Richard F. Burton

Finely bound set of Burton's translation of the Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night.

• Sold as a set of 12.
• Translated by Richard F. Burton (English).
• Edited by Leonard C. Smithers (English).
• London: H. S. Nichols, Ltd., 1897.
• Illustrated with a series of seventy-one original illustrations reproduced from the original pictures in oils specially painted by Albert Letchford.
• Bound in the publisher's deluxe binding, half dark blue morocco, ribbed gilt decorated spines, "Kamashastra Edition" gilt to the foot of the spines, marbled pastedowns and endpapers, top edges gilt, others uncut as issued.

Penzer makes no mention of this binding in his bibliography. This edition conforms to the "Illustrated Library Edition" that Penzer describes. It was actually produced for the Grolier Society, though their name does not appear anywhere. It includes, as the title-page states, the seventy-one illustrations by Letchford, and was issued in four binding styles known to Penzer. But this binding style was not known and consequently was not mentioned. Interestingly enough, the illustrations to The Arabian Nights were bound in and issued with the text for the first time by Nichols as here. Penzer describes those illustrations being first inserted within the "Library Edition," that English printing, modeled after the Benares Edition and to which he thus ascribes the name "Illustrated Library Edition."