1000 PRACTICAL SHOW CARD LAYOUTS ..and Color Sketches by H.C. Martin

Published by The Signs Of The Times Publishing Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, 1928. First edition. Hardcover, red pebbled cloth with embossed white printing on the front cover, 10.75" x 8", 240 pages, illustrated with 93 full page b&w plates of various show card examples. VERY GOOD CONDITION: the covers have a touch of light wear to the corner-tips and spine-ends, internally a penciled 1929 former owners name and address on the ffep, light wear to the fore-edge from thumbing, some tiny spotting here and there otherwise, tight, bright, clean and unmarked, a bright and solid copy of this scarce 1928 trade publication.

The definitive book on the old school art of hand lettered sign writing, invaluable to anyone in the graphic arts. A fascinating collection of practical advice and sample sign layouts, this H.C. Martin scarce first edition is one of the most influential sign writing books ever published, a testament to the power of visual promotion it's filled with concepts, ideas, layouts, graphic elements, lettering styles, and instructs the show card writer how to advertise their services and add value to their business.

Show cards are advertising signs that are hand lettered and placed in shop windows or near displays to promote retail sales or events. An offshoot of sign painting, show card writing proliferated in the late 19th century and quickly became the marketing tool of choice. Show card writing became a lucrative profession, with trade schools opening and instructional books published in the early 20th century. Interestingly, show cards are ephemeral and rarely preserved and thus largely absent from the cultural record. Show card manuals are thus an invaluable resource for understanding the practice of show card writing. Show card manuals educate the student on all aspects of the industry, from the proper materials to letter formation, color schemes, and layout. Show card writing remained a significant aspect of the sign painting trade well into the twentieth century, despite technological advances in printing these signs evoke a certain nostalgia and humanity that computerized, machine made signs can never inspire.

Harold C. Martin (b. 1890-?) Display sign artist, author, creator of the art deco alphabet Modern Thick and Thin.

Fifteen Issues of THE BIJUTSU KENKYU - The JOURNAL of ART STUDIES, 1939-1940.

The Bijutsu Kenkyu was, and still is, an important journal for the study of Japanese and Asian Art, and European and American art as it relates to Asian Art. The early issues are rather hard to find.

The issues in this lot are Numbers XCIV - CVIII (94 - 108). Fifteen issues. Published by The Institute of Art Research, Tokyo, Japan, 1939-1940.

Wrappers / Softcovers, 9x12 inches (22x30 cm), approximately 40 pages of text with in text b&w illustrations and 10 plates per issue (the number of text pages and plates does vary from issue to issue). Each issue came with a thin glassine overwrap, these have been removed from about half of the issues.

ILLUSTRATED with PLATES, including one tipped in color plate at the beginning of each issue.

Text in JAPANESE, but the rear wrapper of each issue gives a brief English description of the plates within.

These copies were presented "With the Compliments of PROFESSOR YUKIO YASHIRO", with his presentation card laid on top of the first issue. (Yukio Yashiro, b.1890 d.1975, was a Japanese academic, art historian, Botticelli scholar and Director of the Institute for Art Research in Tokyo. - Wikipedia.)

GOOD Condition: The glassine overwrap was removed from about half the issues, the glassine on the other issues has yellowed with age (it can easily be removed if desired); the spines have some wear and chipping; there is light dampstaining to the wrappers and on some of the inner pages of a few issues; overall the issues remain tight, bright, clean, clear and unmarked. Fifteen presentable copies. Great references.

A sampling of articles in the first few issues: Tthe Technique of Shitogwa (Finger-Drawing); Antonio Fontanesi and His Works in Japan; Panel Paintings of Kichijoten Shrine of Joruriji Temple; Five Hundred Arhats, by Ikeno Taiga; Study on Portraits of Goto Yujo and His Descendants; Study on the Biography of Uragami Gyokudo; Landscape of Four Seasons on Su Tung-P'o's Poems, by Shih-T'ao; Fragment of Wall-Painting of Fukiji Temple; Fragment of Wall-Painting of Fukiji Temple; Yashiro Yukio; Ise Monogatari Painted by Sotatsu.

