Fine Books

Alfred William Pollard (1859-1944) was an English bibliographer who was widely credited for bringing a higher level of scholarly rigor to the study of Shakespearean texts. This volume, part of the Connoisseur's Library, was intended to be a survey of both printing and book illustration from its beginnings to the (then) current day. In his preface, Mr. Pollard apologies for falling a bit short of the mark due to constraints both of "the limits of the present volume [and] of the author's working life". He promises that the full scope of printing has been included, but, alas, illustration only through about 1780; one wonders if he had planned another volume to cover that story of "a hundred and thirty years of very interesting picture-work". What is included is fascinating to any student of the history of printing and illustration, and covers subjects such "Collectors and Collecting", "Block Books", "The Invention of Printing", Early Dutch, German, French, Spanish, and Italian Illustrated Books, "Printing in England", and "Modern Fine Printings", among others. This collection of literature attempts to compile many of the classic works that have stood the test of time and offer them at a reduced, affordable price, in an attractive volume so that everyone can enjoy them.