First edition, two volumes. One of 1500 sets of the "ordinary issue", there are also 300 sets printed on Van Gelder paper. This copy one of a handful bound in a beautiful hand-painted vellum binding by Cedric Chivers. Each volume has a hand-painted scene based on Beardsley's designs, volume one reproducing 'How Four Queens Found Launcelot Sleeping' and volume two, "The Achieving of the Sangreal." The designs have gilt borders and then decorative borders with floral motifs. The design is further decorated with gilt dots. Each volume has the spine painted with lettering after Beardsley and intertwined Art Nouveau style flowers and many gilt dots. Top edge gilt. Two mounted photogravure frontispieces and 18 full page wood engravings (including five double-page), numerous text illustrations, and approximately 350 designs for chapter headings and borders, all by Aubrey Beardsley. A very good set indeed, vellum a little dusty.

One of the most iconic books of the fin de siècle this combination of Beardsley, Malory and Cedric Chivers is an absolute delight.
Always an avid reader Beardsley frequented London's antiquarian book shops, where he forged a friendship with book shop owner, Frederick Evans. Evans admired Aubrey's work and introduced him to a fellow customer, publisher J.M. Dent. Dent was planning a beautifully illustrated version of Malory's Morte D'Arthur, along the lines of some of Morris's Kelmscott Press books, but using a less expensive printing process. Loath to pay the elevated fee William Morris would charge for this commission, Dent was persuaded to employ Aubrey Beardsley. To help secure this commission Beardsley drew The Achieving of the Sangreal. The images drawn for this volume remain the artist's most striking work and have not been equalled by any of his many disciples.
Chivers' vellucent bindings are beautiful and delicate, they came about when Chivers invented a process to make vellum translucent. The cover design was painted on a separate sheet and then had a thin sheet of vellum laid over it. The gilt tooling is then applied to the top of this. In his catalogue of Books in Beautiful Bindings Chivers describes this books as 'Bound in whole vellucent from a design by the illustrator of the book. A figure panel enclosed in a floral border.'

Stock ID: 33267