About the Bijutsu Kenkyu Journal of Art Studies:

Published since 1932, the Bijutsu Kenkyu journal, edited by the Department of Art Research, has published monograms, research notes, explanations of plates, book reviews, exhibition reviews, and materials for art research, primarily pertaining to Japanese and East Asian classical art, but also European and American art that relates to modern and contemporary Japanese art. In its early years it was published monthly, but is now published three times a year.

INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: This lot of 15 issues is heavy and will require substantial additional shipping charges. After placing your order you will be notified of the additional charges and be able to accept or reject them before your payment is processed. Or you can contact us ahead of time to find out the shipping charge to your country. Thanks.

LES TRAGÉDIES D'ESCHYLE. GRAVÉES par Reveil d'Après les Compositions de J. FLAXMAN. (THE TRAGEDIES OF AESCHYLUS. Engraved by Reveil after the Drawings of J. FLAXMAN.)

PARIS: chez AUDOT, Libraire, et chez SUSSE. Printed by Imprimerie F. Chardon Aîné, Paris. Undated, circa (1840).

Copy of Mons Anderson of La Crosse, Wisconsin, with his bookplate on the front pastedown. This was book number 1102 in his personal library. Mons Anderson was a famous and wealthy resident of La Crosse. His house is in the National Register and is known as the Mons Anderson Mansion.

Hardcovers, leather spine and corners, 6.5x9.5 oblong, marbled endpapers. Contains 31 Plates.

Fair Condition: The covers are worn at the edges and corners, the bottom 1 inch of the spine covering is lacking, otherwise the covers are doing their job well; internally, there is foxing throughout but the illustrations are bright and clear. A presentable copy of this scarce work.

1860 HAND PAINTED ILLUMINATED FRONTISPIECE LEAF from a FAMILY BIBLE. This frontispiece leaf was hand painted and illuminated on a blank prelim page of an 1802 BIBLE owned by the HARDY FAMILY of Hampstead, England.

The leaf measures 5.5x 9". It has been disbound but is still sewn at spine together with the 1802 Bible's title page and a few pages of the Bible's Preface. The names, dates, and information on this gorgeous one-of-a-kind leaf are (some words painted legibly large, some almost hidden in the lovely painted ribbons and decorations): JOSEPH HARDY / Born May 16, 1788; MARY CLARKE SOUTHARD / Born May 29, 1790; JOHN FORBES HARDY / Born at Hampstead Oct 24th 1816. / Married June 12 1847 / ROSE (PARSLOP?) (At the bottom right in tiny letters hidden in a colored band) MARIANNE (HAYWARD?) / FECIT (i.e. painted / made by Marianne Hayward) (At the bottom left in tiny letters) 1860. Condition: There is some foxing and toning, but overall the illuminated leaf is gorgeous, and the gold stands out tangibly. The backside of the leaf and the facing title page of the bible are stained and darkened from where the paint bled through. JOHN FORBES HARDY is a relatively obscure ARTIST from HAMPSTEAD, ENGLAND, who was active as a painter from 1847 to 1874. One of his better known works is believed to be of a view of "Hampstead Heath". I do not know, and cannot seem to find out, who the illuminator / painter, Marianne Hayward, is - but someone must know because the work is so lovely. RARE and UNIQUE - an Illuminated Leaf related to HARDY, SOUTHARD and FORBES Families.

