One of just 100 copies issued signed by the illustrator John Austen

Thornley, George [Trans.] & Austen, John [Illus.] ~ Daphnis & Chloe : The Large Paper Edition of Only 100 Copies Signed By The Illustrator

First UK Printing : Geoffrey Bles, London : 1923

The First UK Printing published by Geoffrey Bles, London in 1923. Folio., publisher's vellum-backed blue buckram boards, spine titled and ruled in gilt with date to foot; upper edge gilt, else untrimmed; with frontis and a further 11 plates in full colour, all tipped on to textured blue paper with double borders; title vignette and another 9 black and white illustrations direct to page, including some full page, as well as head and tail pieces; the text printed on Abbey Mills watermarked paper; The BOOK a beautiful, clean copy, with slight toning to the untrimmed fore-edge, a couple of odd spots internally, and the spotting occasionally encroaching onto the outer margin of the page edges towards the second half of the text, but the plates remain clean ; vellum a trifle mottled and marked as inevitably encountered ; the cloth lightly bumped at corners, but otherwise an exceptional example of a scarce work, which was issued without wrapper. The book is protected in a removable Mylar cover. The Limited edition with 'Large Paper Edition of 100 Copies / This is No. 63' written in ink by John Austen's flowing hand to one of the endpapers, above his equally flowing signature. The story of Daphnis and Chloe is one of disputed authorship. Written during the time of the Roman Empire, its authorship is attributed to the Greek sophist Longus, but even today little is known about this writer's life. The first translation has been traced to a French edition, published in 1559, and it appeared in English shortly after, in 1587. The story follows a young boy and a young girl, each abandoned at birth, who are adopted by a goatherd and a shepherd, respectively, and grow up together, herding their step-parents' flocks and eventually falling in love. Becoming separated, abducted and beaten, they eventually find their way back to each other. The tale went on to inspire a number of other stories, including the 'Aminta' of Tasso and Alan Ramsay's 'Gentle Shepherd'. It is widely considered to be the first pastoral prose romance. The text is here accompanied by a series of (often erotic) plates designed by John Austen. Austen was born in 1886, and his early artworks were undoubtedly Beardsleyesque in style. The illustrations provided here lean more towards the Art Deco in design, which were carried out towards the middle of his long career as a designer and engraver. Exceedingly scarce in this deluxe edition. I can trace only one other copy at auction within the last 30 years.

BINDING: Hardcover
CONDITION: Very Good ++