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Books with paper wrappers in the The Robin de Beaumont Collection
Robin de
Beaumont was a pre-eminent collector and bookseller of Victorian books. He died
in 2023 aged 97. Details of his life and collecting are available via the
Sheila Markham interview https://www.sheila-markham.com/interviews/robin-de-beaumont.html
His
collection of Victorian publications was one of the finest, as the condition of
a book was paramount – always the copy in best condition was sought and
retained, whilst copies in a lesser condition were sold. Books with provenance
he frequently purchased. I had become familiar with some of the publishers’
bindings in his collection, having provided an essay and descriptive entries
for the four hundred books that he gifted to the British Museum in 1994,
entitled: “Prints, Provenance and decorated book covers. Cataloguing The
British Museum Robin de Beaumont Collection.” https://victorianbookbindings.blogspot.com/2019 /
His family
put up his collection for auction, via Bonhams. Consequently, an online sale of
the collection was held on 31 January 2024. Purchases of Lots 188 (grouped
together under the heading paper wrappers) and 189 (yellowbacks) at the online
auction were acquired by the British Library, with generous support from the BL
Collections Trust. The British Library decided to make images and descriptions
for each of these books in these two lots, using Wikimedia Commons.
For each
de Beaumont book entry, images were normally made of: the covers and the spine;
the title page; the frontispiece, if present; the notes, the bookplate,
endpapers and pastedowns. In the notes field of each Wikimedia entry, there a
full description of the work, and its book covers. de Beaumont routinely wrote
notes regarding where and when the book was purchased and price paid.
It is
clear that he collected these cheaper books for many years. Some are in poor
condition, probably meaning that other copies were not readily available for
purchase. The examples of paper wrappers below attest the popularity of this
form of illustration, printing of text and binding.
The
context in which these books were made and published
Publisher’s
titles or other advertisements often printed on the lower cover of books in
Lots 188 and 189. The price of one shilling frequently appears on these books -
some six pence today. This was quite a bit of money at the time. However, there
were large numbers of books published in this period for a penny or two pence.
The British Library book Penny Dreadfuls… The Barry Ono Collection (1998),
together with a film of Barry Ono showing his collection (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgS9Bq2E3ew - and The Aldine Library “O’er Land and Sea”
https://uk.pinterest.com/search/my_pins/?q=aldine%20library&rs=ac -
these examples provide details of books published for a mass market.
Additionally, publishers’ lists of their own books were very frequently printed
on endpapers, pastedowns and lower covers (see: https://uk.pinterest.com/edmundking/victorian-publishers-titles/ )
Lot 188
consisted of ninety-seven books, bound in a variety of paper wrappers. (The
British Library shelfmarks are C.188.a. 604 to C.188.a.701.) There is a summary
essay of the books in lot 189 – yellowbacks - at: https://victorianbookbindings.blogspot.com/2024/12/
Gowans
& Gray (Lot188)
The books
produced by Gowans & Gray group themselves; most have glassine dust jackets
over paper wrappers. The upper cover of the dust jacket for each book has an
illustration. There is an essay by Lionel Gossman, in the Victorian web, which
gives details of this company’s publishing activities: https://victorianweb.org/history/scotland/17.html
Repertory
Plays issued by
this publisher were amongst the most numerous of the publications in paper
wrappers collected by de Beaumont. A list of these is at Appendix A.
Other
series by Gowans & Gray are listed as Appendix B.
Books with
striking/ unusual designs (not Gowans & Gray) are at Appendix C.
Glassine
– origin
From American
Stationer, no. 984 (1 May 1894): “A new make of paper for wrapping books
has just been brought out by Spalding & Hodge, of Drury Lane, the
well-known paper makers under the title of “Glassine”. It is thin but strongly
made, a semi-transparent kind of greaseproof and of course dampproof paper,
admirably adapted for protecting the outer fold of books- whether on the
publisher’s shelves or in the private library is purely a matter of taste. It
is extremely useful, and as it is sufficiently transparent to admit of the
title of the book being easily seen quite through it, popularity is sure to
await it.” (quoted by Godburn, Nineteenth Century Dust Jackets (2016) p.