HANDWRITTEN LETTER by EDWARD MATTHEW WARD to FRANK GASKELL. Stationery is blind-stamped engraved "Glen Aray Lodge, Windsor". The letter is dated 3rd January 1878. (Ward died just 12 months later, 15 January 1879, a suicide.) Written on a single-fold piece of stationery, making 4 pages. The letter is on 2 pages, the front page and an inner page. The letter reads (as best I can make out): "My Dear Mr. Gaskell Many thanks for the Photo with which I was much pleased and by which I can imagine that the dress must have cut a very good figure in the room & I am glad that my suggestion was of any use to you in the matter. I very much envy you your Roman trip which must have been very enjoyable to you more [especially] in such excellent companionship of Mr. W. Wood who must be so au fait in all that belongs to the Eternal City, and the funeral of the gook King must have been very [impressive] and interesting and a thing to have seen. It is now nearly thirty eight years since I was in Rome, where I remained three years, but I have a most vivid recollection of it & all its glories, & still live in hopes of again seeing it before I die, though at present I see no probability of my being able to enjoy so great a pleasure in [the] future. It must have greatly altered since I was there & I have no doubt in the main for the better, especially in a sanitary point of view, though perhaps not altogether in [picturesqueness], but on one point I am sure it must have done so & that is in its government which when I was there was simply diabolical. I hope that we shall have the pleasure of seeing your father down here during his stay in London and immediately on receiving your letter yesterday I wrote a letter off to him at Wootton to be forwarded & I have no doubt that he will receive it tomorrow. I shall however send him a line to the Reform Club to make matters more sure, as I am most anxious for him to come down here and see the Windsor Tapestry Manufactory should he be able to spare the time. Mrs. Ward unites with me in kindest regards to Mrs. Gaskell & the rest of your family circle. & believe me, Yours ever Sincerely, E. M. Ward". CONDITION: The letter has a vertical and horizontal fold, perhaps from being folded to fit into a small envelope. The blank backside has paper remnants, as if the letter had been glued to a mount at some point and later removed. There is a small ink-stamped name on the black backside "K. J. Turner". The writing remains bright, clear and fully legible. Edward Matthew Ward RA (London 14 July 1816 - 15 January 1879) was an English Victorian narrative painter best known for his murals in the Palace of Westminster depicting episodes in British history from the English Civil War to the Glorious Revolution.

DIE BÜCHER-ORNAMENTIK DER RENAISSANCE : Eine Auswahl Stylvoller Titeleinfassungen, Initialen, Leisten, Vignetten und Druckerzeichen Hervorragender Italienischer, Deutscher umd Französischer Officinen aus der Zeit der Fruh renaissance. Nach der eigenen Sammlung Herausgegeben und Erlautert Von A. F. BUTSCH. (ORNAMENTATION of RENAISSANCE BOOKS: A Selection of Printed Ornaments including Stylish Titles, Initial Letters, Borders / Frames, Vignettes, and Excellent Printing

of Italian, German, and French origin from the time of the Early Renaissance. From the personal collection of, and edited and annotated by, A. F. BUTSCH.) Published by G. HIRTH, LEIPZIG, MDCCCLXXVIII (1878). This is Volume I, which stands on its own with its 100 plates. A second volume was published at a later date. Hardcovers, 1/4 leather and marbled paper covered boards, folio

10x14 inches (25x35 cm), 72 pages of text, including descriptions of the plates, and 100 PLATES each printed on its own leaf. The 100 Plates are lovely and a Great Reference to Early Renaissance Printing. Condition: The spine is lacking its leather covering (the spine card covering is still present), the spine folds are worn, the corners are lacking their leather covering, and the marbled paper covered boards are worn through at places along the edges; nonetheless the covers are sturdy and still doing their job; internally nice, the pages are just lightly used, still tight, bright, clean and unmarked. The 100 plates are all present and beautiful. INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: This book is large and heavy and will require substantial additional shipping charges. After placing your order you will be notified of the additional charges and be able to accept or reject them before your payment is processed. Or you can contact us ahead of time to find out the shipping charge to your country. Thanks.

SPRINGFIELD ILLUSTRATED. :Photolithographs by James Dwyer Gill, early Publisher and Art Dealer in Springfield, Massachusetts.

A portfolio of 31 photolithograph plates (of 32 - lacking the last plate), each with a 6.5x8.5 inch image printed on a 11x14 heavy-stock sheet, and each with a protective tissue guard. Below each photolithograph image is printed "JAMES D. GILL. SPRINGFIELD, MASS." on the left side, and "LINOTYPE PRINTING CO., NEW YORK." on the right side. Someone (perhaps James Gill) has hand numbered each plate at the bottom right corner. In addition to the 31 photolithographs there are two introductory text sheets: a Preface sheet and an Index sheet. The plates are loose as issued and are held between a front and a rear cloth covered board. The boards' original string ties are lacking.

