1882 Milton's Paradise Lost - Illustrated by Gustave Doré - Large Antique Hardback Book

A stunning book this one. Here is a large Folio edition of Milton's Paradise Lost. Beautifully illustrated with fifty engravings by Gustave Doré. Representing the absolute peak of Victorian wood-engraving technology, with iconic imagery. Published by Cassell, Petter and Galpin of London in 1882. In gorgeous decorative red cloth. Designed as a luxury status symbol for middle- and upper-class Victorian parlours. The contents are in excellent condition. Has some wear to the red cloth but remains an eye-catching volume. Condition in detail below.

Inside the pages are clean, bright and tightly bound with no inscriptions or markings of previous ownership. All fifty illustrated plates, with their captioned tissue-guards are present and in top order. (Some fraying to the edge of one plate and its tissue). Doré’s dramatic use of light and shadow (chiaroscuro) perfectly captured the cosmic scale of Milton’s work. His depictions of Satan's fall from Heaven, the vast landscapes of Pandemonium, and the innocence of Adam and Eve in Eden etc. became the definitive visual interpretation of Paradise Lost for generations. All outside edges are shiny gilt.

Red decorative cloth over boards have bevelled edges, and decoration to the front and spine. Has rubbing to the cloth on the corners to reveal boards beneath. Some rubbing and light staining to the red cloth in places. A couple of scuffs to the cloth. Rubbing also to the cloth on the spine ends where there is some fraying, and again revealing boards beneath. With a 3 cm split to the cloth at the spine head where it meets the front board. A small black ink blot on the spine just underneath the titles. The decoration on the front remains bright and despite a bit of wear to the cloth this is a fantastic book.

Your antique copy of Milton's Paradise Lost will be wrapped with care in tissue and ribbon* and sent well packaged. I am always happy to add a gift card with message to the parcel.

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H 35 cm x 29 cm, 329 pages, 3.3 kg. I dispatch worldwide daily from the UK. (There are just a very few countries which I am unable to ship to).

* If you would prefer for your book not to be decoratively wrapped and sent simply in the full protective packaging please add a note to the order.

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