130.)
Another early reference to glassine is from The
Bookseller 5 August 1932, p.247ff. A. J. Hoppe “Book-Wrappers. A paper read to
the Society of Bookmen.” Looking back to the early use of glassine, Hoppe states:
“… [the publisher] A. & C. Black, in 1900, began to publish their
delightful series of “Beautiful Books”. These had an artistic cover, the work
of A. A. Turbayne, printed in two colours from blocks.”
All of the
books in the Gowans & Gray Repertory Plays series, found in Lot 188, were issued
in white paper wrappers, which were then overlaid with glassine dust jackets;
each book had an illustration printed/blocked on the upper cover of the dust
wrapper. Artists represented in this list are: Charles R. Dowell, Ethel Lewis,
Alan G. MacNaughton, Ernest Archibald Taylor – the husband of Jessie M. King -
George Whitelaw. Below are some
examples of the work of each artist. Despite their age, the colours have
endured well; The artwork in inventive, and related to the content of
each play’s text. They show us how original artwork could be created and
printed, for low priced books of this kind.
The
illustrations of these covers are all available, with detailed descriptions, in
Wikimedia Commons at:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Formerly_Robin_de_Beaumont_Collection
(alternatively,
if you are already logged into Wikimedia Commons, then keying into the Wiki search
box, the category: Formerly Robin de
Beaumont collection enables all the
books to be viewed together.)
Sample cover are:
Ethel Lewis C188a628
Ernest Archibald Taylor C188a666
George
Whitelaw C188a620
Appendix
A List of Gowans Repertory Plays acquired by Robin de Beaumont
Gowans
& Gray published these books as the series Repertory Plays, with
glassine dust jackets. (This list is in order of R. P. number). The date of publication is not necessarily the date of first
issue, as there were many reprints/ re-issues of individual plays. Robin de
Beaumont managed to acquire twenty books in the Repertory Plays series.
One gets a
glimpse of what de Beaumont could not/ did not collect by looking at some of
the variety of (glassine) dust jackets held at the Thomas Nelson Archive.
https://libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk/annexe/tag/repertory-plays/
Lists of
the Repertory Plays were printed at the end of a volume, from time to
time.
Down,
Oliphant. The Maker of Dreams. A fantasy in one act. After George Whitelaw.
1929. R. P. No. 8. C188a620.
Down, Oliphant.
Bal Masque. A play in one act. After Ernest Archibald Taylor. 1924.R. P. No.
19. C188a627.
Forrest,
Charles E. The shepherd. A one-act rural play. 1922. R. P. No. 23. C188a654.
Sladen-Smith,
Francis. The man who wouldn’t go to heaven. 1929. R. P. No. 27. C188a629.
Grant,
Neil Forbes. A valuable rival. A play in one act. 1922. R.P. No. 28. C188a626.
Brighouse,
Harold. The happy hangman. A grotesque in one act. 1922. R. P. No. 29.
C188a656.
Bell, John
Joy. Thread O’ Scarlet. A play in one act. After Alan G MacNaughton. 1923. R.
P. No. 35. C188a623.
Phillpotts,
Adelaide Eden. Camillus and the Schoolmaster. A play in one act. 1923. R. P.
No. 38 C188a666.
Cocker,
William Dixon. The Wooin’ O’t. A comedy in one act. 1925. R. P. No. 43.
C188a624.
Cropper,
Margaret. The water-woman. A play. 1926. R. P. No. 51. C188a630.
Rae,
Katharine T. The ambition of Annabella Stordie. A problem play in one act.
After Charles R. Dowell. 1927. R. P. No. 59.
C188a621.
Lawrence,
Charles Edward. Home. A play in one act. 1932. R. P. No. 83. C188a664.