Condition: The boards holding the plates have spotting and wear, and are lacking their ties (as noted above), but are original and the gilt on the front board is bright. The two prelim text sheets have edge chips, a few small spots, and one has a two inch closed tear at the top. The 31 lithograph sheets are solid with just a bit of edgewear and a spot here and there (one has a small edge chip) All the sheets are lightly age toned, as normal. A few of the tissue guards are creased and one has tears and is laid-on loose. Most important, the IMAGES OF SPRINGFIELD ARE ALL LOVELY, clean, sharp and clear.

From the Preface sheet:

"This portfolio of thirty-two views [was] taken in the city of Springfield. // In preparation and execution of this work great care has been taken to have it of such excellence as to deserve the unqualified approbation of the most critical. // Judicious selections of subjects were made, embracing singly or in agreeable groups many of the important buildings and points of interest of the locality. The aim being to produce a series of views in every way reliable, whether in respect to fidelity of portraiture, artistic arrangements, or quality of finish. The aim I believe has been obtained. // "Springfield Illustrated" is published to meet a demand for local views of much higher order of artistic merit than have heretofore appeared. The process is that of Photolithotype... // Respectfully, James D. Gill, 1882."

RARE. Copies hardly ever show up for sale. OCLC only lists two holdings, one at the State Library of Massachusetts, and one at the Western Reserve Historical Society Library.

About JAMES DWYER GILL (from the Smithsonian Institution and Frick Collection websites):

******James Dwyer Gill, b.1849 d.1937, was a Springfield, Massachusetts, art dealer, collector, stationer, bookseller, and publisher. He was one of the first dealers to specialize in American art and sold paintings, engravings and photographs. He exhibited work by, among others, Col. James Fairman, Frederick E. Church, James M. Hart, Walter Shirlaw, Edgar M. Ward, J. G. Brown, A. F. Bellows, A. H. Wyant, M. F. H de Haas, Winslow Homer, F. A Bridgman, and George Inness.

He published a number of city "view" books, the most notable being that of his home town, Springfield, Massachusetts, titled: "Springfield, Illustrated", published in 1882.******

INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: This portfolio of plates will require additional shipping charges. After placing your order you will be notified of the charges and be able to accept or reject them before payment is taken. Thanks!

The photographic image is 9.75 x 12.75 inches, mounted on a 11x13.75 inch stiff card mount. Fourteen women are in the photograph, eight of them are named on the backside of the mount. The mount has two holes at the top and one on the bottom, perhaps for hanging with a cord. Printed on the bottom left side is: "G. Waldon Smith", and on the bottom right side is: "Boston, Portland & Old Orchard".

The image is in VERY GOOD condition, some light shorelining to the upper left corner area, overall bright and clear, lovely. The mount is GOOD, with wear at its corners and edges. The mount is slightly bowed.

A previous owner wrote on the backside in pencil "Smith College / circa 1888", but the only woman that I investigated who had a degree mentioned was "Clara Elise von Wettberg" who graduated from Wellesley in 1879. Maybe she then went to Smith College? A couple of the other women whose names I looked into indicated that the date "circa 1888" is probably correct. "Jessie Estelle Kline" was born in 1870 and was married in 1900. Frances Marie Barker married Harvard graduate Hugh Means in 1901, they both were from and returned to Lawrence, Kansas. Miss Margaret Dale Harrison of Philadelphia was listed in the 1898 Philadelphia Blue Book, and she was married in 1899. I could not find another college mentioned, but then again these women had very little mentioned online that I could find, other than the MEN they married. Hmmm.

Whether Smith College or Wellesley, this c.1888 photograph of 14 well heeled college girls is quite a treasure.

L'ART DANS LA DÉCORATION EXTÉRIEURE DES LIVRES - Les Couvertures Illustrées, Les Cartonnages d'Éditeurs, La Reliure d'Art. Par OCTAVE UZANNE.

