In exceptional condition

Opie, Iona and Peter & Hassall, Joan (Illus.)~ The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book

FIRST UK PRINTING : The Clarendon Press, Oxford : 1955

The First UK Printing published by The Clarendon Press, Oxford in 1955. 8vo., black cloth lettered, with decorative borders and cat device in gilt to spine; together in the unclipped pictorial dustwrapper (21s. net) printed in red and black with images of blackbirds flying out of a pie and a woman hanging washing; profusely illustrated in black and white with 600 black and white inset illustrations throughout. The BOOK is in near Fine condition, aside from some very light rubbing to the spine tips and very light offsetting to the end-papers, clean and bright internally; The WRAPPER also near-fine, save for some very slight darkening to spine and spotting to the folds; one small dark scratch to the lower panel. The wrapper is protected in a removable Brodart archival cover. First edition, first printing. An assembly of some 800 rhymes and ditties, compiled over a period of ten years and including amongst them infant jingles, riddles, catches, tongue trippers, baby games, toe names, maxims, alphabets, counting rhymes, prayers and lullabies. Examples of the illustrations include Thomas Bewick's engravings, and illustrations from chapbooks and toy books of the 18th and early 19th centuries plus 150 additional woodcut illustrations by Joan Hassall. "Our hope", the compilers write in their introduction "is that nursery rhymes will continue, as they always have been, to be passed on in the home, and our endeavour has been to produce a book which, while pleasing the young, will not be entirely without friends amongst senior members of the family." Very scarce as a first UK printing in such exceptional condition.

BINDING: Hardcover
CONDITION: Near Fine
JACKET: Near Fine