped to found the 'Dictionary of National Biography'. Stephen was also the father of Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell, and here Woolf contributes impressions of her father from pages 474-6. These contributions represent her first appearance in book form. Another interesting contributor is Thomas Hardy, who provides a series of recollections involving Stephen, as well as a poem, 'The Schreckhorn', to pages 277-8. Frederic William Maitland FBA (1850 – 1906) is widely-regarded today as being one of the most distinguished historians of his generation. A wonderful copy of this thoughtful biography by a close friend of the subject.

BINDING: Hardcover
CONDITION: Near Fine