Sladen-Smith,
Francis. The Sacred Cat. A diversion in one act. 1928. After Alan G.
MacNaughton. R. P. No. 85. C188a658.
Douglas,
Ian. Emigration at first sight. A play in one act. 1930. R. P. No. 105.
C188a622.
Darmady E.
S. A trunk-call. A dramatic sketch in one act.1933. R. P. No. 110. C188.a.618.
Kelly,
John Donald. Queer Street. A comedy in one act. 1927. R. P. No. 120. C188a617.
White,
Leonard. Reforming a burglar. A comedy in one act. After Ethel Lewis. R. P. No.
136. C188a628.
Grant,
Neil. The centre-forward. After Alan G MacNaughton.
1932. R. P. No. 139. C188a616.
Stewart,
Hal Douglas. The blind eye. Another historical impertinence in one act. After
Ethel Lewis [1932]. R. P. No. 142. C188a625.
Sladen-Smith,
Francis. An Assyrian afternoon. 1933. R.
P. No. 148. C188a677.
Appendix
B
Other
series
Gowans
Nature Books
Berridge,
Walter Sidney. Birds at the zoo. Second series. 1914. Gowans Nature Books No.
27. C188a632.
Gowans
Plays for Children
Jewson,
Edith M. Rosemary’s Garden. A fairy mystery play in three acts to be played by
children for grown-up people. 1921. Plays for Children. No. 2. C188a619.
Gandy, Ida.
The fairy fruit. A play for children. 1927. After Jessie M. King. Plays for
Children No. 8. C188c615.
Cadogan
Booklets
Goldsmith,
Oliver. The Deserted Village and other poems. 1907. Cadogan Booklets No. 11.
C188a637.
Gowan’ s
International Library
Budge,
Ernest Alfred Wallis, Sir. Egyptian Fairy Tales. Told in English by Sir E. A.
Wallis Budge. Keeper of Egyptian and Assyrian Antiquities in the British
Museum. 1923. After Alan G MacNaughton. Gowans International Library No. 48. Bound
at the end is a list of ‘Gowan’s International Library, nos. 1-50, Neatly
Printed on Pretty Parchment Covers. Price 1s. net per volume.’ C188a657.
Gowan’s
Nature Books
Wild
Flowers at Home. Third series. Sixty photographs by Somerville Hastings, of
British Plants growing in their haunts. 1908.
Gowan’s Nature Books. No. 9. C188a653.
Berridge,
Walter Sidney. Birds at the zoo. Second series. 1914. Gowan’s Nature Books. No.
27. C188a652.
Appendix
C
Unusual
books/ Curiosities
When
working on these books, to provide images and detailed descriptions, some of the
images below are a personal selection of striking illustrations; or, of unusual
format.
The
language of the eye. Female Beauty and
General Character… 1856. C188a605
Rimmel’s
1862 Almanack. C188a613. Rich colours
The Sooty
Side. [ca. 1900] C188a631. Advertisement booklet for The Ramoneur Company – Chimney Sweeps.
Visible
arithmetic Multiplication Tale. 1856. C188a640. Printed on cloth
The
ambition of Annabelle Stordie. 1927. C188a621. After Charles R. Dowell. Silhouettes
of the protagonists created through contrast between the cream/ yellow of the
glassine and the black of the print.
Picture letters
(for children). 1864. C188a643
North
British Insurance Society Almanack. 1862. C188a655. Probably commonplace at the
time of publication; now rare.
Wedding
gloves – dozen pair. 1855. Illustrated by “Phiz” [Hablot Knight Browne], who
illustrated books by Charles Dickens. C188a673
Advertisement
for C. Laight & Co. Needle Fish Hook & Tackle Manufactory. 1871. C188a599
Guide to
St Andrews. [1859]. C188a674. Colour printing. Fashionable mediaeval decoration and
lettering.
Science in a nutshell. 1882. Yellowback. C188a600.
Edmund M B
King
St Albans
January
2025
