A HOUSE OF POMEGRANATES. The Design & Decoration of This Book by C. Ricketts & by C. H. Shannon.

First edition, one of 1,000 unnumbered copies. Attractive early twentieth century Art Nouveau binding of quarter blue morocco over marbled boards, the spine with five raised bands ruled in gilt, compartments decorated with gilt pomegranate tree motif and with titles in gilt. Top edge gilt. Tricolour silk page marker. Illustrated with an engraved title page, four plates by Ricketts and numerous illustrations in the text. A very good copy indeed, the binding square, firm and bright with a hint of fading to the spine. The contents, with toning to the endpapers and some light scattered spotting are otherwise in very good order and remain free from any previous owner's inscriptions or stamps. The plates by Ricketts are, as usual, quite faint due to the printing method (see Mason, Bibliography of Oscar Wilde, 347). A splendid copy.

The first edition of this book of fairy tales by Oscar Wilde, beautifully illustrated in the Aesthetic Movement style by Charles Ricketts and his partner Charles Shannon.