[ART in the EXTERIOR DECORATION of BOOKS - Illustrated Covers, Publishers' Bindings, Art Bindings. By Octave Uzanne.]

SIGNED and INSCRIBED PRESENTATION COPY. Inscribed on the half-title page by OCTAVE UZANNE to the renowned book collector JAMES CARLETON YOUNG. The inscription reads:

"à James Carleton Young / Un ami des livres dédicacés pour qui bien volontiers J'offre en décoration extérieur de celui-ci la signature de son ami / Octave Uzanne".

(to James Carleton Young / A friend of dedicated books for whom I gladly offer as an exterior decoration of this one the signature of his friend / Octave Uzanne)

PARIS: Société Française d'Editions d'Art / L-Henry May, 1898. LIMITED EDITION of only 1060 copies. This copy is an unnumbered presentation copy.

FINE-BINDING. The original softcover book, including the front and rear wrappers, are bound in fine contemporary hardcovers, 3/4 leather and marbled paper covered boards, five raised spine bands, gilt spine titling, marbled endpapers, and gilt top page edges; 8x10.5 inches, VI, 272 pages.

ILLUSTRATED throughout with examples of decorative artistic covers, bindings and cases.

VERY GOOD condition: The hardcover binding has some scrapes to the leather at the spine ends, spine folds, and corners, but overall the fine-binding is solid and attractive. The bound-in original softcover book is very nice, the pages are lightly toned, as normal, otherwise tight, bright, clean and clear. The personal inscription by Octave Uzanne to James Carleton Young is bright and clear.

A lovely, presentation copy of this rare book that deserves to go from the home of one great collector, James Carleton Young, to another.

You can read all about the amazing French bibliophile, writer and publisher OCTAVE UZANNE on his wikipedia page and many other places on the Internet.

Here is some information about the lesser known Minnesota bibliophile JAMES CARLETON YOUNG (from the Hennepin County Library website):

******James Carleton Young, b.1856 d.1918, was an internationally known Midwest American

book collector. He graduated with an M.A. from Cornell College in 1876, and in 1909 Cornell presented him with its first-ever Doctor of Literature degree. He became wealthy buying and selling mid-west real estate, and used almost all of it to acquire first edition books.

Young collected first editions of both contemporary and non-contemporary authors, often sending the contemporary books to their authors with a request that they inscribe them. In Europe Young was given the title "Le Roi des Livres". Young was named honorary commissioner to the Paris exposition of 1878, elected as one of the three foreign members to the Société Des Amis Des Livres in Paris, awarded the Cross of the Legion of Honor in 1910, made a Fellow to the Royal Geographical Society of London, and received awards from many other important European and American book clubs and societies. The books in his library ultimately numbered in the tens of thousands and required the services of a full-time librarian, bookkeeper, several assistants, catalogers, translators, and agents.

Mounting obstacles to his dream of keeping the collection together and eventually donating it to the Smithsonian forced him to allow it to be auctioned off in installments by the Anderson galleries in New York in 1916. Young took consolation that his books would "pass into the possession of my fellow collectors and enrich hundreds of public and private libraries." He ended up being much better known abroad than in America, and relatively unknown in Minneapolis.******

INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: This book will require additional shipping charges. After placing your order you will be notified of the charges and be able to accept or reject them before payment is taken. Thanks!

STUTTGARTER BÜHNENKUNST: INSZENIERUNGEN der Königlich Württembergischen Hofoper von Werken Mozarts und von Schillings' Mona Lisa, von EMIL GERHAUSER.

(STUTTGART THEATER STAGE ART: the STAGING of Productions by the ROYAL WÜRTTEMBERG COURT OPERA HOUSE of Works by Mozart and of Schillings' Mona Lisa. By Emil Gerhauser.)

Mit den künstlerischen Entwursen der Bühnenausstattung von BERNHARD PANKOK. (With the Artistic Designs by Bernhard Pankok.)

Edited and Published by Wilhelm Meyer-Ilschen, Stuttgart, Germany, 1917. TEXT IN GERMAN.

