The Welsh Fairy Book Jenkyn Thomas, William & Willy Pogany (Illustrator)

Some fading to spine. Some scuffs to head & tail of spine & gentle scuffs to corners. Very mild discolouration spots on back cover & small stain (>1cm) on front cover. Browning on half-title page, & some foxing on title page & page 215. Hingecrack (pictured) pages 48-49. Small tears (>1.5cm pages 52-53, 66-77,117,165) Small stain (>1.5cm pages 134, 153). Stains to joint (pictured - Pages 216-218). Undated (Though copies held at British Library); Original publishers blue pictorial cloth with lettering stamped in gilt & decoration in red, green & grey depicting Art Nouveau design of a woman playing a Celtic harp amid stars. Blind stamped spine illustration in similar style & colours depicting woman dancing in traditional Welsh stove-pipe hat amid stars. Endpapers illustrated with line drawings in grey & silver shimmer ink. Full page colour illustration & illustrated title page in red & black ink complete with tissue guard. Illustrated contents page. Red ink heading titles throughout. Highly decorative illustrated title page for each story & most with black ink vignettes. Beautiful illustrated initials throughout text body. Includes preface by the author & guide to Welsh pronounciation. A handsome first edition of this cornerstone in the preservation and popularization of Welsh folklore, Thomas s collection captures the magic of native fairy tales & legends during the Celtic Revival. The collaboration with Pogany then at the dawn of his career adds great artistic significance, his elegant Art Nouveau style perfectly complementing Thomas s lyrical retellings. A beautiful & important first edition uniting two major figures in early 20th-century folklore & illustration. This enchanting collection brings together eighty-three captivating tales of witches, spirits, enchantments & other wonders. A timeless volume certain to charm readers & lovers of fairy lore of all ages. ; 20.6 cm x 14.5 cm x 4 cm Original pictorial cloth binding