FIRST and LIMITED EDITION, this being copy number 99 of only 300 copies. An Elaborate and Finely Produced Book featuring the Production of 5 Operas by Mozart and 1 Opera, Mona Lisa, by Max von Schillings. Each was performed at the Hofoper in Stuttgart.

THICK VELLUM COVERED BOARDS with GILT DESIGNS on the front cover and spine, gilt page edges, floral patterned endpapers, 9x12.25 inches (23x31 cm). Pagination: viii, 418 pages.

Beautifully ILLUSTRATED with 7 PHOTOGRAVURES and 45 COLOR LITHOGRAPHIC PLATES of OPERA SETS and COSTUMES. Each plate and photogravure is protected with a patterned tissue guard. There are also many in-text b&w drawings of set designs and staging directions.

GOOD condition, the covers are bowed, lightly soiled, and there is a 1.5 inch split at the top front spine fold; though bowed, these vellum covers are quite attractive; there are some scratches to the gilt page edges; internally, there is some light foxing to the first and last few pages and just a bit here and there throughout, there is a previous owner's signature and the date of 1955 on a blank prelim, there is a small tape ghost on the front free endpaper, the tissue guards are all present but many are creased from the book shutting improperly on the fragile tissue paper, overall the pages are tight, bright, clean, clear and unmarked, and all the photogravures and plates are gorgeous.

About EMIL GERHÄUSER (from Wikipedia): ******Emil Gerhäuser, b. 1868 d. 1917, was a German opera singer and director. Gerhäuser first began law studies at the University of Munich before receiving vocal training as a tenor. In 1890 he made his debut at the Munich Court Opera .In 1909 Gerhäuser moved to Stuttgart, where he became a director at the Hofoper / Court Opera.******

About BERNHARD PANKOK (from Wikipedia): ******Bernhard Pankok (Münster, b. 1872 d. 1943, was a modern German painter, graphic artist, architect, and THEATRICAL DESIGNER. His works are characterized by the transition between Art Nouveau and the International Style. His furniture and book design, such as the catalog of the German section for the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris, have garnered him international recognition. Pankok opened a studio in Munich in 1892 and worked as a freelance artist, graphic designer and illustrator for the magazines Pan and Jugend. He remained in Munich until 1902 and co-founded the Vereinigten Werkstätten für Kunst im Handwerk (United Workshops for Art in Handcraft). In 1902 he moved to Stüttgart, and in 1913 he helped found a local art school, the Stuttgarter Killesberg, and became the its first director. In 1914 he was considered one of the leading artists of the famous Werkbund Exhibition in Cologne. In 1930 he became a foreign member of the MUNICH SECESSION.(In 1933 the National Socialist party began their crusade to bring all forms of artistic expression under their control: a process known as Gleichschaltung . Artists were eventually required to obtain state endorsement for all of their works. Those who were considered degenerate were not allowed to paint, these included members of the Munich Secession. In 1938, the Munich Secession was dissolved as part of the Kulturellen Säuberung / Cultural Cleansing.)******

INTERNATIONAL BUYERS: This book is large and heavy and will require substantial additional shipping charges.

Glossy 8x10" photo of ALMA RUBENS. This is an original publicity / press photo of Alma Rubens, undated but circa 1920. Rubber-stamped on the backside is "ALMA RUBENS / Appearing in / William Fox Photoplays". Written in pencil on the backside, below the rubber-stamped info is: "Keep one or Both for Files". VERY GOOD condition, toning to the edges, some creasing to the corners, a small piece of tape with "Alma Rubens" typed on to it is attached to the bottom white margin.

The photo itself is soft-focus. Printed on the photo in white is "Autrey 10". About ALMA RUBENS (from Wikipedia and IMDB): ******Alma Rubens (1897 - 1931) was an American film actress. Alma Rubens was born Alma Genevieve Reubens in San Francisco, California. She was interested in entertaining at an early age. By the time she was 19 she had become a full-fledged star. Her break came in 1916 in the film Reggie Mixes In (1916). Six more films followed that year, and she won critical acclaim in The Half-Breed (1916). In 1917 she again starred in a box-office smash, The Firefly of Tough Luck (1917). She became a busy young actress with role after role and hit after hit. In 1924, as Mildred Gower, she performed magnificently in The Price She Paid (1924). After a busy 1925, Alma suddenly found it difficult to obtain work, but it was not because her star had suddenly dimmed - it was because of her addiction to heroin. The money she made dwindled away in search of the next high. She was in and out of mental asylums, but it didn't really help much because she was still dabbling in drugs. Weakened by her habit, she died in Los Angeles in 1931, of pneumonia. She was less than a month away from her 34th birthday. Her final two films were two years earlier, Show Boat (1929) and She Goes to War (1929).******

MARIA LANI. Text by JEAN COCTEAU, Max Rambo and Waldemar George.

ILLUSTRATED with 52 PLATES of DRAWINGS, PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES, and a Frontispiece Photograph, of MARIA LANI, the remarkable and unique ARTIST'S MUSE (and some would say Scam Artist) of the late 1920s. The artworks were by many important artists of the period.

PARIS: Editions des Quatre Chemins, 1929. First edition. French Text.

Limited Edition. This is number 78 of 525 copies, likely a "Hors Commerce" copy with "H C" handwritten beside the ink stamped number 78.

Tan wrappers, French folds, burgundy and black titling to the front cover, 9x11 inches (23x28 cm). Pagination: [2] Half-Title and Limitation Page, [6] Frontispiece Plate and Introductory Pages, 7-21 Text Essays, 51 numbered PLATES each printed on its own leaf, [2] List of Plates and Colophon Page.

The 51 artist plates are of artworks (paintings, drawings, sculptures) of Maria Lani by 51 noted artists of the period. The artists include Bonnard, Braque, Chagall, Chirico, Cocteau, Matisse, Léger, Man Ray, Marval, Orloff, Max Jacob, Dufy, Rouault, Soutine, among many others. A page at the rear lists all the 51 artists.

CONDITION: The covers are toned, have some edgewear including some small closed tears, a few creases from handling, and most notably a well-worn spine that is now taped (not an uncommon feature as the issue is known for its weak glue binding). Internally, the pages are lightly toned, there is an approximately 1/4 inch piece of binding tape along the gutter edge of the blank backside of each plate, and an offset mirror image along the gutter margin of the facing plates - this is how the plates were mounted and is normal to all copies; there is just a bit of foxing found on the blank backsides and on a couple plates, the binding is shaky and is split between each plate, the plates could easily come out with a tug but currently all plates but one are still holding on by the sewn binding (plate 32 is loose but laid-in its proper place). Despite the flaws this is one of the nicer copies I have seen because the plates, which are the heart of this book, are all present, bright, clean, and clear.

About MARIA LANI (from Vanity Fair website):

******Maria Lani Was the Muse of Modernist Masters - Then She Vanished Without a Trace

Ninety years ago, an enigmatic actress and model swept through Paris, transfixing Cocteau, Matisse, Chagall, and dozens more of the day's visual artists. When she disappeared from the public eye, a myth emerged in her wake. Was she really who she said she was?(Please see the full Vanity Fair article by typing into the search bar: "Maria Lani Was the Muse of Modernist Masters Then She Vanished Without a Trace".)******

About MARIA LANI (from Wikipedia):

******Maria Lani (nee Maria Jeleniewicz), b.1895 d.1954, was an aspiring film actress and artists' model. In the late 1920s she was portrayed in paintings and sculpture by over fifty artists, including Bonnard, Chagall, Cocteau, Derain, Matisse, Rouault, and Suzanne Valadon.

Maria Lani was born in Kolno, Poland. She went to Paris in the spring of 1928 and falsely proclaimed herself to be a silent film star who had worked in Berlin. She claimed to be working on a film which required multiple portraits as part of the plot. She befriended Jean Cocteau and other artists, many of whom made portraits of her.

A limited edition book about Lani and the portraits was published in 1929 by Éditions des Quatre Chemins. It included fifty-one plates of artworks modeled by Maria Lani.

The film never materialized, but the portraits were exhibited as a group in Europe and the United States, and Lani kept them in her possession. She died in 1954 and was buried in a pauper's grave.******

BOOKBINDING MAGAZINE : The Official Business Paper of the Bookbinding Industry : A Magazine of Business Building Ideas for the Bindery. Arthur Freund and Leo H. Joachim, Publishers. Published in New York, 1929-1931. SIX ISSUES: Vol. X, No. 6, Dec. 1929; Vol. XI, No. 1, Jan. 1930; Vol. XI, No. 3, Mar. 1930; Vol.XI, No. 4, Apr. 1930; Vol. XII, No. 4, Oct. 1930; Vol. XIII, No. 8, May 1931. Softcover magazines, side stapled, 8.5x11.5 inches, approximately 70 pages per issue, including lots of ads for bookbinding machinery and materials. These 6 issues are in generally GOOD condition, the spines have wear including scrapes and peeling; there are some creases and general signs of handling; overall the issues are used but still tight, bright, clean and unmarked. Articles include: Bookbinding Industrial Exhibits; Views on Trade Outlook by Bookbinders (published in 1930, the beginning of the Great Depression); Local Bookbinders Associations; In Memoriam: George K. Bird; When a Woman Runs a Bindery; Economics of Book Production; If I Had to Choose Again I'd Be a Bookbinder; and more. A nice collection of six issues of this bookbinding trade magazine, all published at the beginning of the Great Depression. INTERNATIONAL BUYERS PLEASE NOTE: These six issues are heavy and will require substantial additional shipping charges. After placing your order you will be notified of the additional charges and be able to accept or reject them before your payment is processed. Or you can contact me ahead of time to find out the shipping charge to your country. Thanks.

SHAMROCK OVER IRELAND! from the "Shamrock Song" by Katharine Tynan.

"Made for ALBERT M. BENDER by ANSEL ADAMS / Saint Patrick's Day - March seventeenth nineteen thirty-nine".

Fold-open broadside, folded measures 9.5x12.5 inches oblong, folds open to show two inner panels, the entire sheet can fold open to show all 4 front facing panels, the backside is blank. Folded open the sheet measures 19 x 25 inches.

The broadside was made by ANSEL ADAMS for his friend and patron, ALBERT M. BENDER. Printed by Johnck & Seeger, Printers, San Francisco, as stated on the bottom corner of the rear panel of the folded broadside.

FAIR PLUS condition: there is creasing around the center fold, corners and edges; the rear panel (when folded) has a 1 inch closed tear to the bottom edge where the printer's information is printed; there is light soiling here and there; still a solid and bright copy. The folded broadside came in a plain heavy stock envelope, which remains in good condition.

Rare ANSEL ADAMS / ALBERT M. BENDER item. OCLC notes only six copies held worldwide, including ones at Trinity College Dublin, the National Library of Ireland, Stanford University, U.C. Berkeley, and the Huntington Library.

About ALBERT M. BENDER (from Wikipedia):

******Albert Maurice Bender (born Dublin 1866 died San Francisco 1941) was a German-Irish-American art collector who was one of the leading patrons of the arts in San Francisco in the 1920s and 1930s. HE PLAYED A KEY ROLE IN THE EARLY CAREER OF ANSEL ADAMS and was one of Diego Rivera's first American patrons. By providing financial assistance to artists, writers, and institutions, he had a significant impact on the cultural development of the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.

A lover of literature from an early age, Bender began collecting rare books and helped create the Book Club of California in 1912. Inspired by his cousin Anne Bremer, a professional artist, Bender began collecting art,

Bender enjoyed giving things away even more than he liked acquiring them, and he became a prolific donor to Bay Area museums and libraries. Beginning in 1932 he donated 260 pieces of art to the National Museum of Ireland in memory of his mother. He gave important collections of rare books and fine printing to Mills College, Stanford University, the University of California, and the San Francisco Public Library. Stanford University has a Bender Room in its library.

Bender helped launch the career of many artists and photographers, including Ansel Adams. He financed the publication of Adams's first portfolio (Parmelian Prints of the High Sierras, 1927) and his first book (Taos Pueblo, with author Mary Hunter Austin, 1930).******